Another Year, Another Rough Hyatt Devaluation, But At Least The Award Charts Live On; Book Now To Lock In Lower Rates!

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Previous coverage:

• Hyatt 2010 Category Changes; Category 6 Added
• Hyatt 2013 Category Changes
• Hyatt 2014 Category Changes; Category 7 Added
• Hyatt 2015 Category Changes
• Hyatt 2016 Category Changes
• Hyatt 2017 Category Changes
• Hyatt 2018 Category Changes; Category 8 Added
• Hyatt 2019 Category Changes
• Hyatt 2020 Category Changes (postponed due to COVID)
• Hyatt 2021 Category Changes
• Hyatt Will Introduce Peak And Off-Peak Award Pricing
• Hyatt 2022 Category Changes; Hyatt Hotels Will Move To Category 8 For The First Time
• Hyatt 2023 Category Changes
• Hyatt 2024 Category Changes

This year’s category changes:

Hyatt is back with their annual category changes, and yet again, it’s a rough one.

To their credit, Hyatt still has award charts, though they added peak and off-peak pricing to their charts a few years ago to make stays more dynamically priced.

Hotel brands like Hilton, IHG, and Marriott have killed off their award charts, which means they are free to devalue their point at will. And they do. Hotels from all of those chains continue to get more and more expensive, both from a cash and point perspective.

From that standpoint, Hyatt looks great and remains a bargain compared to them. However, the percentage of hotels going up in points just keeps getting worse compared to hotels getting cheaper.

118 hotels are going up in category while just 33 hotels are going down in category this year. That’s a whopping 78% of category changes going up rather than down. Then again, that’s less than 10% of Hyatt hotels worldwide that are going up, compared to airlines that often raise the cost of awards systemwide in one fell swoop without warning.

The 2025 changes are rough, but certainly could have been much worse.

Lock in lower rates:

Book stays before 3/25 at 9am ET to lock in current rates for future stays at hotels that are going up. You can book stays up to 13 months in advance. Almost all hotel stays are cancellable for free until a certain amount of time before the stay (read the fine print).  If you have a reservation at a hotel after 3/25 that is going down, you will automatically receive a points refund starting on 3/25.

Note that you won’t be able to change the dates on a reservation after the price goes up, your only options are to use the stay or cancel it and get your points back. If you are booking a stay for longer than you might need it, consider booking in single night increments so that you can keep the old rate for the nights you want to use.

Anniversary night losses and gains:

Hotels going up from category 4 to 5 will no longer be bookable with anniversary nights from the Chase World of Hyatt credit card or from milestone awards, while hotels going from 5 down 4 will be eligible.

Big losses there include the Hyatt Regency Newport Beach, Hyatt Regency Orlando International Airport, The Bellevue Hotel Philadelphia, Hyatt Regency Hong Kong Tsim Sha Tsui, Hyatt Regency Tokyo, Hyatt House Tokyo Shibuya, Hyatt Regency Koh Samui, Hyatt Regency Vancouver, Hyatt Regency Paris Étoile, and Hyatt Centric The Liberties Dublin, which are no longer eligible for those anniversary nights as they climb from category 4 to 5.

The Hotel Figueroa Los Angeles, Dream South Beach-Miami Beach, Thompson Atlanta-Buckhead, Park Hyatt Doha and Grand Hyatt Jeju, will be newly bookable with anniversary nights as they drop from a category 5 to 4.

Category 8 losses:

Hotels going from category 7 to 8 will no longer be bookable with Globalist 1-7 free night certificates and will become 33% more expensive. That includes Grand Hyatt Kauai Resort & Spa, Andaz Peninsula Papagayo Resort Costa Rica, Andaz Tokyo Toranomon Hills, Park Hyatt Tokyo, Grand Hyatt Tokyo, and IL Tornabuoni Hotel, Florence.

No hotels are dropping from category 8 to 7.

Other notable hotel changes:

Other guest favorite hotels being devalued include the Thompson Palm Springs, Grand Hyatt Baha Mar, Hyatt Regency Kyoto, Hyatt Regency Coconut Point Resort and Spa, Andaz Bali, The Tribune Rome, Park Hyatt Buenos Aires, Andaz Amsterdam Prinsengracht, and Hyatt Regency London – The Churchill.

Guest favorite hotels that will become a better value include the Dream Hollywood, Thompson Hollywood, and Hyatt Regency Maui Resort and Spa

All-inclusive resorts being devalued include the Secrets Cap Cana Resort & Spa and the Secrets Maroma Beach Riviera Cancun.

The Zoëtry Marigot Bay, S. Lucia is the sole all-inclusive that will become a better points value.

Sample hotels going up in category:

• Wild Palms Hotel, CA, was 1, now 2
• Hyatt Place Atlanta/Alpharetta/North Point Mall GA, was 1, now 2
• Hyatt Place Detroit/Auburn Hills, MI, was 1, now 2
• Hyatt Place Canton, OH, was 1, now 2
• Hyatt Place Columbus / Polaris, OH, was 1, now 2
• Hyatt Place Pittsburgh Airport / Robinson Mall, PA, was 1, now 2
• Hyatt House Herndon/Reston, VA, was 1, now 2
• Hyatt Regency Delhi, India, was 1, now 2
• Hyatt Centric San Salvador, El Salvador, was 1, now 2
• Caption by Hyatt Namba Osaka, Japan, was 1, now 2
• Lindner Hotel Vienna Am Belvedere, Austria, was 1, now 2
• Lindner Hotel Antwerp, Belgium, was 1, now 2
• Lindner Hotel Prague Castle, Czech Republic, was 1, now 2
• Hyatt Place Frankfurt Airport, Germany, was 1, now 2
• Hyatt Place Flagstaff, AZ, was 2, now 3
• Hyatt Place Chicago/Midway Airport, IL, was 2, now 3
• Hyatt Place Boston/Braintree, MA, was 2, now 3
• Hyatt Regency Long Island, NY, was 2, now 3
• Hyatt Regency Pittsburgh International Airport, PA, was 2, now 3
• Hyatt Regency DFW International Airport, TX, was 2, now 3
• Hyatt Regency Houston Downtown, TX, was 2, now 3
• Hyatt Regency Houston/Galleria, TX, was 2, now 3
• Grand Hyatt Bali, Indonesia, was 2, now 3
• Hyatt Place Wilmington Riverfront, DE, was 3, now 4
• Grand Hyatt Tampa Bay, FL, was 3, now 4
• Hotel Kansas City, MO, was 3, now 4
• Hyatt Place Flushing/LaGuardia Airport, NY, was 3, now 4
• The Pell, RI, was 3, now 4
• Alila Ubud, Indonesia, was 3, now 4
• Hyatt Regency Phuket Resort, Thailand, was 3, now 4
• Hyatt Regency Mexico City, Mexico, was 3, now 4
• Hyatt Regency Barcelona Tower, Spain, was 3, now 4
• Hyatt Regency Newport Beach, CA, was 4, now 5
• Hyatt Regency Orlando International Airport, FL, was 4, now 5
• The Bellevue Hotel, Philadelphia, PA, was 4, now 5
• Hyatt Regency Hong Kong Tsim Sha Tsui, was 4, now 5
• Hyatt Regency Tokyo, Japan, was 4, now 5
• Hyatt House Tokyo Shibuya, Japan, was 4, now 5
• Hyatt Regency Koh Samui, Thailand, was 4, now 5
• Hyatt Regency Vancouver, Canada, was 4, now 5
• Hyatt Regency Paris Étoile, France, was 4, now 5
• Hyatt Centric The Liberties Dublin, Ireland, was 4, now 5
• Grand Hyatt at SFO, CA, was 5, now 6
• Grand Hyatt Indian Wells Resort & Villas, CA, was 5, now 6
• Thompson Palm Springs, CA, was 5, now 6
• Hyatt Regency Coconut Point Resort and Spa, FL, was 5, now 6
• Andaz Bali, Indonesia, was 5, now 6
• Hyatt Regency Kyoto, Japan, was 5, now 6
• The Tribune, Rome, Italy, was 5, now 6
• Hyatt Regency London Blackfriars, UK, was 5, now 6
• Palacio Duhau – Park Hyatt Buenos Aires, Argentina, was 6, now 7
• Grand Hyatt Baha Mar, Bahamas, was 6, now 7
• Andaz Amsterdam Prinsengracht, Netherlands, was 6, now 7
• Hyatt Regency London – The Churchill, UK, was 6, now 7
• Grand Hyatt Kauai Resort & Spa, HI, was 7, now 8
• Andaz Tokyo Toranomon Hills, Japan, was 7, now 8
• Grand Hyatt Tokyo, Japan, was 7, now 8
• Park Hyatt Tokyo, Japan, was 7, now 8
• Andaz Peninsula Papagayo Resort, Costa Rica, was 7, now 8
• IL Tornabuoni Hotel, Florence, Italy, was 7, now 8

Sample hotels going down in category:

• Grand Hyatt Amman, Jordan, was 2, now 1
• Hyatt Regency Baytown – Houston, TX, was 3, now 2
• Grand Hyatt Muscat, Oman, was 3, now 2
• Grand Hyatt Shenzhen, China, was 3, now 2
• Hyatt Regency Sonoma Wine Country, CA, was 4, now 3
• Park Hyatt Suzhou, China, was 4, now 3
• Park Hyatt Jakarta, Indonesia, was 4, now 3
• FirstName Bordeaux, France, was 4, now 3
• Hotel Figueroa, Los Angeles, CA, was 5, now 4
• Dream South Beach, Miami Beach, FL, was 5, now 4
• Thompson Atlanta-Buckhead, GA, was 5, now 4
• Park Hyatt Doha, Qatar, was 5, now 4
• Grand Hyatt Jeju, South Korea, was 5, now 4
• Dream Hollywood, CA, was 6, now 5
• Thompson Hollywood, CA, was 6, now 5
• Dream Nashville, TN, was 6, now 5
• Park Hyatt Busan, South Korea, was 6, now 5
• Hyatt Regency Maui Resort and Spa, HI, was 7, now 6

Sample all-inclusive hotels going up in category:

• Dreams Onyx Resort & Spa, Dominican Republic, was B, now C
• Dreams Las Mareas, Costa Rica, was C, now D
• Secrets Cap Cana Resort & Spa, Dominican Republic, was D, now E
• Breathless Montego Bay Resort & Spa, Jamaica, was D, now E
• Secrets Maroma Beach Riviera Cancun, Mexico, was D, now E

Sample all-inclusive hotels going down in category:

• Zoëtry Marigot Bay, S. Lucia, was F, now E

Hyatt’s award charts:

Transfer Chase points to lock in lower rates:

You can instantly transfer Chase points to Hyatt to lock in lower rates.

• Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card has a 60K signup bonus for spending $4K in 3 months, earns 2.1 points per dollar on travel after the card's 10% anniversary bonus, 3.1 points per dollar on dining, streaming, and online groceries after the card's 10% anniversary bonus, has a $50 hotel credit, can transfer all Chase points into miles, and points are worth at least 1.25 cents each for paid travel ($95 annual fee). Read more here.
• Chase Sapphire Reserve® has a 60K signup bonus for spending $4K in 3 months, earns 3 points per dollar on dining/travel, has a $300 travel credit, can transfer all Chase points into miles, and points are worth at least 1.5 cents each for paid travel ($550 annual fee with $300 travel credit). Read more here.
• Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card has a 90K signup bonus for spending $8K in 3 months, and earns 3 points per dollar on up to $150K of annual spending on shipping, advertising, and travel, can transfer all Chase points into miles, and points are worth at least 1.25 cents each for paid travel ($95 annual fee). Read more here.

• Ink Business Unlimited® Credit Card has a $750 signup bonus in the form of 75K points for spending $6K in 3 months, and earns 1.5 points per dollar on business purchases ($0 annual fee). Read more here.
• Ink Business Cash® Credit Card has a $350 signup bonus in the form of 35K points for spending $3K in 3 months and another $400 signup bonus in the form of 40K bonus points for spending another $3K in 6 months for a total of 75,000 Chase Ultimate points, plus if you have a Chase business checking account open on the card's first anniversary you will get a 10% points bonus on all earnings from card spending, this card earns 5 points per dollar on the first $25,000 in combined purchases on cable, TV, telecom, cellular, and office supply stores, plus 2 points per dollar on dining and gas on up to $25,000 in purchases ($0 annual fee). Read more here.
• Chase Freedom Flex has a 20K signup bonus, plus 5 points on rotating categories, 5 points per dollar on travel purchased through Chase Travel, and 3 points per dollar on dining and drugstores ($0 annual fee). Read more here.
• Chase Freedom Unlimited® has a signup bonus that earns an extra 1.5% cash back in the form of 1.5 points per dollar everywhere on up to $20K of spending during your first year, on top of at least 1.5 points per dollar everywhere, 5 points per dollar (marketed as 5% cash back) on travel purchased through  Chase Travel℠, and 3 points per dollar on dining and drugstores ($0 annual fee). Read more here.

Which hotels will you book before rates go up?