hyatt

Think twice before swimming with dolphins

Dolphin

Swimming with dolphins is portrayed as a family friendly activity.  Dolphins are social and smart animals.  Hell, they are the only animals besides humans that have sex for fun!  What’s not to like?

While observing dolphins in their natural habitat at sea from the beach or even a boat is a non-invasive way to learn about these creatures, swimming with them is not.  Particularly problematic are resorts or amusement parks that keep dolphins in captivity and allow guests to pay to swim with them.

If you have seen Blackfish, you probably already know where this is going.

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Best Credit Cards for Single Travelers

I should put a couple of big asterisks after the title: Best Credit Cards for Single Travelers*****  These are actually just the credit cards that are currently in my wallet.  And they work for me, some better than others.  Please take these with a grain of salt, I am not a financial expert.  I do not get paid if you get one of these — no referral links here.  You’ll have to just google them if you want to sign up.  And of course, if you don’t have good financial history or you don’t trust yourself with a credit card, then don’t get these.

With that said, here is what is currently in my wallet and why I find them useful.

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Hyatt The Pike Long Beach Review

After spending three nights at the Disneyland Hotel with my family, I rented a car and drove north.  I spent a night at the Hyatt The Pike Long Beach by myself for some non-Disney relaxation.  I love Disney and I love my family, but it was great to have some solo time before heading back home and to work.

Hyatt The Pike Long Beach is one of the non-conformist properties; it is simply a “Hyatt”, and not a member of any of the Hyatt sub-brands (although many compare it to an Andaz).  In this light it is similar to Hyatt Olive 8.  This is expected to change soon as Hyatt The Pike Long Beach gets rebranded as a Hyatt Centric when the new sub-brand launches this summer.

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Grand Hyatt or Olive 8 – Battle in Seattle

Grand Hyatt or Olive 8 – Battle in Seattle In Seattle, like any large city, you can find a hotel by just about every chain as well as some great independent hotels.  Hyatt offers one of the best loyalty programs and many frequent travelers book a room at Hyatt when they … Read more

Grand Hyatt Seattle Review

Last week I reviewed the Hyatt Olive 8, this week I review the other downtown Hyatt option in Seattle, the Grand Hyatt Seattle.

These two main Hyatt properties are half a block away from each other and both centrally located near the Washington State Convention Center.  The Grand Hyatt Seattle may have a slightly better location as there are multiple restaurants and a Starbucks that you can access without leaving the hotel.

Check In: I was checking in to the Grand Hyatt Seattle on a Sunday evening just after a large convention was wrapping up from the weekend.  I was impressed that the wait was less than a minute.  The front desk clerk that helped me was very professional; the usual acknowledgement of my Platinum status, notifying me of the amenities, and offering me a choice of newspapers.

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Hyatt Stay More Play More + Quick Qualifying Elite Trial + 20% Points Back: 3 Promotions

I enrolled in the Hyatt Stay More Play More (link) promotion back in January.  The Hyatt Stay More Play more is a promo that gives you a targeted offer based on your Hyatt Gold Passport account.  I don’t know how they decide who gets which offer, but according to FlyerTalk people are able to get offers from 2,000 points after the next stay to 65,000 points after 25 nights.   I received the highest end offer:

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Hyatt Olive 8 Seattle Review

Hyatt Olive 8 Seattle Review Loyal Hyatt visitors to Seattle are faced with a tough decision:  Grand Hyatt or Hyatt Olive 8.  There is also a Hyatt Place and a Hyatt House (opening May 2015); however those properties are outside the downtown core.  If you are in town for a conference … Read more

Daily Getaways Valuation

The US Travel Association is once again running its Daily Getaways promotion.  Beginning March 23 there will be a different offer for a limited time each day.  An interesting change this: there is NO added discount for using an Amex card.  You can find discounts on rental cars, hotels, and theme parks.  Only the first three weeks’ offers have been posted as of this post.

Likely the most popular offers will be for the hotel stays that, for the most part, come in the form of loyalty points.  Below I have created a grid that shows the cost per point for each of the hotel point offers.

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Hyatt Diamond Challenge 2015

 

Note: As of June 1, 2015, the Hyatt Diamond Challenge 2015 has been updated.  Diamond status is now good through February 2017.  Reports are also in that you can directly contact Hyatt Gold Passport at 1-800-228-3360 to enroll in the Elite Tier Offer.  Read more here.

I first signed up for Hyatt Gold Passport last summer after I learned about their relationship with Mlife.  Since I was a Gold Mlife member I received Platinum status with Hyatt’s loyalty program.  I had signed up for hotel loyalty programs before, but with the purpose of earning miles on Alaska Airlines for my stays.  In 9 months I have accrued 20,000 points with HGP through my stays at Mlife hotels in Vegas and Hyatt hotels.

The benefits of Platinum HGP status are minimal; it was devalued even more last month when all guests were given free wifi.  Reports over at Flyer Talk have some people being offered a Hyatt Diamond Challenge (also known as the Hyatt Gold Passport Elite Tier offer) with 12 nights in 60 days.  Some said the offer was targeted only to those with a high number of stays in 2014 while others said they were able to enroll in the challenge by contacting the property of their upcoming stay.

I have four booked reservations between now and June so I emailed the two properties that had an email posted on their website.

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Mileage Run Istanbul

Mileage run Istanbul…via Houston and Paris.

Last night I couldn’t sleep and was checking out some of my favorite people I follow on Twitter.  I came across this tweet:

I was intrigued so I booked.  Here is why:

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Hyatt Regency Santa Clara Review

I stayed at the Hyatt Regency Santa Clara for a weekend in October, 2014.  The hotel is older, my guess it was built in the mid 1980’s, and has a large footprint of 501 rooms.  The closest airport is San Jose (6 miles), a small airport that makes getting in and out easy.

I assumed it would be quiet on a weekend when business travelers were at home, but was I wrong! This is definitely a conference hotel (it is attached to the Santa Clara Convention Center in the heart of Silicon Valley).  There were two conferences at the hotel (ironically neither were tech conventions); one was quilters the other was high schoolers. As you can imagine, I was disheartened to say the least. Luckily, the check in agent could tell I was not looking forward to a weekend with youngins, so he put me on the 13th floor away from the students. I thought he said he “upgraded” me as I am a Platinum HGP member, but it turned out that the only upgrade was that it was on a higher floor.

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The dishonest resort fee

I believe the most deceptive practice in the travel industry is the resort fee.  It is the complete antithesis to hospitality.  It is a made up revenue stream that serves NO purpose except to increase profits.  There is ZERO benefit to the hotel guest.  At least with an airline baggage fee you have the choice and get a benefit of not having to schlep around your bag.  Or with the prepaid fuel charge you don’t have to worry about filling up your tank before returning your rental car.  But resort fees serve no benefit to the customer.

Note: Resort fee does NOT cover slippers. Sorry.

This weekend I stayed at the Aria in Las Vegas.  Overall it is a great property and one that I’ve stayed at at least five times.  The daily resort fee is $32.48; which is a significant amount.  For my visit this ended up being an extra $100, or the price of one night.  I basically stayed three nights for the price of four.  On the Aria website it lists the amenities included with the resort fee:

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Hyatt Regency Washington DC Review

A friend of mine won a raffle put on by the Washington State Lottery that included airfare, tickets to an NFL Playoff Game, and two nights at the Hyatt Regency Washington on Capitol Hill.

Bright atrium

We stayed at the hotel Saturday-Monday in January.  The hotel overall was fairly quiet. Great location near the Capitol; but otherwise you will need to plan on a bit of a walk to anything.

On the weekend, prepare to travel a good distance for meals as there are no restaurants besides in the hotel and the hotel across the street. The food in the Hyatt is decent and moderate price, so not a big deal to eat there; but just realize you are eating in the hotel lobby. They have a nice shop that sells all sorts of snacks, water, drinks and even has a small cafe for coffee and pastries. The staff was great, always helpful and cheerful. We enjoyed talking with the doorman especially.

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Hyatt Best Rate Guarantee can save you money

Learn how to use the Hyatt Best Rate Guarantee to save yourself money on your next hotel booking.

One of my favorite websites is flyertalk.com, particularly their forum section.  It has great reviews, tips on finding deals and guides on how to navigate frequent flyer programs.  One of the threads talks about Hyatt’s Best Rate Guarantee.  Basically the idea is that if you book on hyatt.com and find a cheaper rate on another website, they will match the price AND reduce it by 20%.  It is a great idea to get customers to book direct instead of through other travel websites.  The other benefit of booking direct through Hyatt is that you earn Hyatt Gold Passport points, not so if you book through another source.  I have a number of Hyatt reservations coming up over the next few months, so I decided to see if I could find cheaper rates from other websites.

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