World of Hyatt is offering a 40% bonus on points sales from now till 1 Jan 2020 12.59 pm SGT. This is the largest public bonus that Hyatt offers.
Buy World of Hyatt points with a 40% bonus here
To trigger the 40% bonus, you need to purchase at least 5,000 points (pre-bonus). The last time Hyatt held a points sale, the minimum purchase to trigger the 40% bonus was 10,000 points, so this is much better for doing small account top-ups.
Buying points at a 40% bonus is equivalent to paying 1.71 US cents per point.
Each World of Hyatt account is only allowed to purchase a maximum of 55,000 World of Hyatt points a year (pre-bonus). However, you can also combine points across accounts to redeem them, so you and your spouse/traveling companion could opt for this if necessary.
World of Hyatt points expire after 24 consecutive months of inactivity. Any earning or redeeming activity will reset the clock.
As a reminder, here’s the current World of Hyatt award chart:
What can you redeem World of Hyatt Points for?
World of Hyatt has been busy acquiring smaller chains, and in the past few months we’ve seen Destination Hotels, Alila Hotels, Joie De Vivre and SLH get folded into the portfolio. This means more unique places to redeem your points.
An example of a unique place? Try Ventana Big Sur, an Alila Resort. It’s often in the shadow of the better-known Post Ranch Inn, but it’s still an amazing property in and of itself, nestled deep within the natural beauty of Big Sur. Rooms here cost upwards of US$1,100 per night during peak period, but can also be redeemed for 30,000 points a night, or US$513 under the current point sale.
Otherwise, buying Hyatt points is a way of accessing some of the portfolio’s top tier properties like the Park Hyatt Maldives, a Category 7 property which costs 30,000 points a night (US$513 a night if you buy points). Given that revenue rates here can be upwards of US$880 a night including taxes, there are deals to be had by buying points instead.
Park Hyatt Maldives
It’s not just the top tier properties which have great redemption opportunities- even the lower category World of Hyatt hotels can be good choices.
For instance, the Studios at Alila Seminyak is a Category 1 hotel that costs just 5,000 World of Hyatt points a night. If you purchase points during this sale, you will pay the equivalent of US$85 a night, lower than the US$130 rates you’d normally find during busy periods.
Cards to use
World of Hyatt points purchases are processed by Points.com and are charged in USD. You might want to consider using these cards to maximize your return from the purchase of World of Hyatt points:
- OCBC 90N Card: 4 mpd, no cap
- UOB Visa Signature: 4 mpd, minimum S$1,000, maximum S$2,000 per statement period
- DBS Woman’s World Mastercard: 4 mpd, capped at S$2,000 per month. 1.2 mpd will be credited as base points; it may be necessary to appeal to get the remaining 2.8 mpd credited properly
- Citi Rewards Visa or Citi Rewards Mastercard: 4 mpd, capped at S$1,000 per statement month
- SCB Visa Infinite: 3 mpd, min S$2,000 spend per statement period
- BOC Elite Miles World Mastercard: 3 mpd, uncapped
Conclusion
Although you should not purchase points speculatively, if you’re already planning to travel then this can be a great way of getting hotel rooms for less.
For non-elite, 8000 points for standard suite or 9000 for premium suites for category 1 is an excellent deal. I am eying suites at Hyatt Regency Kuantan. Tried 8000 points standard suites at Hyatt Regency Bali. It is worth more than standard room redemption.