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Hyatt Centric New Orleans
I was in town for the Freddie Awards and looking to make good use of two category 4 Hyatt free night certificates that I had burning a hole in my World of Hyatt account and originally booked the Eliza Jane. Come to find out, the hotel doesn’t allow pets, and the Hyatt Centric does for a $100 fee. We were traveling with our dog, Maggie, and ended up changing our reservation. After visiting both properties, I wouldn’t hesitate to stay at the Eliza Jane, and would opt to stay at another hotel form the Hyatt Centric. The hotel is enormous and if you’re looking for party central…look no further.
The Hyatt Centric is right in the thick of the French Quarter, literally on Bourbon street, and is currently undergoing renovations on the common areas. The area is just way too hectic for my taste, and smells of urine, vomit, and sweat. The staff at the hotel couldn’t have been nicer, but the room was not in great shape, and despite the area being so central, I never quite felt safe.
Stay Details:
- When: April 2022
- Where: New Orleans French Quarter
- Status: Globalist
- Free water and breakfast
- Late Check out 4pm and upgrade to a large courtyard room
- Rate: $300 a night or 15k points
- We used 2 category 4 free night certificates
The breezeway of the hotel is currently serving as part of a makeshift dining area during renovations.
Booking
I used two category 4 free night certificates and they combined the reservation at check in.
Location
One side of the hotel runs along Bourbon Street and another along Canal. You really couldn’t get more central if you’re trying to immerse yourself in the chaos. The Ritz Carlton and Waldorf Astoria are
The Room
Tired. It’s a party hotel and the rooms feel like they’ve seen their fair share. Our room had very high ceilings and doors that opened up on to a courtyard.
We feared this could get quite noisy at night, but luckily, we never had any issues.
One nice thing was each side of the bedside table, which had our free water, had plugs on it for charging, etc.
The Bathroom
Single vanity and a tub that had weird chips taken out of it. The shower curtain was dirty, but the room overall felt clean enough.
The Pool and Gym
The pool always had people at it, although not incredibly packed, and the gym looked pretty nice. The hotel is absolutely massive as you can tell just from the fact that it offers two large courtyards.
Dining
In the morning we had the option for breakfast in the lobby.
Options for breakfast
Overall
The hotel served its purpose, was a good use of cat 4 certs since cash rates were nearly $300, but if I were to go back to New Orleans, I’d choose a property that wasn’t on Bourbon street and Canal. I’m probably just too old, but it was too much of a party scene for me, and the hotel is a bit worse for wear. Perhaps, once the renovations are done, and maybe some of the rooms will get a brush up as well, the vibe will change, but I’d probably opt to stay in the Warehouse District,
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
60k Points after $4k spend in 3 months
Annual Fee
$95
Points Earned
Transferrable Chase Ultimate Rewards
- 60k points after $4k spend in 3 months
- Worth $750 in Chase Travel℠ and way more if you maximize transfer partners
- 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, 2024
- $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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