Hyatt Properties Case Study: Cash or Points?

In the world of points and miles, we often emphasize using credit cards to score free travel perks. For a Hyatt fanboy like myself, this means free nights at Hyatt hotels. While this approach can unlock remarkable value, remember that points are just another form of currency. Like cash, they should be spent wisely.

Hyatt points, like any loyalty currency, offer varying levels of return depending on the situation. Just because you’ll hear many people praise the general value of Hyatt points doesn’t mean that every Hyatt redemption is worth making. Some redemptions yield fantastic value, while others definitely fall short.

Understanding when to use points and when to pay cash is an important but often under-discussed area of the points and miles hobby. In this article, I’ll share a case study based on actual Hyatt properties I visited in 2024. For some stays, I redeemed points, and for others, I paid cash. By walking you through my thought process for each decision, I hope to give you the tools to decide whether to use cash or points for your next Hyatt stay.

The Baseline Value of Hyatt Points

The question of whether to spend cash or points on a Hyatt booking hinges on a simpler question: what’s the baseline value of a Hyatt point? Once we know this, everything becomes black and white. If a redemption provides value above this baseline, it’s a good deal. Otherwise, paying cash makes more sense.

The metric we use for this baseline value is cents per point (CPP). To obtain CPP, simply divide the cash rate by the points rate, and multiply by 100. The higher the CPP for a redemption, the better the value.

So what’s the CPP of a Hyatt point? Unfortunately, there’s no straightforward answer to this question, as the value depends on factors like season, demand and the property’s prestige. However, we can generally observe a few trends:

• Luxury properties: Hyatt’s “crown-jewel” brands like the Park Hyatt and Alila are often redemption sweet spots. These properties frequently deliver excellent value, and it’s not uncommon to see CPP values of 2.5 or more. Beyond the luxurious experience, that’s one of the primary reasons these properties are heavily coveted by points and miles enthusiasts.
• Mid-tier and budget properties: Hyatt’s other brands like Hyatt Regency, Hyatt Centric and Hyatt Place typically yield more varied CPP values. Depending on cash rates and demand, redemptions at these properties typically range from 0.5 to 2.0 CPP.

Many points and miles experts have done analyses on the baseline value of Hyatt points. The general consensus appears to be somewhere in the 1.5 to 2.0 CPP range.

What is my personal take? For my Hyatt stays, any redemption above 2.0 CPP is a clear winner. Redemptions below this threshold require more consideration, depending on the circumstances.

Your target CPP may be different from mine depending on your travel habits and goals. To develop a sense for what your target CPP should be, it’s helpful to consider actual cash rates versus points rates at various Hyatts worldwide. That’s where the next few sections come in–let’s examine some real-life case studies of Hyatt properties I visited in 2024.

Popular Luxury Hyatts—No-Brainer Redemptions

This year, I was lucky enough to have stayed at two amazing bucket-list Hyatt properties: the Alila Ventana Big Sur and the Grand Hyatt Kauai. These properties are beloved in the points and miles community for a reason—they consistently deliver incredible value, easily clearing the 2.0 CPP threshold and making them no-brainer redemptions.

Alila Ventana Big Sur

Finding standard room availability at the Alila Ventana Big Sur is notoriously difficult. I’ll admit, I got super lucky. Living in Northern California definitely gave me an edge, because I can capitalize on last minute availability when I see it. This time, the timing couldn’t have been more perfect, since I managed to snag availability on my anniversary. The stars really aligned for this one!

The Alila Ventana Big Sur is a category 8 Hyatt, where rooms run from 35,000 points per night (off-peak) to 45,000 points per night (peak). In reality, this Alila is essentially stuck in a perpetual peak season. Expect to shell out 45,000 points year round, which was the case for me when I found last-minute availability for two nights in January 2024:

Room rates here are jaw-dropping, ranging between $2,000 to $3,000 a night. Considering the median value of around $2,500 per night, this two-night stay would have cost around $5,000 total. At 90,000 points, this gave me a CPP value of 5.56—absolutely phenomenal.

The property itself is breathtaking, and it’s home to some of the best food I’ve ever had in North America. While booking here only seems to get harder each year, I hope everyone gets the chance to experience this property at least once in their lifetime.

Grand Hyatt Kauai

The Grand Hyatt Kauai is a beautiful tropical oasis on the peaceful island of Kauai. Unlike the Alila, availability here is far easier to come by, in part due to the property’s size.

The Grand Hyatt Kauai is a category 8 Hyatt, where rooms go from 35,000 Hyatt points per night (off-peak) to 45,000 per night (peak). The hotel changed from a category 7 to a category 8 this year. However, we visited when it was still a category 7 last summer—peak season—and were still able to find three consecutive nights of availability at the 35,000 per night rate.

The cash rate for a standard room is around $900 to $1,000 a night before resort fees are added on. So even if we take the lowest rate and disregard the resort fees, spending 105,000 points on a three-night stay worth $2,700 gives us a CPP of 2.57, which is comfortably above our threshold. Again, we visited when the property was a category 7 but it still is a great value at higher rates as a category 8.

The cherry on top is the relative ease of finding award availability here. It’s an attainable luxury experience that’s well within reach for just about anyone.

Hyatts in Honolulu—Cash is King

While the Grand Hyatt Kauai usually offers some excellent redemption value, the bustling island of Oahu is a different story. If you’re set on staying at a Hyatt here, you may be better off using cash.

Hyatt Regency Waikiki Beach

The Hyatt Regency Waikiki Beach is probably the go-to choice for Hyatt loyalists in Honolulu. It’s a large beachfront property in close proximity to tons of restaurants and shops in the city center. But does that make it a good redemption?

As a category 5 Hyatt, award nights here range from 17,000 points (off-peak) to 23,000 points (peak). Cash rates, on the other hand, can vary quite a bit.

For example, I found the following rates for a weekday night in February. The cash rate was $268 (the total cost is approximately $315 after taxes and fees):

The same room on the same night goes for 20,000 Hyatt points:

We can quickly run the CPP calculation here. Taking the post-tax rate of $315, we’re getting around 1.58 CPP here. This is below my 2.0 CPP threshold, so I personally wouldn’t make this redemption.

Looking back on my five-night stay, I paid $1,348.60 out of pocket. Even if each night was offered at an off-peak points rate, this stay would’ve cost 85,000 points, which is a best case CPP of 1.59.

While I enjoyed my time at the Regency, it just wasn’t worth my points. Instead, it was a better decision to just spend the cash (and earn a bunch of Hyatt points with the World of Hyatt Credit Card). That said, cash and award rates can vary, so it’s always worth running your own CPP calculations for your travel dates to see if a redemption might work for you.

Hyatt Centric Waikiki Beach

Another category 5 Hyatt property in Honolulu is the newer Hyatt Centric Waikiki Beach. This property isn’t bad at all: it’s still very centrally located and has more modern rooms than the Regency. However, it’s slightly further from the beach and lacks a true swimming pool (the wading pool might disappoint some travelers).

Will we have better luck using our points at the Centric? I searched the same night in February as I did for the Regency and found a room for roughly the same price, $264 (the total cost is approximately $311 after taxes and fees):

The points rate matched the Regency’s:

Crunching the numbers, we get a very similar CPP of 1.56, which falls short of our target.

I only stayed here for one night last year, and again I paid out of pocket: $318.37 for the one night in August. At the off-peak points rate of 17,000, this is actually a very interesting case: we get a CPP of 1.87. That is very close to my breakeven point for redemptions, but I still chose cash on this particular occasion.

Aside: Hyatt Place Waikiki Beach

Though I didn’t stay here in 2024, the Hyatt Place Waikiki Beach often has the best Hyatt points deal in Honolulu. As a category 4 property, it has lower points rates. A standard night here usually costs around $320 or so after taxes, but at the standard category 4 rate of 15,000 points, this gives a CPP of 2.13.

The Hyatt Place definitely offers a more consistently good deal on redemptions. The only thing that isn’t consistent, unfortunately, is the award availability. It’s long been known that the Hyatt Place likes to hide award availability even when there are plenty of rooms available.

Two Hyatts in Japan: A Case Study

During a summer trip to Tokyo, I was able to knock out another two amazing Hyatts. Both were interesting cases in the cash versus points debate, so let’s dive in.

Fuji Speedway Hotel

My absolute favorite stay this year was at the Fuji Speedway Hotel. That may come as a surprise with many of the other heavy hitters in this article (Alila Ventana Big Sur, Grand Hyatt Kauai). But for someone who grew up playing racing games on the iconic Fuji Speedway, this was truly one of the most unique and memorable hotel experiences of my life.

The Fuji Speedway Hotel is a category 6 hotel, with rooms ranging from 21,000 points a night (off-peak) to 29,000 points a night (peak). This is quite expensive, especially when you realize the cash rates typically aren’t that bad. For example, the posted rate for a weekday in April is $308 (about $386 after taxes and fees):

The points rate for the same room is 25,000 Hyatt points a night:

That means that we’re only getting 1.53 CPP. While I’d happily spend 25,000 points for the level of luxury this hotel offers—it’s absolutely deserving of its category 6 status—the relatively low CPP makes cash the better option.

For my own two-night stay at the Fuji Speedway Hotel, I was billed 102,449 Japanese Yen. Thanks to the particularly weak Yen at the time, this appeared as $627 on my credit card bill. Even at the best possible points rate of 21,000 per night, this redemption would’ve only had a CPP of 1.49. Cash was the clear choice.

Hyatt Centric Ginza

After a couple of serene nights in the countryside near Fuji, I returned to Tokyo and chose the Hyatt Centric Ginza as my base. This is a very classy hotel in the heart of Ginza, steps away from all the shopping you could possibly want to do. I also spent a good amount of time at the retro video game arcade machines in the main lobby and the chic bar area.

The Hyatt Centric Ginza is another category 6 hotel, so it also has the same points range as the Fuji Speedway Hotel, from 21,000 to 29,000 a night. However, cash rates at the Centric are usually much higher due to its prime location. For example, the rate for an off-peak weekday in June is $489 ($612 after taxes and fees):

The corresponding points redemption is at the off-peak rate:

The resulting 2.91 CPP means we’re getting very good redemption value from this hotel. I’d go for the points rate in a heartbeat.

Comparing these two category 6 Hyatts in Japan offers an interesting perspective. If you ask me which hotel is better, the Fuji Speedway Hotel wins by a mile. If Hyatt points were the only currency that existed in this world, I’d blow them all at Fuji.

But in reality, where we have the option to pick between cash and points each time, the Hyatt Centric Ginza is the clear winner when it comes to value for points. Due to cash rates, hotel demand and location, the Hyatt Centric Ginza just presents itself as a better points opportunity than the Fuji Speedway Hotel.

Final Case Studies

We’ll round out this article with a few rapid-fire examples. Now that you’ve gotten a grasp of what your target CPP might be, try deciding whether you’d opt for cash or points at each of these properties.

Hyatt Place Las Vegas

Let’s consider the unpretentious Hyatt Place Las Vegas. This Hyatt Place is really close to the airport, so it’s suitable for travelers to crash for the night before a flight the next morning. However, it’s probably not ideal for anyone looking to vacation in Las Vegas, since it lacks in glamour and is a good way off the strip.

This hotel is a category 3 Hyatt, with points rates from 9,000 (off-peak) to 15,000 (peak). I was only here for one night, and I saw a room with a cash rate of $157 ($178 after taxes and fees) and a points rate of 9,000.

What would you choose?

This redemption would come out to a 1.98 CPP, which is close enough to my 2.0 CPP threshold. I went for the points redemption.

Hyatt Centric Downtown Portland

Next, let’s look at the Hyatt Centric Downtown Portland. This is just a category 2 Hyatt, with points rates from 6,500 (off-peak) to 9,500 (peak). I was only here for one night, and I saw a room with a cash rate of $133 ($153 after taxes and fees) and a points rate of 6,500.

What would you choose?

This one turned out to be a no-brainer redemption, since the CPP here is 2.35. On another note, it’s always interesting how Hyatt decides to categorize their hotels—this was definitely one of the best category 2 hotels I’ve stayed at.

Grand Hyatt Taipei

Last but not least, let’s examine the Grand Hyatt Taipei. Apparently, this hotel has a reputation for being haunted—something I only found out after my stay—spooky! Thankfully, I didn’t have any supernatural encounters during my three nights there.

The Grand Hyatt Taipei is a really nice category 3 hotel just a few blocks from the Taipei 101 building. Points rates for rooms range from 9,000 (off-peak) to 15,000 (peak). I saw a room with a cash rate of $172 ($194 after taxes and fees) and a points rate of 12,000.

What would you choose?

These rates produce a CPP of 1.62, which isn’t enough for the redemption for me. Had this been at the off-peak rate of 9,000, the CPP would’ve jumped to 2.16, which would definitely be worth the redemption.

Conclusion

Hyatt points are amazing. They can unlock some incredible travel experiences, but the value you get depends heavily on when, where and how you redeem them. Sometimes, you’re better off paying cash and saving your points for a better redemption. From bucket-list stays at the Alila Ventana Big Sur to more practical options like the Hyatt Place Las Vegas, understanding cents per point (CPP) can help you make smarter decisions.

While some redemptions are clear no-brainers, others require a bit of thought to determine whether points or cash is the better choice. Ultimately, the best strategy is to do the CPP calculations and prioritize what matters to you—whether it’s luxury, location or just maximizing value.