3 Ways to Earn Free Night Certificates With Hyatt

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Hyatt is, by far, my favorite hotel loyalty program, even though it is much smaller than other chains.  For example, Hyatt has 850+ hotels, while Wyndham has over 10 times that many!

But Hyatt is making an effort to grow and has partnered with Small Luxury Hotels.  Now you can earn and use Hyatt points at 110+ of their locations.  This is great because it makes one of the best Hyatt perks – the free night certificate – even more useful.

The easiest way to pick up a free night certificate is with the The World Of Hyatt Credit Card.  It comes with a Category 1-4 free night certificate every year you renew the card.  You can even earn an additional Category 1-4 free night each year you spend $15,000+ with the card.

But having a Hyatt credit card isn’t the only way to collect free night certificates.

How to Earn Hyatt Free Night Certificates

All of the certificates I’m covering here are valid at Hyatt hotels and partner Small Luxury Hotels within the appropriate categories.

Some certificates can be used at partner M Life hotels and others can’t.  I’ve noted the expiration policy and restrictions for each certificate below.  Also, you will need to book and complete your stay before the certificate expires.

1.  Get the World of Hyatt Credit Card

With The World Of Hyatt Credit Card you can earn a category 1-4 free night certificate every cardmember anniversary.  This benefit alone can easily be worth more than the $95 annual fee.

You can also earn a 2nd category 1-4 free night certificate each year you spend $15,000 or more on the card.

These free night certificates expire 12 months after they are issued and aren’t valid at Miraval, Hyatt Zilara or Hyatt Ziva resorts or Oasis homes.

2.  Earn 30 Hyatt Elite Night Credits or Earn 50,000 Base Hyatt Points

Once you have 30 elite qualifying nights or 50,000 base Hyatt points in a calendar year you’ll earn a Category 1-4 free night certificate.  And if you’re a heavy Hyatt user, you can earn a much more valuable Category 1-7 free night certificate after collecting 60 elite nights or 100,000 base Hyatt points in a calendar year.

These free night certificates are the most restrictive of the bunch.  They both expire 180 days after being issued and they aren’t valid at partner M Life locations.

If those numbers seem out of reach for you don’t forget that you’ll get 5 elite night credits each year you have The World Of Hyatt Credit Card.  And for every $5,000 you spend with the card you’ll earn another 2 elite night credits.  So if you spend $15,000 on the World of Hyatt card in a year, you’ll not only earn 2 Category 1-4 free nights, but you’ll also have an 11 elite night credit head start on earning another free night!

Also, award stays count as elite nights.  Right now The World Of Hyatt Credit Card has a 50,000 Hyatt-point sign-up bonus, which you can earn after meeting tiered minimum spending requirements.  The lowest tier Hyatt hotels only cost 5,000 points per night.  So you could use the bonus to book up to 10 free nights, giving yourself a nice boost in elite night credits.

Even though award stays will earn elite night credits, the sign-up bonus for the credit card won’t count as Hyatt base points.  So it won’t get you closer to meeting the base points requirement for a free night certificate.

3.  Stay at 5 Hyatt Brands

When the Hyatt loyalty program rebranded as World of Hyatt they introduced the Brand Explorer promotion.  With it, you can earn a Category 1-4 free night certificate for every 5 different Hyatt brands you stay at.  The certificate is valid for 12 months and it can be used at M Life hotels.

This is a lifetime promotion, so it doesn’t reset every year.  Currently there are 13 Hyatt brands, which means you can earn 2 free nights this way.

There is conflicting information as to whether award nights count for the Brand Explorer promo.  In my personal experience awards stays have counted.  And this seems to be the general consensus.  Also, only stays since March 1, 2017, will apply to this deal.

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