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Hyatt Peak and Off-Peak Pricing Begins Oct 26th
Hyatt has confirmed the date that Peak and Off Peak pricing will take effect, after pushing it back amid the COVID-19 pandemic. That date is Tuesday October 26th, for stays starting on March 1st, 2022 and beyond.
Yes, this means that “free-night redemptions will continue to be at Standard rates for nights through February 28, 2022.”
As a reminder, here is how Off-peak and Peak pricing will work:
Under this new structure, there will be three point redemption values – Off-peak, Standard, and Peak.
- Off-peak: Fewer points will be required during Off-peak times, starting at 3,500 points per night for Category 1 hotels. (Note: This is something to keep in mind if you need an end of year mattress run for Globalist status!!)
- Standard: Points required during standard redemption periods will follow today’s point requirements, starting at 5,000 points per night.
- Peak – More points will be required for a free night during Peak times, starting at 6,500 points per night and will be no more than 5,000 points above the Standard point requirement.
A few more notes:
- This new structure will be true for all types of award nights, including free nights in a standard room, club-access room, standard and premium suites.
- Points + Cash awards will also offer Off-peak and Peak point redemption. With Points+Cash, members can save 50% of the points required for a free night and 50-70% off the Standard Rate.
- If a member has an existing award reservation that changes to Off-peak on October 26, 2021, we will automatically refund the point difference. If it changes to Peak, we will not charge any additional points.
- Members will have plenty of time to plan ahead. Redemption rates for free nights will be announced as soon as nights are available for reservations (usually 13 months in advance). A new online calendar will also be available to assist in planning.
- Category-based Free Night Awards, such as a Category 1-4 or Category 1-7 Free Night Award will not be affected by the new structure. For example, you can use a Category 1-4 Award during an Off-peak, Standard or Peak night.
- Hotel award categories are not changing and will remain 1-8.
Bottom Line
We’ve known this was coming for a WHILE now. So I don’t think I need to dissect this too much.
While of course I don’t like that peak pricing is likely to hit my Hyatt point balance, I can also see that I may save sometimes as well and moreover, I’m just happy that Hyatt is maintaining a fixed award chart.
Also, unlike Marriott, Hyatt seems to be committing to some real transparency here by loading that calendar early, stating that it won’t change once loaded (no shenanigans!) and that if a town is “peak” on a certain date, it’s peak for all hotels in that town (again, no games!).
Even better, the Free Night certificates from World of Hyatt credit cards and elite night thresholds will be useable at peak times, technically actually increasing their value. Compare this to Marriott which has most credit card certificates capped at 35k a night, while peak pricing has turned most Category 5’s (previously always bookable with certificates) into 40k peak nights where you can’t use them.
The bottom line here is that if you have any plans for next year that you can think of now, book now!! We don’t know peak/off-peak dates yet but if it becomes off-peak you get the difference back automatically and if it goes peak, you don’t have to pay more.
Thoughts?
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