Blog

Hotel elite status is a great way to make your travels more comfortable and rewarding. With benefits like early check-in, late checkout, free breakfast and room upgrades, it can make sense to concentrate your hotel spending on a particular program.

Each major hotel chain offers perks to loyal members, but how much are the different tiers worth? Is one program more rewarding than another?

And is it even worth pursuing elite status at all?

We’ll dive into the status hierarchy for World of Hyatt and explain how its status tiers work, how to earn them through travel and non-travel expenses like credit card spending, and ultimately if striving for elite status is even worth the time and investment.

Here is everything you need to know about elite status in the World of Hyatt program.

What is World of Hyatt status?

World of Hyatt is the loyalty program of Hyatt, with thousands of properties globally, including brands like Park Hyatt, Andaz, Miraval and Thompson. You can join for free online as an entry-level “Member.”

Hyatt rewards its most loyal customers in the World of Hyatt program with the following elite status levels:

• Discoverist
• Explorist
• Globalist
• Lifetime Globalist

How to qualify for World of Hyatt status

Here’s a look at what you’ll need to qualify for World of Hyatt status every calendar year:

• Discoverist: Stay 10 nights, book three meetings and events, or earn 25,000 base points (the equivalent of $5,000 in spending).
• Explorist: Stay 30 nights, book 10 meetings and events, or earn 50,000 base points (the equivalent of $10,000 in spending).
• Globalist: Stay 60 nights, book 20 meetings and events, or earn 100,000 base points (the equivalent of $20,000 in spending).

Lifetime Globalist requires earning 1 million base points, equivalent to $200,000 in spending. There are no minimum stays or meetings required.

Related: World of Hyatt Globalist status: Perks and why you want it

World of Hyatt status levels and benefits

• Bonus points: A 20% points bonus results in 1 additional point per dollar spent.
• Four Club lounge access awards: Earn two at 20 elite qualifying nights (or 35,000 base points) and the remaining two when you reach 30 nights (or 50,000 base points) and qualify for Explorist status.
• Upgrade to the best available room: Unlike Discoverist members, Explorist travelers are eligible for upgrades to the best available room at check-in, up to but excluding suites and rooms with lounge access. This is also not applicable at Hyatt Place, Hyatt House and Hyatt Residence Club.
• Guaranteed availability: Explorist members are guaranteed a room when making a paid reservation at least 72 hours before arrival.
• Free night at a Category 1-4 property: When Explorists reach the 30-night threshold during the year and officially qualify for Explorist status, they will earn a free night award for a Category 1-4 Hyatt property.

• Bonus points: A 30% points bonus results in an additional 1.5 points per dollar spent.
• Room upgrades: At check-in, including standard suites. This isn’t available at Hyatt Place, Hyatt House and Hyatt Residence Club.
• Club lounge access and/or free breakfast: Globalist members enjoy access to Club lounges, where available. At properties without a Club lounge, they receive a complimentary full breakfast for each registered guest (up to two adults and two children) in the hotel’s restaurant.
• Late checkout: Hyatt also allows Globalist members late checkout privileges but extends it to 4 p.m
• Complimentary parking on free night awards: Globalist members get complimentary parking at hotels that run their own paid parking service (i.e., parking that you can charge to your room) on award stays.
• Guaranteed availability: Globalist members have the same guaranteed availability benefit offered to Explorist members but a shorter time frame to invoke it (48 hours instead of 72).
• My Hyatt Concierge: Globalist members can utilize a more tailored concierge service besides the elite reservation line, assisting with reservations and any special request.
• Guest of Honor: Hyatt’s Guest of Honor benefit allows Globalist members to redeem points for a friend or family member. The person staying on the reservation can use their elite status privileges.
• Four Suite Upgrade awards: Earn two Suite Upgrade awards at 50 elite qualifying nights (or 80,000 base points) and another two upon reaching 60 nights (or 100,000 base points) and earning Globalist status.
• 40-night threshold bonus: When Globalists reach 40 elite qualifying nights (or 65,000 base points), they are eligible for a Milestone bonus: Gift a Guest of Honor award for up to seven nights to someone for a paid or award stay, plus a choice of 5,000 Hyatt points, a $100 Hyatt gift card or a $150 Find Experience redemption. They can also choose from these three options again when they reach 50 elite qualifying nights (or 80,000 base points).
• Free night at a Category 1-7 property: Besides earning a free Category 1-4 night when surpassing the requirements for Explorist status, they’ll also earn a free night at any Hyatt property when reaching Globalist. 

When they stay more than 60 nights in a year, Globalists also enjoy the following:

• For every 10 additional nights they complete in a calendar year (up to 140 total nights), Globalists can gift a Guest of Honor award to someone for a paid or award stay, and choose 10,000 bonus points, an additional Suite Upgrade award or a $300 Find Experience redemption.
• If they manage to stay 100 nights in a single year, on top of all of the gifts listed above, Globalists will receive another Category 1-7 free night, as well as a choice of 10,000 bonus points, an additional Suite Upgrade award or a free night at Miraval (when they have already paid for one night).

Can a credit card help earn World of Hyatt status?

The World of Hyatt Credit Card ($95 annual fee) currently offers up to 65,000 bonus points. You’ll earn 35,000 bonus points after spending $3,000 on purchases within the first three months from account opening. Plus, earn up to 30,000 more points by earning 2 bonus points total per $1 spent on purchases that normally earn 1 point (on up to $15,000) in the first six months of account opening.

To help you reach elite status in the World of Hyatt program, the card also offers:

• Discoverist status for as long as your account is open
• Five elite nights every year, plus two qualifying night credits every time you spend $5,000 on the card

The World of Hyatt Business Credit Card ($199 annual fee) currently offers up to 75,000 bonus points; 60,000 bonus points after you spend $5,000 on purchases in the first three months from account opening, plus 15,000 bonus points after you spend $12,000 in the first six months from account opening.

To help you reach elite status in the World of Hyatt program, the card also offers:

• Discoverist status for the cardholder and up to five employees (and gift status to up to five employees)
• Earn five tier qualifying night credits for every $10,000 spent on the card in a calendar year.

This means you could earn Explorist status without staying at Hyatt properties by spending $65,000 a year on the personal card or $60,000 on the business card. So, if you do want a fast track to elite status in the World of Hyatt program without the stay requirements, consider a World of Hyatt branded credit card instead.

Is World of Hyatt status worth it?

It’s no secret we are big fans of the World of Hyatt program here at TPG, and we believe the top-tier Globalist status to be among the best hotel statuses you can earn. If you find yourself spending enough nights at Hyatt properties in a year or spending sufficiently at Hyatt or on a Hyatt credit card to earn Globalist status, we believe it is a status worth striving for, and it’s great that Hyatt offers even more perks after reaching stay milestones beyond the minimum number needed for Globalist status.

However, when pursuing elite status, it’s also important to consider how much you will travel in the future because there is little point in earning the benefits if you won’t be able to enjoy them.

When deciding on a hotel loyalty program, make sure it has properties where you travel the most. There’s really no point in pursuing elite status with a hotel chain if you can’t feasibly stay at one (or more) of its properties regularly.

While Hyatt has rapidly expanded in the past few years by acquiring Dream Hotel Group and Apple Leisure Group, its footprint is still smaller than Hilton, Marriott and IHG boast. This may mean there aren’t as many options for your next stay if you are only focusing on World of Hyatt.

Try to make sure there are Hyatt properties in or around destinations that match your travel style. For example, if you travel to a major city frequently and prefer to stay in luxury hotels, ensure one of Hyatt’s luxury brands has a presence there.

If you find Hyatt doesn’t have your desired type of hotel in the places you travel most, consider pursuing elite status with a program that does.

You’ll have a solid stash of World of Hyatt points, whether you’re earning status organically or through a credit card. So, you should value Hyatt points before chasing Hyatt elite status. Otherwise, you could be left with points you can’t use.

Unlike most competitors, Hyatt has continued publishing a standard award chart. This means award stays are priced predictably, and you won’t be met with outrageously high dynamic pricing when redeeming. This predictability is very valuable if you earn and redeem many Hyatt points.

Bottom line

The World of Hyatt program is a favorite of many travelers, including numerous TPG staffers. Redemption rates remain low compared with some other major hotel programs, the points are easy to earn with the Ultimate Rewards transfer option, and elite status benefits are generous, especially for top-tier Globalists.

However, given the limited (but growing) footprint of Hyatt’s various brands, it may not be a viable option for everyone, even though the program provides significant value to its loyal members.

While it is not a perfect program, holding elite status in the World of Hyatt program is a great way to maximize your travel.