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Now Hiring: “Breakfast Buffet Bouncer” – Hyatt Place Hotels to Enforce New Rules

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    Scott:   The kitchen is closed.

    Hyatt, what are you thinking?!

    Hyatt Place is Hyatt’s hotel chain where you go for a comfortable stay and a decent breakfast buffet each morning.  But now Hyatt’s accountants have decided this benefit is not bringing home the bacon for the company.  And I’m seriously cheesed.

    Hyatt Says They’ll Soon Be Offering a “Compelling Breakfast Offering.”  Will It Look Like This?  And Who Describes Breakfast as Compelling?  “Honey, Did You Enjoy Your Toast?” “Oh Yes, It Was Compelling.  And the Grape Jam Provided Synergistic Value.”

    Now, in order to get your most important meal of the day, you must book directly with Hyatt.  So if you book with Expedia, or the Citi Prestige 4th night free perk, or your company’s travel agency then… no soup for you!

    I get it.  Hyatt has to pay Orbitz and all those other websites whenever we book a hotel that way.  But Hyatt, if you don’t like it — either:

    DON’T list your hotels on those sites

    or

    ADD something special to direct bookings.

    I suppose they calculated that not enough people who book through 3rd-party websites care if they miss out on earning Hyatt points and other Hyatt perks.

    Unfortunately for Hyatt (a hotel chain that I LOVE that has an otherwise wonderful loyalty program), they have competitors in the big-comfy-room-with-free-breakfast-and-a-gym-to-work-off-the-sausages-you-ate-at-free-breakfast space.

    Whenever possible, I do book directly through the hotel website.  And the Hyatt credit card is one of many wonderful Chase credit cards.  I’ve kept it for years.  But sometimes you just can’t or don’t want to book through the hotel’s site.  What if you’re taking advantage of the Capital One Venture sweet 10X miles deal through hotels.com?

    (With Capital One® Venture® Rewards Credit Card you earn 10 Venture miles per $1 you spend on Hotels.com bookings.  To earn the bonus, you must book your stay through a dedicated Hotels.com link and pay with your card through January 31, 2020.)

    Anyhow, I’ll switch to IHG Staybridge Suites.  I’ve had great experiences with them in multiple states.  They give you free breakfast, Wi-Fi, a fitness center, and more.  Or I’ll go to Hampton Inn by Hilton.  Or Hilton’s Embassy Suites.  Or Marriott’s Fairfield Inn.  All have free breakfast.  Options abound, folks.

    Hyatt, of course, can do what they want.  My feeling is this is a bad move for them.  Families especially do well at hotel brands like this.  They will lose those bookings too.  Or worse, these families won’t know about the change, and when the parents don’t want to pay for breakfast at the hotel, their young kids will end up screaming in agony from the hunger pangs.

    See Related:   Use the American Express Fine Hotels & Resorts program to get free breakfast at luxury hotels!

    And Just Who Will Be the Breakfast Buffet Bouncer at Hyatt Place?

    Is that a new career path?  Because I’m all about creating more jobs for hard-working Americans.  But somehow I think this task of taking little red tickets or checking for a wristband will fall on some already overworked staff member.

    And do I really want to wear a wristband that says Hyatt Place on it?

    Hyatt, I love you.  Please walk back this policy change.

    But until then, Hyatt Place, you can stick your eggs where the sunny-side don’t shine.

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