Natalya’s Stay at Hyatt Regency Monterey and The Hyatt Diamond Treatment
Natalya just had her newly acquired Hilton HHonors Gold status matched to the Hyatt Diamond Challenge. She enjoyed a stay at Hyatt Regency Monterey. With Hyatt’s top elite status, she had access to the spa, Regency Club, complimentary breakfast and received bonus points for being a Hyatt Diamond member.
Getting the Hyatt Diamond Challenge Match
Natalya travels for work. She was staying at Hilton to collect Hilton HHonors points for our upcoming trip to Asia. We all got Hilton Gold status different ways. With a Hilton fast-track promotion, she quickly became a Hilton HHonors Gold status holder after just four stays. Svetlana got it instantly and I got it through the Citi Hilton HHonors Reserve Card.
When Hilton announced a devaluation, it was time to regroup and plan our next move. Hyatt will match Hilton HHonors Gold status to the Hyatt Diamond Challenge. With the Hyatt Diamond Challenge, you are given full Hyatt Diamond status for 60 days. You get to keep the status if you stay 12 nights within those 60 days. If you sign up for the status before June and meet the challenge requirements, you will keep it until February of the following year. Sign-ups after June will extend the status until February of the year after for meeting challenge requirements.
During the 60 days, you get to enjoy the amazing Hyatt Diamond benefits:
- Best available room upon arrival, excluding suites.
- Exclusive access to the Regency Club or Grand Club lounge featuring complimentary continental breakfast and evening hors d’oeuvres. Daily complimentary full breakfast in hotels without a club lounge.
- Complimentary internet access.
- Welcome bonus point amenity (1,000 points in North America).
- Four annual confirmed suite upgrades on paid stays up to 7 nights (Yes, you get these with the Challenge!).
- 1.5 extra Hyatt Gold Passport point earned per dollar spent at Hyatt hotels (on top of the usual 5 points per dollar)
- Extra 1,000 points per night for the first 6 nights during the challenge 60 day period.
To get the Hyatt Diamond status, all she had to do was send an email to goldpassport@hyatt.com with a screenshot of her Hilton Gold status and ask to be matched to the Hyatt Diamond Challenge. She explained she would like to try out Hyatt after the recent Hilton point devaluation. She didn’t have to show any prior stay history. Within 24 hours, she received a reply stating the terms of the Hyatt Diamond challenge match and was asked to accept. She was already Diamond by the time she checked into the Hyatt Regency Monterey for her one-night stay the following day.
The Hyatt Regency Monterey: The Hyatt Diamond Experience
When Natalya checked in to the Hyatt Regency Monterey, she got the Hyatt Diamond Welcome letter outlining the benefits she’ll be receiving
How nice it is to receive a special welcome letter!
The letter outlined that she will be receiving:
- Access to the Regency Club serving continental breakfast, light snacks and refreshments throughout the day, evening hors d’oeuvres following by dessert at 8 pm.
- A choice between an amenity or 1,000 Bonus Gold Passport points (Hyatt Gold Passport points are pretty valuable so, of course, she chose the points!)
- Complimentary internet.
- Late checkout.
- Access to the on-site spa with sauna, steam room and rain showers. This was probably Natalya’s favorite benefit. We all love the spa!
Refreshments at the Regency Club:
Complimentary Breakfast in the Regency Club:
Relaxation at the Spa:
Natalya was quite happy with her Hyatt Diamond status! Next week, she is going to be visiting the Hyatt Vineyard Creek in Santa Rosa and enjoying her free breakfast and amenities there too.
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Hi – when receiving the 4 suite upgrades as part of the Diamond Challenge Match, how long are they valid for and can these be used online at the time of booking? Or, does it require a follow up call to upgrade to the suite?
Hi, they are valid until February of the following year and you, unfortunately, do have to call. If you’re interested in suites at Hyatt, though, you may find this post useful!
Thanks for the reply. Is that February expiration date still 2014 for enrolling in the challenge through Dec 2013? Or, does it roll to Feb 2015 for those who enroll in the challenge after June 1, 2013, as would the Diamond status upon completion of the challenge. It seems like it would be a very short expiration for someone who chose to do the challenge in November / December of this year? If the former is the case, for instance, and the challenge were completed, then the diamond member would have a full year with no upgrades eligible for use, until they earned the additional four as part of their annual bonus at the end of 2014, assuming they maintain the status – is that correct?
So in general, if you enroll in the status challenge the second half of the year and meet the requirements, your status lasts until Feb of the year after next, e.g., until Feb 2015 if you enroll now. I actually just enrolled into the status challenge (a few days ago) for my upcoming stay at Park Hyatt Milan and received Diamond certificates that last until February 2014 only. I believe that, if you do meet the status requirements, you will be given new upgrade certificates valid until February of the year after (2015 in this case). But for the challenge, you only get the closest February.
Hi Miles Professor,
Great blog you have here! I have a few questions about the 2-night certificates from the Chase Hyatt CC. It might take some time to explain so bear with me!
Let’s say I sign up for the Diamond Status Match Challenge now (September, 2013) and have them match my Hilton Gold status so that I will have Hyatt Diamond status, I then apply for the Chase Hyatt CC and complete the minimum spending for that CC, my 2-free nights will be in suites since I will have been Diamond status by the time I apply for the CC. How long do I have to use the 2-free night certificates?
Also, if I have both my parents do the Diamond Status Match Challenge and have Hyatt match each of their Hilton Gold statuses to get the Hyatt Diamond status and then have them sign up for the Chase Hyatt CC and get the 2-free nights in a suite (for a total of 4 suite certificates from parents), would they be able to book the 4-nights under my name so that I’d have 6-free nights in a suite?
Last part of the question, let’s assume I have 1 year to use the 2-free night certificates, if I decide to book the suites at say 10 months in (2-months before the certificates expire), my Diamond status will have been expired by then….would I be able to get another Diamond Status match?? If not, do you think they would have a problem with me creating a second Hyatt Gold Passport account and asking them to Diamond Status match that account instead? I’m not sure how they determine if an account has been Diamond-Status matched before (by Hyatt Gold passport #, or address, or what?), what if I use a different status match method (say have them match my Priority Club Platinum status instead of my Hilton Gold status the 2nd time around).
Sorry for the lengthy question!!
Hi Brandon,
Glad you like the blog! You will have one year to use the free night certificates after they are deposited into your account. The free night certificates, unfortunately, are not transferable. It may be possible to book under your parents and add your name to the reservation, but enforcing this or not is likely very much hotel specific. I am likely to do this myself with my mom’s Hyatt free nights. Also, the Hyatt Diamond status is a once in a lifetime match so you won’t be able to match again if you do the match. I also haven’t tried setting up two Hyatt accounts and doing the Diamond match twice; they certainly would not like this if they found out about it and it’s not something I would personally try… if you’re using Hyatt free night awards from your previous account, it’s not hard for them to learn you have two accounts. Hope this answers all your questions!
Thanks for the response!!