A major hat tip to Pizza in Motion for his tips this morning about how to search for and book one of Hyatt’s new “My Elite” rates, which offer at 20% discount to Platinum and Diamond Gold Passport members. Remember, anyone can get Platinum status just by signing up for the Hyatt Credit Card, which includes a free night each year to offset the $75 annual fee.
The trick comes in two parts. First, you need to be logged in to your account. I knew that. But second, you MUST NOT select any other discount, including AAA, Costco, or corporate discounts. That’s where I screwed up.
I tested this realization at a couple hotels where I’m staying soon. In both cases I already have cheaper rates booked further in advance. But I wanted to see how rates compared if I were to book today.
The Hyatt Regency Waikiki was offering only $225 rates when I searched with my Costco and AAA discount codes. Nothing else was displayed.
But after removing those offers, I got more variety. Rates ranged from $200 to $300. I could have saved $25 per night and not even known it was an option! Notice that there is no overlap at all between the rates shown when I search with and without the discount codes, although in theory the AAA Discount and AAA Breakfast rate replace the Hyatt Daily Rate and Hyatt Bed & Breakfast Package.
Similar discrepancies were found at the Hyatt Regency Chicago ($125.10 Costco rate vs. $111.20 My Elite rate) and other hotels, again with not much overlap between the rates shown in each search.
Of course, it means I now need to perform two searches every time to make sure I am getting the best rate with the most favorable terms. I recommend searching for a My Elite rate first. They seem to be cheaper, and they are refundable, usually with a 72 hour cancellation policy in the few hotels I checked. But AAA and Costco rates, which are usually only 10-15% off, sometimes include breakfast or other amenities. They may also have better cancellation policies of just 24 hours before or even 3 PM day of arrival. And sometimes a My Elite rate isn’t available, like at The Driskill, so it is important that you search for another discount.
I did read One Mile at a Time’s post when the rates were first offered (and the Hyatt press release) and didn’t remember seeing this tip mentioned, so I just assumed that when I did my own searches the hotels I was looking at didn’t offer the discount. So, thanks again to the Pizza Man for pointing out where I was going wrong!
