Hyatt ‘cash and points’ and ‘Club upgrade’ awards now bookable online

I first wrote about Hyatt‘s new ‘cash and points‘ awards back in October 2014 when they were announced.

This is an award which is especially valuable for European members of Hyatt Gold Passport.  With no credit card partners here, the only way to earn Gold Passport points is via Hyatt stays.  ‘Cash and points’ will help you squeeze out more value from what is probably the limited pot you have.

For the last year, ‘cash and points’ awards have only been bookable by telephone.  This can be a frustrating and time consuming experience, because ‘cash and points’ availability is different (worse) than standard redemption availability.

This has now changed.  Effective immediately, you can book Hyatt Gold Passport ‘cash and points’ awards online.

Here is a reminder of the ‘cash and points’ chart:

Essentially, the best deal is at Category 2-6 properties, where you are effectively paying just 1.25 cents, give or take, per point.  This is excellent value.

The rate at Category 1 and Category 7 is a less interesting 2 cents per points, but there are only 6 hotels globally in Category 7.  The Category 1 properties are mainly super-cheap Hyatt Place properties in the US.

The key things about ‘cash and points’ rooms are:

They are capacity controlled.  Just because a room is available for a 100% points redemption does not mean that it will be available for ‘cash and points’.  The good news, now that you can book these rewards online, is that it is far easier to identify when they are available.

‘Cash and Points’ nights count towards status and you earn points back based on the cash element.  This IS interesting, and in itself may be a reason to book ‘cash and points’ rather than a 100% points night. 

Diamond members CAN use a suite upgrade certificate with a ‘cash and points’ room

‘Club upgrade’ rooms also bookable online

You can also now book ‘Club upgrade’ rooms online.  These can offer a very good deal in some cases, especially if you will be in the vicinity of the hotel during the day and can take advantage of the full range of free lounge food as well as the evening drinks reception.

An upgrade to the Club floor costs just 3,000 points per night plus the cost of the standard cancellable rate for that room.

As an example, for 30th November, you see the following for the Park Hyatt Hamburg:

Non-refundable standard room:  €183 / €243 Club

Refundable standard room:  €215 / €285 Club

Club upgrade using points:  €215 + 3,000 points

If you would otherwise have booked a non-refundable room, the Club upgrade is not a great deal – I value 3,000 points at a bit more than €28.

If you would otherwise have booked a refundable room, it is very attractive.  You are saving €75 by using 3,000 points which I would take any day.

World of Hyatt update – December 2021:

Get bonus points: Hyatt is not currently running a global promotion.

New to World of Hyatt?  Read our overview of World of Hyatt here and our article on points expiry rules here. Our article on what we think World of Hyatt points are worth is here.

Buy points: If you need additional World of Hyatt points, you can buy them here.

Until 30th December, you will receive a 30% discount, equivalent to a 43% bonus, when you buy Hyatt points – click here.

Want to earn more hotel points?  Click here to see our complete list of promotions from Hyatt and the other major hotel chains or use the ‘Hotel Offers’ link in the menu bar at the top of the page.