The World of Hyatt Credit Card Review: The Best Hotel Card Around [2024]
The World of Hyatt credit card is an incredibly useful tool to help you stay at Hyatt properties around the world!
The World of Hyatt Credit Card is Hyatt’s only non-business credit card currently out on the market. This credit card is an exciting option for not only travelers who frequently stay at Hyatt properties, but also those who hope to stay at Hyatt hotels and resorts in the future (and even those who only stay at Hyatt once a year). With the Chase - Hyatt partnership as strong as ever, getting the World of Hyatt card can be an excellent way to boost your Hyatt and Chase point redemptions.
For those of you who don’t know, Hyatt is one of the most attractive hotel chains on the market due to its partnership with Chase and value for points. Unlike other hotel chains which often max out at .5 cents per point (cpp) due to their point systems being inflated (e.g., Hilton), Hyatt properties are scaled in a way that it is easy to get 2+ cpp with minimal investment. due to their strict categorization of hotels. Also, being able to transfer Chase points to Hyatt at a 1:1 ratio means that staying at Hyatt properties with points for good value is incredibly easy. If you know a Hyatt hotel is in category 2, you know the most points you’ll ever pay to stay there in a normal room is 9,500 per night (see below). If you’re curious, we have detailed guides on how to find Hyatt properties to stay at with points and how to transfer points from Chase to Hyatt!
The point per night prices for all Hyatt hotels, broken down by property category
Now that we’ve gone over the basics of why staying at Hyatt Hotels is extremely valuable, let’s jump into our review of the World of Hyatt credit card itself!
The Basics of the World of Hyatt Credit Card
The World of Hyatt Credit Card is one of our favorite hotel cards
Let’s take a closer look at the main features of the World of Hyatt Credit Card:
Sign-on bonus: Earn 30,000 bonus points after you spend $3,000 on purchases in your first 3 months from account opening, and then 2 Bonus Points on all other purchases until the earlier of the end of your first 6 months or first $15,000 spent up to an additional 30,000 points (for 60,000 Hyatt points total). These points can be redeemed for free nights at Hyatt hotels across the globe, and often at a great value (i.e., 3+ cents per point)! While this is a bit of an annoying sign-on bonus set-up, hitting ~40k-50k points is reasonable without too much-focused spend, which can be worth upwards of $1000 at Hyatt properties. If you need help hitting sign-on bonuses, make sure to check our tips here!
Annual free night at any Category 1-4 Hyatt hotel: Hyatt categories range from 1-8, so there are hundreds of hotels to choose from across the globe to redeem for this benefit. While this is essentially a free $150 of value, it’s important to note that this benefit only begins after your first year with the card.
Automatic Discoverist status: The World of Hyatt Credit Card automatically gives you Discoverist status, which is the third-highest tier of elite status in the World of Hyatt program. Discoverist status offers a variety of benefits, including:
10% bonus points on eligible room rates and incidental charges
An upgrade to a preferred room based on availability
Late 2 p.m. checkout, when available
Waived resort fees on free night awards
Free premium internet and bottled water
Point Redemption
The WoH card gives unbelievable points back at Hyatt properties, but average returns everywhere else.
The World of Hyatt credit card offers a great return on a few key categories of spending:
9x points per dollar spent on Hyatt stays
2x points per dollar spent on dining, fitness clubs and gym memberships, local transit and commuting, and on airline tickets purchased directly from the airlines
1x points per dollar spent on all other purchases
If it isn’t clear, this isn’t a good everyday spend jack-of-all-trades card (like the Capital One Venture or VentureX), and instead is a specialized tool that will get you extreme value for and from your Hyatt stays and specific categories of spending.
Summary
The annual fee for the World of Hyatt Credit Card is $95. However, the card offers a variety of benefits that can easily offset the annual fee, especially if you frequently stay at Hyatt hotels. For frequent Hyatt users, this card is a no-brainer: for example, let's say you spend $10,000 at Hyatt properties each year. With the card's 9x points per dollar on Hyatt stays, you would earn 90,000 points!
However, you can get excellent value even if you don’t often stay at Hyatt properties frequently. If you use the free night at a Category 4 Hyatt hotel, that’s effectively a free ~$150 which is more than enough to offset the annual fee of $95 with only one night’s stay!
Overall, the World of Hyatt Credit Card is a great option for travelers who are looking to develop a base with the best hotel point system on the market. The card offers a generous welcome bonus, automatic Discoverist status, and a variety of other benefits that can save you money on your travels. If you're looking for a credit card that can help you earn free Hyatt nights and other travel rewards, the World of Hyatt Credit Card is THE option to consider, far more than any other hotel card, especially if you already have accumulated Chase points! While we wish the sign-on bonus was better, this card is otherwise one of the best hotel cards you can get.
Rating: 4.7/5