Hyatt Suite Upgrade Award Charge
Points and miles enthusiasts love Hyatt for a lot of reasons, and I’m no different. Compared to most programs, your points go farther, the service is usually better, and if you have a suite upgrade award, you can lock in a standard suite when you book. Normally, applying a suite upgrade award works seamlessly, but a hotel mistakenly charged me for using one. In this article, I will explain what happened, and what to do if it happens to you too.
How to Earn Suite Upgrade Awards
World of Hyatt rewards loyalty with Milestone Rewards for every 10 nights you stay in a calendar year. When you reach 40 nights or 65,000 base points, a suite upgrade award is one of the rewards you can choose. You can continue earning more at each milestone beyond that too. To redeem, simply check the Suite Upgrade Award button in the reservation screen and you'll lock in a suite at no additional cost. If it’s not available, the option will be grayed out. You can read our full article on Hyatt Milestone Rewards here.
Suite Upgrade Award Charge: What Happened
Recently, I spent the weekend at a Hyatt House near Michigan State’s campus. I booked a room on points and added a suite upgrade award, since my wife and kids came along too. Barely over a year old, this hotel is in great shape, and the service is good too. It’s a dual property, sharing a pool and fitness room with an AC by Marriott. Standard suites come with a kitchen area, complete with a full-size fridge, microwave, dishwasher, and induction stovetop. With a pull-out sleeper sofa in the living room and separate bedroom, the room perfectly met our family's needs. It was a busy weekend in East Lansing, with the MSU men’s hockey team hosting Ohio State in the Big Ten tournament (Spartans won in double-OT!). MSU men’s basketball also advanced to the Sweet 16 in the NCAA tournament, so spirits were high!
Those spirits dampened a little when my credit card showed a $50 charge from the hotel the next day. I booked on points, used a suite upgrade award, and parking was free. I didn’t charge anything to the room, so I looked up my bill and found a $25 charge per night for using my World of Hyatt Suite Award.
Understanding How Hotels Are Reimbursed on Award Stays
Let’s back up a little. When you book a hotel on points, the property still needs to cover the expense of your stay. There is a cost to the towels, linens, water, food, and electricity you use. Rewards programs reimburse hotels for award stays, but usually only enough to cover those expenses plus the labor to clean the room. Depending on how full the hotel is, the program may get reimbursed more. And if a hotel is at or near 100% occupancy, reimbursement is closer to the average daily rate. Every program is different, but you get the picture. It’s a sliding scale based on many factors.
Back to the $25 per night charge for my World of Hyatt Suite Award. Because the hotel missed an opportunity to sell a suite for a higher amount, World of Hyatt will reimburse this property another $25 per night. In this case, the hotel mistakenly billed it to me instead of World of Hyatt. Mistakes happen, and because I understood this process, I didn’t sweat it. A quick email to the hotel asking them to remove the charge took me a few seconds, and I got my $50 back.
Hyatt Suite Upgrade Award Charge: ToP Thoughts
Understanding how things work gives you the power to advocate for yourself when you know something isn’t right. That is why you should always check your folio, even when your bill should be $0. I could totally see this situation going a few different ways. Some might just accept the charge, thinking that’s normal and they just didn’t know about it. Others might get mad and take it out on someone who made an honest mistake. Knowing how things work can help you solve a problem without getting frustrated or bent out of shape. If you didn’t know how award stays work on the hotel side, now you know. And knowing is half the battle.
Let me know in the ToP Facebook group if you’ve ever had a similar situation happen.
