Updated Hyatt Point Density Charts

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Part of the purpose of this website is to serve as a resource for analysis of loyalty programs so my readers can easily compare the value offered by credit card signup bonuses, seasonal promotions, and manufactured spending. To that end, one of the first projects I undertook here was my analysis of hotel "point density," comparing earning rates under different circumstances to the points needed for actual hotel night redemptions. Since Hyatt recently announced a devaluation to their program, increasing the cost of some awards and introducing a new award category, it's time to update my analysis of their point density.

As a reminder, here's Hyatt's current award chart, valid for bookings made through January 6, 2014:

And here's the new award chart, for award redemptions made beginning January 7, 2014:

As you can see, the devaluation hits properties in Categories 5 and 6, as well as those in the new Category 7 (for now these are some of the premier Park Hyatt properties, including Paris, Milan, Sydney, and Tokyo). For redemptions at those specific properties, Hyatt points just got much less valuable: 30,000 points will be needed where only 22,000 are required today, a 27% devaluation in the value of Hyatt points.

The purpose of a point density chart is to show the rebate value of various activities. This chart shows the pre-devaluation spending required to generate free nights at each Hyatt category:

So a Hyatt Diamond elite putting their Hyatt stays on a Hyatt co-branded credit card today needs to spend $2,316 at Hyatt properties to generate a free night at a top-tier Hyatt property. As you'd expect, post-devaluation that number goes way up:

This clearly shows the extent of the devaluation: the same amount of Hyatt spend that previously earned a free night at a top-tier Hyatt now only earns a night at a Category 5 property!

If you liked this post, you can find a similar analysis of a number of other competing loyalty programs at my page dedicated to Chapter 6 of my ebook, The Free-quent Flyer's Manifesto.