Hyatt’s elite program can be really valuable – for instance when you reach certain milestones you can get valuable perks, and there’s multiple ways of reaching those milestones. In this episode, Greg and Nick debate the best way of getting there.
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Hyatt Elite Milestone spending vs Mattress running
Mailbag
(01:21) – Multiple readers (coincidentally named both forms of “John”) chime in with feedback from recent podcast episodes…
(01:42) – Find podcast Ep269 Alaska/Hawaiian Airlines Wedding Planning here.
(04:21) – Find podcast Ep262 How to get great value from you Platinum card here.
Crazy Thing
(07:34) – Nick experiences a crazy Hilton resort fee for using the pool
Points Talk
(11:42) – Bilt’s September 1 Rent Day promo. Should Greg transfer his points?
Read more about Bilt Rent Day promos here.
(20:58) – Bilt adds Walgreens FSA & point earning
Read more about Bilt rewards adding points-earning at Walgreens here.
Award Talk
(28:34) – Delta (probably gone) : US to Taipei on Delta One from 98,000 SkyMiles (83,300 for Delta cardholders)
Read more about finding this US to Taipei deal here.
Main Event: Hyatt Elite Milestone spending vs Mattress running
(33:26) – Find our World of Hyatt Complete Guide here
(35:10) – Read Greg’s post “Hyatt milestone spending — what’s my X?” here.
(36:59) – Read Nick’s “Hyatt Milestone chasing: should we all mattress run to Globalist status?” here.
(39:49) – Hyatt Milestone Details: Earn valuable benefits after every 10 qualifying nights starting at 20 nights (but real value starts at 30)…
(47:20) – First let’s talk about mattress running…
(52:54) – Credit card spend options…
(52:56) – Learn more about the World of Hyatt card here.
(53:43) – Learn more about the World of Hyatt Business card here.
(56:26) – Which is better – mattress running or credit card spend?
Question of the Week
(1:07:33) – A reader just discovered you can redeem Cathay Pacific miles for hotels and wonders if we’ve heard of anyone doing this?
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Music Credit – “Ocean Deep” by Annie Yoder
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Hey guys, thanks for doing these blogs and podcasts on Hyatt status. I’m going for Globalist in 2025, but through Hyatt spend – not number of nights. Forgive me if I missed it, but can you please confirm that $20K in pre-tax spend on Hyatt cash stays will get me there with 100K base points. I don’t hear anyone say much about this, so I’m just confirming that I am interpreting Hyatt’s qualification chart properly. Thanks!
My understanding is 200k spend on Hyatt Biz CC will get you to Globalist.
The automatic FSA processing via Bilt is not something I’d recommend/do as a points enthusiast.
This is the language from the Bilt website:
So, if I understand it correctly, using this service means missing out on the CC points for the spend (if the lender is one that will claw back points for refunds). Normally, it is possible to pay for FSA eligible items, and then claim the money back via a bank transfer. It’s obviously more hassle, but I find the process pretty easy, personally (I upload receipts online). Given that the annual max for FSA is $3200, going the Bilt route will be costing me up to 9600 points per year, per player (assuming I am using a CFU. Or, of course, it’s also spend that could go towards something else).