3 Weeks Left To Lock In Hyatt Hotels Before Harsh 2023 Category Changes

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Update: There are only 12 hours left to lock in current rates, which will change on Tuesday at 9am ET!

Originally posted on 3/8:

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 is back with their annual category changes, and this one is a doozy.

To their credit, Hyatt still has award charts, though they added peak and off-peak pricing to their charts last year 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. So from that standpoint, Hyatt looks great. However these category changes seem to be getting worse and worse.

214 hotels are going up in category while 158 hotels are going down in category this year.

Book stays before 3/28 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 for after 3/28 that is going down, you will automatically receive a points refund starting on 3/28.

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.

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

Big losses there include the Andaz San Diego, Lahaina Shores Beach Resort, Hyatt Regency Amsterdam, Park Hyatt Saigon, and Grand Hyatt Seoul, which are no longer eligible for those anniversary nights as they climb from category 4 to 5. The Hyatt Place Moab, near some of Utah’s magnificent national parks, just jumped last year from a category 2 to 4, and will now be a 5.

The Thompson Washington D.C. will be newly bookable with anniversary nights as it drops from a category 5 to 4.

Hotels going from category 7 to 8 will no longer be bookable with Globalist 1-7 free night certificates.

The Baha Mar in Nassau, Bahamas has phenomenal kosher restaurants, but will climb from a category 5 to 6. The Grand Hyatt Kauai, Hyatt Regency Aruba, Andaz 5th Avenue, and Hyatt Regency Maui all climb from a 6 to a 7 while the Park Hyatt Zurich will go from a 7 to 8. I’ve enjoyed my stays in all those hotels and the category climb certainly stings.

The Alila Marea Beach Resort Encinitas, which went from category 6 to 7 last year, now tops out at category 8.

The Ca’ Sagredo Hotel in Venice, located just half a mile from the Jewish Ghetto, also climbs from category 7 to 8.

The Andaz Costa Rica Resort at Peninsula Papagayo, which was once a great anniversary night eligible resort, will climb to category 6.

With hotels like the Hyatt Centric Key West now sharing category 8 with hotels like the Park Hyatt Paris and Sydney, one has to wonder when we will see a category 9 introduced?

All inclusive hotels, which have their own chart, get slammed even harder. The popular Hyatt Ziva Cancun and Zilara Cancun jump 2 categories while the highly rated Secrets Impression Moxché jumps 3 categories!

The Chase World of Hyatt credit card also offers bonus free nights upon reaching several spending thresholds, those too are limited to category 1-4.

Even with these changes, Hyatt points remain much more valuable than other hotel points, but the hotels moving from category 4 to 5 and from category 7 to 8 sure sting.

Sample hotels going up in category:

• Hyatt Regency Dubai, was 1, now 2
• Grand Hyatt Bali, was 1, now 2
• Hyatt Place Calgary Airport, was 1, now 2
• Hyatt Regency Atlanta, was 2, now 3
• Grand Hyatt Erawan Bangkok, was 2, now 3
• Hyatt Place Anchorage-Midtown, was 3, now 4
• Hyatt Place Fairbanks, was 2, now 3
• Hyatt Place Cleveland / Westlake / Crocker Park, was 2, now 3
• Hyatt Place Tempe / Phoenix Airport, was 3, now 4
• Hyatt Regency Orlando, was 3, now 4
• Hyatt Regency JFK Airport at Resorts World New York, was 3, now 4
• Anya Resort Tagaytay, Philippines, was 3, now 4
• Hyatt Regency Vancouver, was 3, now 4
• Hyatt Centric The Liberties Dublin, was 3, now 4
• Hotel La Compañia, Panama, was 3, now 5
• Andaz San Diego, was 4, now 5
• Hyatt House Naples, was 4, now 5
• Lahaina Shores Beach Resort, was 4, now 5
• Hyatt Regency Grand Reserve Puerto Rico, was 4, now 5
• Hyatt Place Moab, UT, was 4, now 5
• Grand Hyatt Jeju, South Korea, was 4, now 5
• Grand Hyatt Seoul, South Korea, was 4, now 5
• Park Hyatt Saigon, Vietnam, was 4, now 5
• Hyatt Regency Amsterdam, was 4, now 5
• Thompson Madrid, was 4, now 5
• Andaz West Hollywood, was 5, now 6
• Mar Monte Hotel, CA, was 5, now 6
• Wailea Ekahi Village, was 5, now 6
• Park Hyatt Dubai, was 5, now 6
• Park Hyatt Bangkok, was 5, now 6
• Andaz Costa Rica Resort at Peninsula Papagayo, was 5, now 6
• Grand Hyatt Baha Mar, was 5, now 6
• Andaz London Liverpool Street, was 5, now 6
• Park Hyatt Aviara, CA, was 6, now 7
• Grand Hyatt Vail, CO, was 6, now 7
• Grand Hyatt Kauai Resort & Spa, was 6, now 7
• Hyatt Regency Maui Resort and Spa, was 6, now 7
• Andaz 5th Avenue, was 6, now 7
• Hyatt Regency Aruba Resort Spa and Casino, was 6, now 7
• Los Altos Resort Costa Rica, was 6, now 7
• The Cape, a Thompson Hotel, was 6, now 7
• Park Hyatt Vienna, was 6, now 7
• Hôtel du Louvre, Paris, was 6, now 7
• Hotel Raphael, Paris, was 6, now 7
• Hyatt Paris Madeleine, Paris, was 6, now 7
• Alila Marea Beach Resort Encinitas, CA, was 7, now 8
• Carmel Valley Ranch, CA, was 7, now 8
• Hyatt Carmel Highlands, CA, was 7, now 8
• Park Hyatt Beaver Creek Resort and Spa, was 7, now 8
• Hyatt Centric Key West Resort & Spa, was 7, now 8
• Ksar Char-Bagh, Morocco, was 7, now 8
• Viceroy Bali, was 7, now 8
• Hotel Gajoen Tokyo, was 7, now 8
• Keemala, Phuket, Thailand, was 7, now 8
• Hotel Excelsior Dubrovnik, Croatia, was 7, now 8
• Hôtel Martinez, France, was 7, now 8
• Boheme Hotel, Mykonos, Greece, was 7, now 8
• Mykonos Riviera Hotel & Spa, Greece, was 7, now 8
• 7Pines Resort Sardinia, Italy, was 7, now 8
• Ca’ Sagredo Hotel, Venice, Italy, was 7, now 8
• Grand Hotel Cocumella, Italy, was 7, now 8
• Park Hyatt Zurich, was 7, now 8

Sample hotels going down in category:

• Hyatt House Paris Charles de Gaulle Airport, was 2, now 1
• El Capitan Hotel, CA, was 3, now 2
• Hyatt Place Washington DC / White House, was 4, now 3
• Hyatt Centric Downtown Minneapolis, was 4, now 3
• The Plettenberg, South Africa, was 4, now 3
• Hyatt Regency Guam, was 4, now 3
• Hyatt Place Kyoto, was 4, now 3
• Andaz Xintiandi, Shanghai, was 4, now 3
• Akyra Manor Chiang Mai, Thailand, was 4, now 3
• Amani Boutique Hotel Zanzibar, Tanzania, was 5, now 4
• Thompson Washington D.C., was 5, now 4
• The Grady, KY, was 5, now 4
• Spa Village Resort Tembok Bali, was 5, now 4
• Alta Las Palomas, Costa Rica, was 5, now 4
• Hotel des Gouverneurs, France, was 5, now 4
• Hyatt Regency Cologne, Germany, was 5, now 4
• Rodos Park Suites & Spa, Greece, was 5, now 4
• Palácio Estoril Hotel, Golf & Wellness, Portugal, was 5, now 4
• Thompson Denver, was 6, now 5
• Hyatt Regency Kyoto, was 6, now 5
• Twinpalms Phuket, was 6, now 5
• Hotel Vestibul Palace, Croatia, was 6, now 5
• Pädaste Manor, Estonia, was 6, now 5
• Donna Carmela Resort and Lodges, Italy, was 6, now 5
• Stonebridge Inn, CO, was 7, now 5
• Hemingways Nairobi, Kenya, was 7, now 6
• Nanuku Resort, Fiji, was 7, now 6
• French Coco, Martinique, was 7, now 6
• Columbia Beach Resort, Cyprus, was 7, now 6
• Pacific Resort Aitutaki, Cook Islands, was 8, now 7
• The Inn at English Harbour, Antigua and Barbuda, was 8, now 7
• Hotel & Spa des Pecheurs, France, was 8, now 7
• Hôtel Le Pashmina Le Refuge, France, was 8, now 7
• Eagles Villas, Greece, was 8, now 7
• S. Nicolas Bay Resort Hotel & Villas, Greece, was 8, now 7

Sample all-inclusive hotels going up in category:

• Dreams Macao Beach Punta Cana, Dominican Republic, was B, now C
• Breathless Riviera Cancun Resort & Spa, was B, now C
• Dreams Cozumel Cape Resort & Spa, was B, now C
• Dreams Tulum Resort & Spa, was B, now C
• Hyatt Ziva Los Cabos, was B, now D
• Secrets Papagayo Costa Rica, was C, now D
• Hyatt Zilara Rose Hall, Jamaica, was C, now D
• Hyatt Ziva Rose Hall, Jamaica, was C, now D
• Breathless Cabo San Lucas Resort & Spa, was C, now D
• Secrets Maroma Beach Riviera Cancun, was C, now D
• Secrets St. Martin Resort & Spa, was C, now D
• Hyatt Zilara Cap Cana, Dominican Republic, was C, now E
• Hyatt Ziva Cap Cana, Dominican Republic, was C, now E
• Zoëtry Agua Punta Cana, Dominican Republic, was C, now E
• Hyatt Zilara Cancun, was C, now E
• Hyatt Ziva Cancun, was C, now E
• Secrets Moxché Playa del Carmen, was C, now E
• Zoëtry Casa del Mar Los Cabos, was C, now E
• Secrets Impression Moxché, Mexico, was C, now F

Here are Hyatt’s award charts:

Want to lock in stays under the current rates?

If you, a member in your household, or an authorized user has one of the following Chase cards, you can transfer points into miles:

• Chase Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card® Card has 60K signup bonus, earns 2.1 points per dollar on travel, 3.1 points per dollar on dining, streaming, and online groceries, has a $50 hotel credit, can transfer all Chase points into miles, and points are worth at least 1.3 cents each for paid travel or pay yourself back categories ($95 annual fee). Read more here.
• Chase Sapphire Reserve® has a 60K signup bonus, 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 or pay yourself back categories ($550 annual fee with $300 travel credit). Read more here.
• Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card  earns 3 points per dollar 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 or pay yourself back categories ($95 annual fee). Read more here.

Chase no-annual fee cards that are fantastic for earning points, but require one of the cards above for points transfers include:

• Ink Business Cash® Credit Card earns 5 points per dollar on cable, TV, telecom, cellular, office supply stores, and gift cards from office supply stores, plus 2 points per dollar on dining and gas ($0 annual fee). Read more here.
• Ink Business Unlimited® Credit Card earns 1.5 points per dollar everywhere ($0 annual fee). Read more here.
• Chase Freedom Flex has a 20K signup bonus and 5 points per dollar on groceries for 12 months,, plus 5 points on rotating categories, 5 points per dollar on travel purchased through the Chase Ultimate Rewards portal, and 3 points per dollar on dining and drugstores ($0 annual fee). Read more here.
• Chase Freedom Unlimited® has a signup bonus offering 20K points for spending $500 in 3 months and 5 points per dollar on groceries for 12 months, afterwards earn at least 1.5 points per dollar everywhere, 5 points per dollar on travel purchased through the Chase Ultimate Rewards portal, and 3 points per dollar on dining and drugstores ($0 annual fee). Read more here.

Which hotels will you book before rates go up?

HT: metsguy, via DDF