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

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    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.
    Ready to Begin Our Kauai Adventure at the Grand Hyatt

    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:

    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 Garden View Room Costs ~$500 per Night, but We Prefer Free With an Upgrade!

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

    Welcome to Our Room

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

    This Was Our Home for 3 Nights in Kauai

    Except it was in paradise. 🙂

    The Grand Hyatt Sits on 50 Acres Filled With Grottos, Pools, Waterfalls, Lagoons, and Beaches…So We Didn’t Spend Much Time in the Room

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

    Or a Waiting Area for Daraius While I’m Getting Ready

    There was also a dresser with a flat screen TV.

    Happy to Be on Vacation!

    And there was a chair for relaxing.

    Reading Chair With Huge Pillows

    Daraius was anxious to try it out!

    I Think He’s Doing It Wrong

    There was a coffeemaker…

    It Was Nice to Wake Up With In-Room Starbucks Coffee
    …with a safe and fridge underneath.
    An Interesting Combination

    There was also a lot of storage space.

    These Amazingly Comfortable Bathrobes Are Made From Recycled Plastic Bottles!

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

    The Patio Could Use Some Updating, But It’s the View of the Lush Green Grass, Palm Trees, and Slice of Ocean That Matters

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

    Gorgeous!

    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.

    The Bathroom Had Everything We Needed

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

    I Was Trying to Be Sneaky When I Took This Photo 🙂

    The counter-tops seemed dated, but still nice.

    Shelving Space Next to Each Sink Helped Keep the Counter Free of Clutter

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

    I Wanted to Fix This Crooked Outlet

    I thought the amenities smelled so good!

    Coco Mango Scented Portico Bath Products

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

    Bathing 3 Ways

    There was a separate room for the toilet.

    Private Toilet Area

    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:

    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!

    Editorial Note: We're the Million Mile Secrets team. And we're proud of our content, opinions and analysis, and of our reader's comments. These haven’t been reviewed, approved or endorsed by any of the airlines, hotels, or credit card issuers which we often write about. And that’s just how we like it! :)