Winter Getaway to Kauai: Part 5 – 3 Free Nights & a Partial Ocean View Upgrade at the Grand Hyatt Kauai

Update:   One or more card offers in this post are no longer available.  Check our Hot Deals for the latest offers.  Emily Jablon:   Daraius and I went to Maui, Hawaii in March 2013.  We loved Hawaii so much that we decided to return, but this time to Kauai.  Kauai is more laid back and less built-up than Maui.

We went to Kauai over Valentine’s Day week, which made for a very romantic getaway. Using our miles and points made it even better!

Winter Getaway to Kauai – Trip Report Index:

• Part 1 – Using Miles and Points to Get to Kauai
• Part 2 – Only $10 for 2 One-Way United Flights From Austin to Kauai
• Part 3 – Grand Hyatt Kauai Resort & Spa
• Part 4 – Grand Hyatt Garden Suite for 87% Off
• Part 5 – 3 Free Nights & a Partial Ocean View Upgrade at the Grand Hyatt Kauai
• Part 6 – Activities in Kauai
• Part 7 – Adopting a Little Girl
• Part 8 – The Many Pools of the Grand Hyatt Kauai and more…
• Part 9 – Southside Eats
• Part 10 – More South Kauai Eats!
• Part 11 – Shave Ice Bigger Than Your Face and More Yummy Meals!
• Part 12 – Flight From Kauai to Austin
• Part 13 – Conclusion and Blog Giveaway

Grand Hyatt Kauai – Partial Ocean View Upgrade

For 3 nights, we booked a standard Garden View Room at the Grand Hyatt in Kauai for 22,000 Hyatt points per night.  The current rate is 25,000 Hyatt points per night.  We had booked our 1st three nights in a suite, but couldn’t keep the suite because the hotel was sold out.  But we were upgraded to a Partial Ocean View Room because Daraius has Hyatt Diamond status.

The retail price online for the Garden View Room was ~$500 per night.

The room included a king size bed, table and chairs, and a reading chair.

The room felt like a regular hotel room, such as a room at Holiday Inn or Hampton Inn.

Except it was in paradise. 🙂

There was a table and chairs for sharing takeout or a room service meal.

There was also a dresser with a flat screen TV.

And there was a chair for relaxing.

Daraius was anxious to try it out!

There was a coffeemaker…

…with a safe and fridge underneath.

There was also a lot of storage space.

Outside of the sliding glass doors was a small patio.  There were 2 chairs and a small round table.

Although we booked a standard garden view room, we got a free upgrade to a partial ocean view.

The garden view rooms face the parking lot side of the hotel, but the parking lot is buffered by trees and bushes, making it very private.

Bathroom

The bathroom was bright and airy, but seemed a little dated.

It had dual sinks with a lot of counter and shelf space on either side.

The counter-tops seemed dated, but still nice.

The shelf on the right side included fresh towels, drinking glasses, a mirror, and amenities.

I thought the amenities smelled so good!

There was a combination shower and bathtub.  The shower included a hand shower and a three-head shower.

There was a separate room for the toilet.

How You Can Do It, Too!

We redeemed 20,000 United Airlines miles each and 17,500 American Airlines miles each for 1-way flights in coach to and from Austin and Kauai, Hawaii.  We could have redeemed our miles for First Class seats but we like saving those for longer flights.

We used 41,295 Citi ThankYou points to pay for our car rental.

Daraius transferred 103,500 Chase Ultimate Rewards points to Hyatt points for 3 nights in a Garden View room. And 3 nights in a Garden View suite at the Grand Hyatt Kauai.

How Many Points You Need:

• Points Only:  150,000 Hyatt points for 6 nights
• Points + Cash:  75,000 Hyatt points and $1,188 for 6 nights
• Just like Daraius & Emily:  66,000 Hyatt points for 3 nights in a Garden View room, before the Hyatt award chart change.  But now it is 75,000 Hyatt points.  And 37,500 Hyatt points + $596 and a Diamond Suite upgrade for 3 nights in a Garden View Suite.

Note:  If you don’t have a Diamond Suite upgrade, you can use 6,000 Hyatt points per night to upgrade a paid room to a suite.  But you can NOTupgrade a Points + Cash room to a suite without a Diamond Suite upgrade.

How to Get the Points:

The easiest way to get points for Kauai is by applying for credit cards.

Here’s my post on the best way to get Hyatt points.

1.   Chase Hyatt Card

You can save some Chase Ultimate Rewards points and get 2 free nights at any Hyatt worldwide after you spend $2,000 within the first 3 months on the Chase Hyatt card.

2.   Chase Sapphire Preferred Card

You get 40,000 Chase Ultimate Rewards points when you spend $4,000 within 3 months on the Chase Sapphire Preferred.

Chase Ultimate Rewards points can be transferred to certain airlines and hotels at a 1:1 ratio.  So 40,000 Chase Ultimate Rewards points becomes 40,000 airline miles or 40,000 hotel points.

3.   Chase Ink Cards

The Chase Ink Plus and Chase Ink Bold card currently get you 60,000 Ultimate Rewards points after spending $5,000 within 3 months.

Do you know the 3 ways you may qualify for a business credit card?

Note:  You can apply for 1 personal and 1 business card from Chase at the same time.  But you do NOT have to wait 6 months between Chase applications.

Bottom Line:

The Garden Room at the Grand Hyatt Kauai was a spacious, clean room, but lacked some personality.

I liked that we were close to the resort’s activities, including the pools, spa, and sunset terrace.  The Grand Hyatt Kauai’s 50 acre grounds are spectacular!  And the fact that our room was free made our stay that much better!