Expiring Hyatt Free Night Certificate Options
We just had this question asked in the Top Facebook Group and it was just the nudge I needed. I had been meaning to write about expiring Hyatt free night certificate options since we had to deal with my mom's recently. She had planned to use her certificate for our recent trip to Orlando right before it expired. The problem was that she tested positive for covid the day before the trip. After some back and forth with the Hyatt call center reps I can for certain answer a few pointed questions:
- Can you get your expiring Hyatt free night certificate extended?
- Are there any covid exemptions like some other brands offer?
- Will they give you points for the certificate?
- Is there anything else I can do with this dang thing?
Let's get into all of that!
Will Hyatt Extend Expiring Hyatt Free Night Certificates?
Some brands, even after the covid extensions dried up, have been willing to continue to extend expiring free night certificates. It is one area Marriott is surprisingly great in, but what about World of Hyatt? Will Hyatt extend your expiring free night certificate? Nope, no, nada, no shot, not a chance in heck. Sadly, they are extremely firm on this and will not budge.
What About Extenuating Circumstances, Like A Covid Cancellation?
We now know that Hyatt loves to say no, but what about if you have a tragic story? Like you saved the free night to see your grandkids in the “most magical place on Earth,” but you got covid right before? Hyatt isn't buying what you are selling, no matter how much you sob on the phone call. My mom tried a few different reps and was told no at every turn.
Can You Get Points For Expiring World of Hyatt Free Night Certificates?
We now know we can't extended these puppies, but how about getting some type of compensation for them? There is some hope here, but it depends on where the free night certificate came from.
If you earned the free night cert from the World of Hyatt credit card, whether it is the anniversary free night or from the $15K in spend, you are out of luck. They are not willing to turn these certificates into points.
However, if you have a free night certificate from the World of Hyatt program's milestones, then they will likely work with you. The reps may require the free night award to actually be expired to do it, but they will likely offer the following:
- 10,000 points for a category 1-4 free night certificate
- 20,000 points for a category 1-7 free night certificate
It isn't for the maximum value of the free night certificates, but it is better than getting nothing. It may also help you resist the urge to just burn them at a hotel that is worth less than the amounts above as the expiration clock counts down to zero.
How Do You Earn World Of Hyatt Milestone Rewards Free Nights?
The free night certificates earned from the World of Hyatt program come after earning a set number of elite nights each calendar year. The elite nights can come via stays, the 5 elite nights you get from the World of Hyatt credit card or from credit card spend on the personal card or the World of Hyatt business card. Once you reach certain levels of elite nights a free night certificate is earned as a milestone reward. I imagine they offer points for these ones since they are only good for 6 months and not 12 months like the Chase certificates. They are also issued directly from Hyatt, and not through Chase, which probably gives them added flexibility. Here are the milestones where a free night is earned:
- 30 World of Hyatt Elite Nights
- Category 1-4 free night certificate
- 60 World of Hyatt Elite nights
- Category 1-7 free night certificate
- 100 World of Hyatt elite nights
- Category 1-7 free night certificate
Reminder that these are most valuable used on hotel stays though. Getting points for them after they expire is a nice alternative to have, but you are better off redeeming them early and often. If you need help finding inspiration on where to use your Hyatt category 1-4 free night certificates check out this list of great options in the US.
How Do You Tell Which Kind Of Hyatt Free Night Certificate Yours Is?
The easiest way to keep track of what kind of free night certificate yours are is good book keeping. Keep track of when you get your Hyatt free night certs, and why you received it, in a spreadsheet or keep a copy of the congratulations email.
Another way to tell is knowing when your credit card anniversary is. By knowing that you can dicepher if the free night cert in your account is because of your credit card or not. The expiration date will likely be near your anniversary date.
Another thing to focus on is that the World of Hyatt free night awards earned from their Milestone Rewards are only good for 6 months. This could be a dead giveaway if you can pay attention to the date of receipt and expiration.
Lastly, and maybe the easiest way, is to reach out to World of Hyatt concierge via social media. You can just ask them what your free night cert is from.
Are There Any Other Options For An Expiring Certificate?
If your certificate is not from a milestone reward what other options do you have? You can always book a hotel for a friend or family member as a gift or negotiate some sort of compensation. If your friend is into miles and points too you could maybe do an award transfer booking back and forth between the too of you. This is so much easier to do now that you can transfer World of Hyatt free night certificates online.. You could book a night at a hotel near you just for the elite night credit and maybe to swim etc. Or you could give it away to a random stranger like we did!
Expiring World of Hyatt Cert: ToP Thoughts
Your expiring Hyatt free night certificate options really depend on what kind of cert you have. If it is from earning Hyatt milestone awards then you have some options. If it is from the World of Hyatt credit card then you need to phone a friend. The best option is to barter with someone else or use it as an unexpected gift. If you come down to the final days then you could use it before it expires just for the elite night credit. That is assuming that elite nights matter to you at all though.
This is why I always shout from the rooftops to use your free night certs first! Points have a much better shelf life so it is important to focus on things with expiration dates first. Don't let great be the enemy of good. If I find a hotel that is 12,000 points or more I tend to use my free night certificate first. That isn't maximizing it, but at least I won't be left holding the bag. If I know for sure that I can use it later down the road I may keep it in pocket. That is true at least if the shelf life has some time left on it. When you get down to 4-5 months left it is probably better to accept good instead of waiting for great that may not come.
