World of Hyatt: A Full Guide To This High-Value Loyalty Program

The World of Hyatt loyalty program is often regarded as one of the best hotel loyalty programs out there. Elite status members can expect great benefits, and their points can be redeemed for high value.

Although Hyatt has a smaller footprint compared to the likes of Marriott or Hilton, this great loyalty program is a big part of what makes the brand very popular.

Here’s an overview of what this program offers and the benefits members can get.

World of Hyatt Brands

First, let’s go over all of the brands. There are 28 of them, totaling over 1350 properties.

Hyatt
Hyatt Place
Park Hyatt
Hyatt Regency
Hyatt House
Grand Hyatt
Hyatt Vacation Club
UrCove by Hyatt
The Unbound Collection by Hyatt
JdV by Hyatt
Destination by Hyatt
Andaz
Hyatt Centric
Miraval
Thompson Hotels
Alila
Caption by Hyatt
Dream Hotels
Hyatt Ziva
Hyatt Zilara
Alua
Breathless Resorts & Spas
Dreams Resorts & Spas
Secrets Resorts & Spas
Sunscape Resorts & Spas
Zoetry Wellness & Spa Resorts
Impression by Secrets
Mr. & Mrs. Smith

All of these participating brands will get you points and credit on the World of Hyatt loyalty program. You can also earn a free night anytime you stay in 5 different brands thanks to a promotion called Hyatt Brand Explorer. Read more about that here.

Elite Status With World of Hyatt

World of Hyatt has 3 status tiers. Each status tier is reached by the number of stays you accumulate, or the amount of points you earn through spending, or the amount of meetings/events every calendar year.

Discoverist: 10 qualifying nights, 25,000 base points, or 3 meetings/events
Explorist: 30 qualifying nights, 50,000 base points, or 10 meetings/events
Globalist: 60 qualifying nights, 100,000 base points, or 20 meetings/events

Note that award stays also count towards elite status nights. This is a very generous feature of reaching status with Hyatt.

Benefits For Each Status

Discoverist

This is the first level of status you can reach. Here are the benefits:

10% bonus on earning points at Hyatt properties
Preferred rooms based on availability
Late checkout (2pm)
Complimentary bottled water
Access to premium internet (when available)

Preferred room upgrades may get you to rooms with a better view or a higher floor. Also, note that Discoverist status is complimentary with a World of Hyatt credit card.

Explorist

Explorist status is reached after 30 qualifying nights, 50,000 base points, or 10 meetings/events. In addition to the Discoverist benefits, you’ll also get:

20% bonus on earning points at Hyatt properties
Room upgrades based on availability (excluding suites and rooms with Club lounge access)
Guaranteed room availability when booked at least 72 hours in advance

The upgrades will consist of rooms like deluxe rooms, corner rooms, and other upper-end rooms as labeled by the hotel that are not suites.

Globalist

Globalist is the highest among the three, reached after 60 qualifying nights, 100,000 base points, or 20 meetings/events. In addition to the Discoverist and Explorist benefits, you’ll also get:

30% bonus on earning points at Hyatt properties
Late checkout (4pm)
Room upgrades based on availability (including suites and rooms with Club lounge access)
Guaranteed room availability when booked at least 48 hours in advance
Complimentary Club lounge access, or complimentary breakfast in properties without Club lounges
Free parking on free stays

How Do I Earn Hyatt Points?

Points Through Hyatt Hotel Stays

The most straightforward way is to earn points through Hyatt stays, booked directly through the Hyatt website. You earn 5 points per eligible dollar spent.

If you have World of Hyatt status, you’ll earn some bonus points. Those are the following:

Discoverist members: 10% bonus
Explorist members: 20% bonus
Globalist members: 30% bonus

Hyatt will occasionally dish out promotions for bonus points earning. For example, the current one as of January 19, 2025, gives you a chance to earn double or triple bonus points across all brands. Read more about it here.

World of Hyatt Credit Card

Another easy way to earn points is by using a World of Hyatt credit card. Here are the benefits you’ll get from having the card:

1 free night at a category 1-4 hotel/resort every year
Second free night if you spend $15,000 during a calendar year
Complementary Discoverist status
5 night credits that count toward your tier status next year
An additional 2 night credits every time you spend $5,000

You’ll earn 30,000 bonus points if you spend $3,000 on the card within the first 3 months. You also have a chance to earn an additional 30,000 points by earning 2 bonus points per dollar spent in the first 6 months that normally earns 1 point (up to $15,000). This card has a $95 annual fee.

Redeeming Hyatt Points

You can book Hyatt stays by using your points. The amount of points you’ll need depends on the category number of the hotel. The higher the category, the more points you’ll need for a free night.

Hyatt has a published award chart, which is unusual as most loyalty programs do not do this. This is very helpful when thinking about redeeming your points, and can also get you tremendous value during peak seasons. Here’s a look:

Each hotel has its own category number, and that number determines award pricing. For example, the Hyatt Regency Seattle is a category 4, meaning it’ll take 15,000 points per night on a standard rate; higher during peak seasons and lower on off-peak seasons.

I like to utilize the “Find Your Hyatt” page and filter each property based on location and category. This is very helpful when looking to use points, category 1-4 certificates, and other awards.

Points for Room Upgrades

Points can also be used for room upgrades. Here’s the breakdown:

Using your points for dining, spa, and meetings are also an option. However, these options often end up being less value than booking a hotel stay, so I generally do not recommend doing so.

American Airlines Benefits

Hyatt has a partnership with American Airlines, allowing elite status members of each program to receive benefits.

Upon reaching certain loyalty points/Hyatt points thresholds, you’ll have the option to choose a reciprocal benefit.

American Airlines Airbus A321 / Shawn Gallagher

Hyatt perks for AAdvantage elite members

First, AAdvantage members can redeem miles for free Hyatt nights or select a World of Hyatt award as a perk upon reaching Loyalty Point thresholds. There are two types of perks: free night awards and World of Hyatt awards.

The free night awards are the following:

40,000 Loyalty Points: Redeem 25,000 miles for a free night at a category 1-4 property
125,000 Loyalty Points: Redeem 65,000 miles for a free night at a category 1-7 property

World of Hyatt awards begin on March 1, 2025, and are the following:

100,000 Loyalty Points: Discoverist status (automatic)
175,000 and 250,000 Loyalty Points: Explorist status
400,000, 550,000, and 750,000 Loyalty Points: Free night at a category 1-4 property
1M, 3M, and 5M Loyalty Points: Free night at a category 1-7 property

Discoverist status at 100,000 is automatic, but the other perks will have to be selected by forgoing Loyalty Points for other perks, including ones offered by American Airlines.

American Airlines perks for World of Hyatt elite members

Similarly, World of Hyatt members can redeem points and select awards for perks on American Airlines. Those are the following:

20 and 30 nights: 2 preferred seat coupons
40 and 50 nights: 2 Main Cabin Extra seat coupons
70, 80, and 90 nights: AAdvantage Gold status, valid for the full status membership year
100 nights: AAdvantage Platinum status, valid for the full status membership year

In addition to these perks, World of Hyatt Explorist and Globalists members can redeem Hyatt points to get AAdvantage status for 1 day.

Gold status for a day for 5,000 points
Platinum status for a day for 8,000 points
Platinum Pro status for a day 12,000 points

The Bottom Line

As we can see, World of Hyatt provides a ton of benefits for frequent travelers. In addition to its high-quality properties, members get to get the most out of stays and events with Hyatt and get a lot in return. Hyatt continues to be a go-to option for many people.