Over the summer, Hyatt surprised us with the launch of the new World of Hyatt Credit Card, and it’s truly a compelling and fantastic refresh.
I’ve been a Hyatt credit card holder (the old version, of course) since 2012, and it was always a card I happily paid the annual fee for year after year because the category 1-4 annual free night certificate was more than worth the $75 annual fee. The old version of the Hyatt credit card is no longer open to new applicants.
My strategy was that I decided to close my old Hyatt card, wait 30 days, and then apply for the new World of Hyatt credit card so that I could be eligible for the generous 60,000 point welcome bonus instead of doing a product swap and missing out on a boatload of points.
If this card is also on your radar, I’d highly recommend applying soon, as I just received word that the World of Hyatt Credit Card sign up bonus is soon changing.
Effective January 10, 2019, new World of Hyatt Cardmembers will now be able to earn up to 50,000 Bonus Points – 25,000 Bonus Points after $3,000 on purchases within the first 3 months from account opening, plus an additional 25,000 Bonus Points after spending $6,000 in spend within the first 6 months. This offer will replace the current new cardmember bonus of up to 60,000 bonus points
The current offer is 40,000 Bonus Points after you spend $3,000 on purchases within the first 3 months of account opening, plus an additional 20,000 Bonus Points after you spend $6,000 total on purchases within the first 6 months of account opening.
Grand Hyatt Kauai
60,000 World of Hyatt points is enough for 12 free nights at Category 1 hotels or 2 free nights at Category 7 hotels.
Additional card benefits include:
More Bonus Points
- 9x Points total on Hyatt stays and experiences – that is based on:
- 4 Bonus Points per $1 spent on the card at Hyatt hotels and resorts, including participating restaurants and spas
- Plus 5 Base Points per eligible $1 spent as a World of Hyatt member
- 2x Bonus Points on dining at restaurants and airline tickets purchased through the airline
- 2x Bonus Points on fitness club and gym memberships
- 2x Bonus Points on local transit and commuting including ride share services
- 1x all other purchases
More Free Nights
- One free night each anniversary year at a category 1-4 Hyatt hotel or resort
- One additional free night at a category 1-4 Hyatt hotel or resort after spending $15,000 in an anniversary year
Achieve Higher Status
- Automatic Discoverist status in World of Hyatt
- 5 qualifying night credits every year
- 2 qualifying night credits after every $5,000 in spend on the card
Bottom Line
Even at $95 with the new World of Hyatt Credit Card, I think it’s absolutely worth paying the annual fee for the free night alone; and the new World of Hyatt card comes with so many new improvements that it’s too hard to pass up.
What are your thoughts? Are you going to apply for the card before January 10, 2019?
Is the 30 day gap after closing the old card a strict requirement? I was planning on applying for the new version next year but still have the old version active.
Yes you definitely need to close out the old one and wait a bit before applying for the new one. 30 days was what I was told by chase.
We called today and apparently it’s not 30 days but specifically when the close out will be effective, which we were told would be the next 8th of the month (so January 8 in our case). Not clear if that’s specific to our account or a general rule.