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Early in October my Chase 5/24 number fell to just 1 new card sign up in the past 24 months. This is probably the lowest count I’ve had in 8 or 9 years since I started obsessing over the immense possibilities of points. For the last few years I’ve regularly maintained a number that hovers around 4 or 5, namely because I think Chase will, at some point, release an Ink Business Reserve and I want to qualify. But, usually I’m rotating and adding cards to my wallet, but my last personal card sign up was in October of 2019, and I hadn’t picked up a business card since January. This all changed last week, after a long period of hemming and hawing, I picked up a new World of Hyatt credit card from Chase. This will mark the second time I’ve carried the card and it made me a bit nostalgic.
A little ditty about me and Hyatt credit cards
Back in early 2012 I had an Amex Platinum, a couple of Citi Thank You cards, a Chase Travel Rewards card, and was planning a guy’s trip to Asia when I peeped a Hyatt credit card offer: Two free nights after a single purchase. I think I must have read the fine print 10 times – how could the nights be good at any Hyatt hotel within in the Hyatt portfolio worldwide and we get them after a single purchase? But it was legi, and I even convinced two of my friends to get the card as well. We each used one on the nights on the trip ( Grand Hyatt Singapore ) and I used my other one at the Park Hyatt Chicago. Total value was close to $1k.
Flash forward to the outlier of a year 2020 has proven to be and as fortune would have it, I’ve added the World of Hyatt credit card to my wallet again. This time, the calculus is different, but I believe it will prove to be quite valuable to me in the future. While the points earned from the sign up bonus are great, what I’m after this time around is the boost I’ll get from Elite nights.
The current offer details
- 25k Bonus after you spend $3k in 3 months of account opening
- Another 25k Bonus after you spend $6k total within the first 6 months of account opening
- 10 Elite Nights this year and 10 Elite nights next year – special offer
- 4x bonus points on every dollar spent at Hyatt hotels
- On top of 5x a base member earns
- 2x points at:
- restaurants
- airline tickets purchased direct from airlines
- local transit and commuting
- fitness clubs and gym memberships
- Every Account Anniversary you’ll get a Free Night at category 1-4 hotels
- Bonus Free Night at category 1-4 hotels when you spend $15k a year
- Get Discovery Elite status as along as your card is open
- Limited Time – Get 10 Elite nights for 2020, and another 10 Elite nights for 2021
- 2 Elite night credits for every $5k you put on your card.
- Annual fee of $95
What pushed me over the edge was a confluence of events that I believe will set me up for Globalist status until 2023
I hemmed and hawed and hemmed and hawed and finally…I did. I applied, was approved, and should have the card shortly. This is what pushed me over the edge. The credit card plus the current promotions could net me a free night at cat 1-7 hotels worldwide, suite upgrades, and globalist status all for 60k points. Worst case…I spend the points ( which I’ll basically earn from the sign up bonus ) without making use of the status.
Hyatt is offering several promotions that make hitting status a lot easier. I’m not talking about just this year either, by my calculation I’ll be sitting pretty to hit Globalist again next year and keep the status until 2023.
I’m currently sitting at 32 Elite nights on the year. I’m honestly shocked by that number seeing as though we’ve been in a pandemic, but it happened.
To refresh your memory, Hyatt status earned this year lasts until February 28th, 2022 and here’s how I will go for Globalist
- The World of Hyatt credit card is offering 10 elite nights for this year, and 10 for next year
- Suddenly my 32 nights just popped up to 42
- I would also have 10 nights for the 22/23 qualifying year
- 2 Elite nights after $5k spend on the WOH credit card
- This would drop my needed nights to just 16 nights.
- World of Hyatt is offering Bonus Journeys that award double elite nights, one this year, another next year
- 16 nights will give me Globalist, but I’ll also have 16 more Elite nights for next year or 26 nights total
- 25% discount on award stays when you have the WOH credit card
- Award stays count towards status and the double elite night promo
- This saves me 10% of the points.
I’ll earn 50k after spending $6k in 6 months on the card plus I will also get 5k points when I pass 40 elite nights which the 10 elite nights from the credit card will give me. I’ll earn then, at minimum 61k points as a result of having the card ( 50k bonus, 5k from 40 night qualification, and 6k minimum from spend ).
Globalist for 60k points
16 nights at 5k a piece is 80k points, less 25% is just 60k points, or what I’ll earn just from getting the card.
But…I’ll also pick up 4 guaranteed suite upgrades along with a free night at any category 1-7 hotel in the world. The suite upgrades are good on stays of up to 7 nights ( it’s usually 6k a night for a suite upgrade ) and a category 7 hotel is 30k points. If I only use the suite upgrades on stays of 2 nights and not the whole 7 days, that’s the equivalent of getting 8 nights of upgrades, or 48k points in value.
Nevermind the free breakfasts, club access, etc.
2023 status…
I’ll have accrued 26 nights via stays and the World of Hyatt credit card. I could also book a cheap stay from January 1st-4th to pick up 8 nights there which would mean I’d start my 2022-23 qualifying year with 34 nights. Looking at just 26 nights in all over 2021 ( knowing I’ll have several hotel stays, a possible move, wedding, honeymoon ) it seems very likely I’ll be able to easily lock up another year of Globalist.
Super stoked
I’m really excited to get my card, hit the spend, get my nights in and make it a part of my wallet again. It’s a super solid card that I will undoubtedly put my Hyatt spend on and look to keep long term. I mean, the annual free night is a net positive without question, and in recent years they’ve given stay incentives to Hyatt credit card holders that easily pay back the annual fee. This year’s 25% off award stays and 4x earning promo is a great example.
Opinions, reviews, analyses & recommendations are the author’s alone, and have not been reviewed, endorsed or approved by any of these entities.
Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card
Welcome Offer
Earn 60,000 bonus points after you spend $4,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening.
Annual Fee
$95
Points Earned
Transferrable Chase Ultimate Rewards
- 5x on all travel purchased through Chase Travel℠
- 3x on dining, including eligible delivery services for takeout & dining out
- 3x on select streaming services
- 3x on online grocery purchases
- (excluding Target, Walmart and wholesale clubs)
- $50 Annual Chase Travel Hotel Credit via Chase Travel℠
- The begins immediately for new cardmembers and after your account anniversary for existing cardmembers
- 2x on all other travel
- 10% Anniversary Bonus
- Every year you keep the card, your total spend will yield a 10% points bonus. If you spend $10k in a year, you’ll get 1k bonus points
- Chase Sapphire Preferred continues to redeem at 1.25c in the Chase Travel℠ and the slew of other benefits remain in tact including Auto Rental Collision Damage Waiver ( primary ), purchase protections, etc.
- Points are transferrable to 14 Ultimate Rewards partners
- Redeem in Chase Travel℠ for 1.25 cents per point
- No foreign transaction fees
- Suite of Travel and Purchase Coverage
- Auto Rental Collision Damage Waiver is my favorite
- Get complimentary access to DashPass which unlocks $0 delivery fees and lower service fees for a minimum of one year when you activate by December 31, 2027.
- $95 Annual Fee
We keep an up to date spreadsheet that lists the best ever offers: You can find that spreadsheet here.
Historically 80k is a very, very good offer and hit in both 2022 and 2023. In 2021, we saw the offer hit an all time high of 100k. Who knows if that will ever come back.
Main Cast:
Cards that earn flexible points and should be used on the bulk of your purchases.
Supporting Cast:
Cards that earn fixed points in the currency of the airline/hotel and can not be transferred at attractive rates. These cards yield benefits that make it worth keeping, but not necessarily worth putting a lot of your everyday spend on.
The Chase Sapphire Preferred® is exceptional starter card and offers transferrable Ultimate Rewards, and pairs well with other Chase cards.
If you carry this card alongside Chase’s cashback cards like the Chase Freedom Flex® and Chase Freedom Unlimited® or the business versions: Ink Business Cash® , Ink Business Unlimited® you can combine the points into Preferred account and transfer into hotel and airline partners
Annual fee is quite low at $95 a year + you get a 10% anniversary bonus on points + $50 hotel credit in Chase travel.
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