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All Good Things Must End
I have been able to confirm with Hyatt that as of 10/31/14 they no longer offer Diamond Status challenges or status matches. That’s not to say that they absolutely won’t match again in the future or re-introduce a challenge, but in its current format, the Diamond Challenge is no more. Hyatt’s Gold Passport Diamond status is one of the most lucrative in the hotel industry giving members (4) confirmed suite upgrades good for stays of up to 6 nights each. Those are good on any status eligible rate including points + cash rates making them incredibly valuable.
The challenge required proof of an equal status level among other major competitors such as Hilton, SPG, or Intercontinental. Once approved for the challenge you would complete 12 nights in 60 days (certainly a tight window) but you would also get 4 suite upgrades to use immediately and then another 4 in the new status year starting March 1st.
I have been fortunate to complete two challenges and I will certainly miss having this as something to fall back on, but then again, I can appreciate that where they were overly generous they now have corrected to being fair – you earn the status for which you stay.
That being said, I doubt that I will let my Hyatt Diamond status ever lapse. If you have it now, hold on to it as long as you can, who knows when or if this will ever come back.
-Sherpa
Thanks for sharing. Only had Hyatt Diamond status once from doing the Star MegaDO 3 but I must say it was pretty amazing, especially the breakfast.
Thanks for letting us know. The thing that annoys me the most (besides the death of probably THE most lucrative status challenge out there) is that I literally JUST wrote a post (yesterday!) about how to do status matches and status challenges at every chain, and now it’s out of date 🙂
I mean, I knew the post would eventually go out of date, but I was kind of hoping to get more than a DAY out of it 😛
wow I feel crazy lucky as I signed up for the challenge just two weeks ago!
Kyle sez: “Hyatt’s Gold Passport Diamond status is one of the most lucrative in the hotel industry giving members (4) confirmed suite upgrades good for stays of up to 6 nights each. Those are good on any status eligible rate including points + cash rates making them incredibly valuable.”
The Hyatt GP Diamond status is “the most lucrative” only in the hotel industry imagined by bloggers and in the blogosphere. In the real world, there are other programs that offer a much more lucrative Diamond status than GP. Take, for example, the case of the 4 “confirmed” suite upgrades that you gush about.
The 4 upgrades may be “confirmed”, but, like suite upgrades for top elites at other programs, they still depend on availability because “there are limited numbers of suites available at each property.[GP T&C]” In addition, once the 4 upgrades are used up, that’s it; a GP Diamond has to wait until the following year before they can see the inside of a suite that they don’t pay for. Lastly, the 4 “confirmed” suite upgrades cannot be used on points-only reward stays; a room must be paid for with cash or with cash+points to be eligible for upgrade to a suite.
Now compare that with the suite upgrade policy enjoyed by Hilton Honors Diamond, who are entitled to UNLIMITED suite upgrades, including on REWARD STAYS, depending only on availability, like for all hotel programs. In other words, suite upgrades are independent of the type of booking (cash, points-only reward stays, cash+points) and there is no limit to how many times a HHonors Diamond can be upgraded a year. The obvious question is: “How good is availability?” This Diamond has been upgraded 100% of the time so far in 2014 after a sufficient number of stays to requalify for 2015 Diamond. Now that is lucrative…
Sorry to rain on this parade, but I would say that in terms of perks, the GP Diamond status is, at best, comparable to HHonors or Marriott Rewards Gold. While the GP Platinum status is equivalent to HHonors Silver, i.e., an elite status in name only. The demise of the Diamond Challenge is another sign of GP’s precipitous race to the bottom.
@Points With A Crew: I’m not calling you out specifically because you weren’t heavy-handed about it, but a lot of bloggers wrote about the Diamond challenge as a way to get 4 DSU’s with no intention of completing the challenge, or by completing it with very cheap stays to keep status. All of that was fair game as the rules went, but many did it as a cheap way to insert affiliate links for the Hyatt credit card. That kind of exposure meant that the demise of the Diamond Challenge shouldn’t be a surprise to anyone at all.
@gp-plat: You’re right that you only get 4 DSUs per year, but so far I’ve only burned 3 of mine this program year and have far more than 3 Hyatt stays. I’ve been in a suite 100% of the time. It may not be a published benefit, and therefore far from guaranteed, but I’ve found that in my year as a GP Diamond, the discretionary treatment has been what makes the program great. Not to pull up the ladder behind me, since I did originally gain status with a (completed) challenge, but it’s my guess that Hyatt has simply hit their internal quota of elite numbers and has stopped the challenge for that reason. That probably means that the discretionary benefits I’ve received stand a chance of continuing. I’ve never had better than HHonors Gold, so I can’t comment on HH Diamond. But do keep in mind that HH Gold and GP Diamond have roughly the same qualifying criteria, as Hyatt has far fewer properties and can’t command the premium. Ignoring credit card status, 50 nights at Hyatt result in better elite benefits than 50 nights at Hilton.
Have to agree with gp-plat. My first Hyatt Diamond experience wasnt comparable to what I’ve received as a HH Diamond.
SO and I have a series of stays booked at Hyatt and was planning to do the Diamond Challenge but now will rebook into Hilton’s. No reason to waste our money at the few Hyatts around if there isn’t a status plum to go after (there are significantly more Hilton’s to choose from).
Nice find, saw it mentioned in your blog first. You made TBB (up on top, NOT the “angry” blog buzz section lol). Thanks.
@AWTY: Your experience with complimentary upgrades as a GP Diamond is starkly different from that of the majority, unless your 100% success rate has been at properties where you are a frequent guest and are thus well known. Otherwise, most property managers hide behind this rule in the GP T&C in denying GP Diamonds suite upgrades: “3. Diamond members will receive the best available room (EXCLUDING suites), including Regency Club or Grand Club rooms, at the time of check-in.”
I am Diamond with both Hilton and Hyatt and my experience at Hilton is opposite of gp-plat. My suite upgrade experience with Hilton has been around 20% while Hyatt has been also been about 20% not counting my advanced confirmed Hyatt upgrades.
Just one example- I stayed at the Conrad Tokyo recently and didn’t get a suite upgrade. Had I instead stayed at any of the fabulous Hyatt properties in Tokyo I could have confirmed a suite upgrade in advance which would have been out of this world!
If you max out the confirmed Hyatt upgrades that means 24 nights of suite stays per year which is outstanding. Plus, the breakfast benefit for Hilton is laughable compared to Hyatt (free room service, sweet)! I also think the Hyatt lounges have better (and more) high quality food. I’ve also had much better luck with early and late check-ins and check-outs with Hyatt.
About the best thing Hilton has going for it is the quantity of properties. Since Hilton gives out Gold status like candy on Halloween, I think I’ll just fall back on that (I don’t see a whole lot of difference between Hilton Diamond and Hilton Gold). In the meantime, my primary hotel loyalty will rest with Hyatt where I’ve been treated a whole lot better.
@Phil in ATL – My only advice is that you probably should smile more when requesting those suite upgrades, which are generally not automatic, because it does not sound like you are getting the most out of your HH Diamond status. My stays are almost exclusively in Asia, where breakfast at every property is nothing short of a royal feast, including at Waldorf-Astoria, which offers no breakfast in the US. Qualify of the lounges is YMMV…
Bottom line is that me suite upgrades are top since my stays tend to be lengthy (4+ nights) and I love it that suite upgrades are unlimited at HHonors (on paid or rewards stays), I am batting about 95% since 2012.
Cheers!
@AWTY gotta call you out on one thing – there are no affiliate links for the Hyatt card there may have been at one time but not in the last couple/few years. People wrote about it because it was an incredible way to achieve status for future stays. Sure, there were some who said to get it just to use the upgrades and leave but I don’t think most did that.
@gp-plat It’s a mix of first time and return visits. The PH Aviara has me in a suite every time – sometimes with a DSU, I get a better suite. But on the opposite end, I just confirmed a balcony suite at a different property via email, no DSU, and it’ll be my first stay with this property. I think that just like the advice you gave Phil, you have to know how to ask. Regardless, GP Diamond “only” requires 50 nights, and one assertion I’m very comfortable making is that 50 nights at Hyatt gets me far better elite treatment (meaning published benefits + discretionary) than 50 nights elsewhere would get me. That’s definitely due to the smaller property portfolio, but if there’s a Hyatt where I’m going, I choose it.
@Chris I’m not privy to others’ affiliate relationships, but it’s a Chase product so that would surprise me. Let’s assume you’re right, because there’s a good chance you know more than me if you’re a Chase affiliate. A quick google for Hyatt Diamond Challenge returns quite a few blog posts – many of which are about completing the challenge cheaply, or planning the 60 day window around a major trip and burning the DSUs, and not completing anything. Many of these posts have credit card (affiliate) links in the body of the post – the Arrival card is popular. Nearly all have credit card ads somewhere else on the page. I’m not saying posting this was wrong, or that affiliate income is wrong. What I’m saying is that a bunch of circles and arrows posts on how to acquire status to get the match in the first place (hint: Sign up for this Hilton card!) and how to complete it cheaply (Arrival card, Ink 70k ZOMG transfer to Hyatt for points+cash) or not at all, probably led to increased participation and not the kind Hyatt wanted. That sort of thing is essentially pulling the ladder up behind you.