One of the most underrated credit cards and loyalty programs is Hyatt. You don’t hear as much about hotel credit cards but just like airline cards if you stay at one chain over another you definitely need one when you travel.. They can offer huge perks that more offset the annual fees, ranging from free elite status to free night certificates, all of which can get you a lot of value. You basically pay an annual fee and get a free night that includes the taxes and all making a profit plus all these other benefits.
What makes this card one of the best hotel credit cards is that it’s worth having regardless of whether you want to keep it just for the ongoing perks, or whether you want to spend money on it. Let’s take a closer look at what you need to know about this card.
Welcome Bonus: Up To 60,000 Points
The World of Hyatt Credit Card is offering a welcome bonus where you can earn up to 60,000 World of Hyatt points:
- Earn 30,000 World of Hyatt bonus points after spending $3,000 on purchases in the first three months
- Earn an additional one bonus point per dollar on purchases that earn one point per dollar on up to $15,000 spent in the first six months of account opening, for an additional 30,000 points
Earn up to 60,000 Bonus Points with the World of Hyatt Credit Card or 75,000 Bonus Points with the World of Hyatt Business Credit Card. I can be rewarded,
Annual Fee But Not Really
The World of Hyatt Credit Card has a $95 annual fee, and it isn’t waived for the first year. You can add additional cardmembers to your account at no extra cost. This annual fee is so worth it even if you don’t spend money on the card, since you get an anniversary free night certificate.
Earning Points With The Hyatt Credit Card
The World of Hyatt Credit Card offers pretty good points earning opportunities. While this isn’t the card that I use for all of my spending, I strategically spend money on the card, and it works great for for me.
How good are the points earning rates?
4x Points At Hyatt Properties
The World of Hyatt Credit Card offers 4x points for spending at Hyatt hotels and resorts. While I use the Chase Sapphire Reserve® Card for hotel spending at most other hotel brands (as the card earns 3x points), I always use the World of Hyatt Card for spending at Hyatt hotels.
The 4x points apply at all Hyatt properties, and even at Small Luxury Hotels of the World properties that are affiliated with Hyatt.
2x Points At Restaurants
The World of Hyatt Credit Card offers 2x points for restaurant spending globally, though personally this still isn’t a card I’d use for restaurants, given that other cards offer 3-5x points.
2x Points On Airline Tickets
The World of Hyatt Credit Card offers 2x points on airline tickets purchased directly from airlines. Again, this isn’t the card I’d use for airline tickets, given that other cards offer 3-5x points.
2x Points On Fitness Clubs & Gym Memberships
Hyatt has a focus on wellness, so one of the cool bonus categories they have is offering 2x points on fitness clubs and gym memberships. For anyone wondering, this also includes group fitness businesses, like Barry’s Bootcamp, SoulCycle, etc.
This is an area where the card’s bonus category is industry-leading, as I can’t think of any other card that offers such a good return on fitness spending.
2x Points On Local Transit & Commuting
The World of Hyatt Card offers 2x points on local transit and commuting, which includes ride share services such as Lyft and Uber. Other cards still offer a better return on spending than this card does, though.
Earn 1x Points On Other Purchases
For categories in which you can’t earn 2-4x points, the World of Hyatt Card offers one World of Hyatt point per dollar spent. Generally speaking there are better cards for everyday spending.
No Foreign Transaction Fees
The World of Hyatt Credit Card has no foreign transaction fees, so it’s an excellent card for purchases abroad. That’s especially true when staying at Hyatts abroad, as well as for dining and commuting outside the US.
Contactless Pay
The World of Hyatt Credit Card features contactless pay technology. This means you can pay using your card without even swiping it whenever you see the contactless pay symbol.
World Of Hyatt Credit Card Benefits
The area where the World of Hyatt Credit Card really excels is when it comes to the benefits it offers. In my opinion, these benefits more than justify the annual fee, regardless of whether you’re spending nothing on the card, or are spending a significant amount.
The first three benefits below are perks that you get just for having the card, while the two after that can be earned for putting spending on the card.
Free Night Every Year
Just for having the World of Hyatt Credit Card you get a Category 1-4 free night certificate on your account anniversary every year. This will be issued shortly after your anniversary and is valid for 12 months.
Categories 1-4 cover a majority of Hyatt’s properties, and I’ve consistently been able to redeem this for hotels that retail for $250+ per night. This alone justifies the annual fee on the card.
Complimentary Discoverist Status
You receive Hyatt’s entry-level Discoverist status for as long as you have the World of Hyatt Card. The status will post for the primary cardmember shortly after you are approved. Discoverist status comes with the following benefits:
Upgrade to a preferred room, when available
2 PM check-out, when available
Premium internet
Daily bottled water
Five Elite Nights Towards Status Annually
Just for having the World of Hyatt Card you receive five elite qualifying nights towards status annually. You will receive these within eight weeks of being approved for the card (though usually much faster), and in subsequent years they will post within eight weeks of January 1.
This will be useful if you’re hoping to earn Hyatt’s Explorist status, Globalist status, and/or Milestone Rewards. Ordinarily, Explorist requires 30 elite nights and Globalist requires 60 elite nights, however for 2021 elite requirements have been cut in half, so you need just 15 elite nights for Explorist, or 30 elite nights for Globalist.
A Second Free Night When You Spend $15,000
While you receive a Category 1-4 free night certificate annually just for having the card, you can earn a second one if you spend $15,000 on the card in a year.
Currently you earn this based on spending that amount in a cardmember year (which consists of 12 statements following when you opened your card), while starting on January 1, 2022, you’ll earn it based on spending that amount in a calendar year (which consists of January 1 through December 31).
Two Elite Nights For Every $5,000 Spent
In addition to the five elite nights you get just for having the card, you earn a further two elite qualifying nights for every $5,000 you spend on the card. This means that in theory, you could spend your way all the way to Explorist or Globalist status, if you wanted to.
Reaching the $5,000 threshold has nothing to do with the calendar or cardmember year — the counter simply resets every time you spend $5,000, and then you start earning towards your next two elite nights.
Further Promotions
While there’s no guarantee this will continue to be offered in future years, historically Hyatt has offered additional promotions for those with the World of Hyatt Card, particularly when redeeming points. For example, in the past we’ve seen World of Hyatt offer summer promotions, whereby card members can earn a partial refund on award nights.
Chase Offers
One of the great features of Chase cards is access to Chase Offers, which provides savings on purchases with all kinds of retailers. The program has saved me a significant amount of money. For example, once in a while we see Chase Offers deals for 10% savings on Hyatt hotel stays.
Secondary Car Rental Coverage
The World of Hyatt Card offers auto rental collision damage waiver coverage. Decline the rental company’s collision insurance and charge the entire rental cost to your card.
Coverage is provided for theft and collision damage for most cars in the United States and abroad. Do note that in the US, the coverage is secondary to your personal insurance, though.
Protection With Trip Delays, Lost Luggage, And More
The World of Hyatt Card offers a variety of other protection when traveling, including:
Trip Cancellation & Trip Interruption Insurance — be reimbursed up to $5,000 per trip when your trip is canceled or cut short due to sickness, severe weather, etc.
Trip Delay Reimbursement — if your flight is delayed by more than 12 hours or requires an overnight stay, you and your family are covered for unreimbursed expenses, such as meals and lodging, up to $500 per ticket
Lost Luggage Reimbursement — be reimbursed up to $3,000 per passenger if you or your immediate family member check or carry on luggage that is damaged or lost by an airline
Baggage Delay Insurance — be reimbursed up to $100 per day for five days for essential purchases when your bag is delayed by over six hours
Make sure you check your cardmember agreement for all of the details, since there are terms & conditions.
Redeeming World Of Hyatt Points
The best value for redeeming World of Hyatt points is using the free night award chart. The great thing is that you earn elite nights for your stay even if you’re redeeming points or using a free night certificate.
Hyatt’s award chart looks as follows:
There’s value to be had at all levels of the chart. As a general rule of thumb, I try to redeem at properties where I’m getting more than two cents of value per point. That’s because personally I value World of Hyatt points at ~1.5 cents each.
In other words, I’d redeem points at a Category 1 hotel when the paid rate is $100+, I’d redeem points at a Category 7 hotel when the paid rate is $600+, etc.
Is The World Of Hyatt Credit Card Worth It?
Let me answer this very simply — if you’re eligible for the card and have any interest in staying at Hyatt properties then yes, the World of Hyatt Credit Card is absolutely worth it. This is a card I personally have, and that I wholeheartedly recommend.
How Much Do You Have To Spend For Globalist Status?
I’ve had some people ask if it’s worth spending your way to Globalist status with this credit card. Hyatt Globalist status ordinarily requires 60 elite qualifying nights, though in 2021 it only requires 30 elite nights.
Historically you’d need to spend $140,000 on the card to earn Globalist status (you get five elite nights just for having the card, plus spending $140,000 would earn you 56 elite nights). However, in 2021 you don’t need to spend nearly as much:
You get five elite nights towards status just for having the card
Then you’d then only need 25 more elite nights, which you could earn with $65,000 of spending
While that’s not half bad, personally that’s not the approach I’d take, though. I think the better approach is to better mix-and-match spending. After all, what’s the value in Globalist status if you’re not actually planning on staying at Hyatts with any frequency?
Is Hyatt Globalist Status Worth It?
Globalist status is my favorite top-tier hotel status, and it comes with all kinds of awesome perks. Just to share some of the benefits:
- Unlimited complimentary suite upgrades, when available
- Four confirmed suite upgrades, each of which can be used to confirm a suite upgrade at the time of booking for a stay of up to seven nights, when available
- Complimentary breakfast and/or club lounge access
- Guaranteed 4PM late check-out, except at resorts
- An additional Category 1-4 and Category 1-7 free night certificate
- Guest of Honor, where you can redeem your points for a friend or family member, and they get your status
- Waived resort/destination fees on all stays, and free parking on award stays
- However, do note that some of these benefits are tied to Milestone Rewards, and those in some cases still require earning 60 elite nights.
Room service breakfast & a suite at the Park Hyatt Paris thanks to my status
Other Options For Earning Hyatt Points
While the World of Hyatt Card is awesome, I’d note that it’s not the only way to earn World of Hyatt points. You can also transfer over points from Chase Ultimate Rewards at a 1:1 ratio, which is one of my favorite uses of those points. There could be value in using:Transfer Chase Ultimate Rewards points to World of Hyatt
How Does The World Of Hyatt Business Card Compare?
The World of Hyatt Business Credit Card (review) was recently introduced, and it’s a new business card issued by Chase and Hyatt. This could be a good option for any small business looking to earn Hyatt points or status. Here are some key aspects of the card:
- It offers a huge welcome bonus of 75,000 World of Hyatt points after spending $7,500 within three months, which is better than on the personal card
- It has a $199 annual fee, which is more than twice as much as on the personal card
- It offers up to $100 in Hyatt credits every anniversary year; receive a $50 statement credit twice when you spend $50 at a Hyatt with the card
- It offers five elite nights towards status for every $10,000 spent in a calendar year
- It offers Discoverist status for as long as you have the card, for you and five employees
- If you spend $50,000 on the card in a calendar year, you can receive 10% back on subsequent award redemptions, up to 20,000 points back per year
- Personally I think the personal card is generally more rewarding, though the business version of the card earns you elite nights at an accelerated rate.
Receive an award rebate with the Hyatt Business Card
World Of Hyatt Credit Card Summary
The World of Hyatt Credit Card is exceptional. It’s a card I have, and also a card I spend at least $15,000 on per year.
The card is worth having even if you don’t plan on putting spending on it — you get an anniversary free night certificate you can use at a hotel that costs significantly more than the annual fee, you get complimentary Discoverist status, and you get five elite nights towards a higher status tier.
Beyond that it can be worth putting spending on the card, thanks to the unique bonus categories (4x points on Hyatt stays and 2x points on fitness and gyms), as well as the additional elite nights and second free night certificate.
Card Eligibility and the Chase 5/24 Rule
The welcome bonus on the World of Hyatt Card isn’t available to those who currently have any Hyatt credit card, or have received the new cardmember bonus on any Hyatt credit card in the past 24 months. Chase’s general card application rules apply. Chase has what’s known as the 5/24 rule. This means that if you’ve opened five or more new card accounts in the past 24 months you typically won’t be approved for a Chase card. If you do apply for this card, make sure you’re under that limit. See this post to learn how to check your 5/24 status.
