💳 Best hotel card: the Chase Hyatt

Hyatt properties aren't the most numerous, but they're often among the most luxurious in the world. What makes the Chase Hyatt card unique is the relatively high ratio of bonus point and free nights you get compared to the low annual fee. 

THE GOOD

  • 1 free night/year at any Category 1-4 hotel (guide for how to maximize via TPG)
  • 40,000 bonus points after a relatively low spend hurdle; $2,000 in 3 months
  • Reasonable $75/year fee
  • Automatic status (Discoverist)
  • No foreign transaction fees
  • 3 points/$ at Hyatt properties, 2 on travel/restaurants

THE BAD

  • Hyatt only has ~600 properties globally; nothing compared to Marriott's 5,700 or IHG's 5,000. If you want to redeem in small towns or off the beaten path, this isn't the right card for you. 
The Tokyo Hyatt Andaz, which I used the Chase card bonus to stay in recently

The Tokyo Hyatt Andaz, which I used the Chase card bonus to stay in recently

APR's tend to run in the 15%-23% range, normal for an award card from a big bank. Here's the link to apply

My favorite part about this card is that Hyatt tends to have really generous award availability and the rewards can wind up being very lucrative, depending on how you use them. For example, I recently used them to stay at the Hyatt Andaz Toykyo, a super-luxurious city hotel at the top of a large office tower in an amazing neighborhood. To use a random example date in the future, stays there can run close to $500/night:

 

Andaz Tokyo JPY.jpg

54,000 JPY = $476 as of 11/10/2017

Andaz Tokyo Points.jpg

So, 25,000 points redeems for what would have cost $476. Pretty decent.

For transparency's sake, I'll mention that I get a referral bonus if you click on any of the links above and apply, so thanks!