The Hotel Aspect

Today let’s review how the remainder of the itinerary was set.  The Cathay flight from JKF actually terminates in Phuket, Thailand which is my final destination.  There is an overnight layover in Hong Kong, which would have required a hotel stay even though I would be there less than 24 hours.  The overnight was not worth wasting points or paying out of pocket for a room.  Staying three nights to enjoy Hong Kong seemed much more logical.  After Hong Kong, it was a tossup between Shanghai and Bangkok; ultimately I went with 2 nights in Bangkok.  After Bangkok it was time to get into beach mode so I chose 3 nights in Hua Hin for its close proximity to Thailand’s spectacular National Parks and access to beaches on the Gulf of Thailand.  Finally, arrival at my intended destination for 5 nights in Phuket with access to beaches on the Adaman Sea.

The next major decision was to research hotel options keeping in mind I did not plan on paying for any of the 13 nights. Adding up the total points required for my stays and determining if there were point shortages (there were not) became my next task. I tend to favor Hyatt properties but there aren’t as many as say Hilton or Marriott so knowing many of my future travel destinations happened to be in places with Hyatt properties I focused on collecting Hyatt points.  In addition, Club Carlson properties owned by Rezidor Hotel Group happen to be embarking on a rebranding effort.  We know the properties as Radisson, County Inns and Suites and Park Inns.  While there aren’t too many exceptional properties in the US this particular hotel brand is very popular worldwide and has some beautiful properties outside the US.  The rebranding effort provided a major opportunity for points collectors to amass large quantities of points with little effort.  I took advantage of those opportunities knowing the bulk of my future travel would be outside the US.  My hotel concentration for the Asia trip would now be Hyatt and Reizor properties. 

The bulk of my Hyatt points are earned via Chase’s UltimateRewards (UR) points.  Chase co-brands several credit cards and they all earn ultimate rewards points.  Chase partner’s with lucrative travel partners such as British Airways, Southwest, Marriott & Hyatt to name a few.  I earn the ultimate rewards points through various means then transfer them to whatever travel partner suites my needs.  Many of the hotel reward programs have recently devalued their own programs (reminder of why hoarding points is not advisable) but Hyatt has not.  You can stay at many of Hyatt’s best properties for only 22K points per night (this is how I funded my Paris hotel stay).  I’ve become proficient in earning UR points and had about 100K banked to use for this trip.

In Hong Kong there are two Hyatt properties; a Grand Hyatt and a Hyatt Regency.  According to several hotel reviews both were equally as nice so I chose based on what suited my needs more closely.  The Hyatt Regency Tsim Sha Tsui won out.  It also happens to be a category 4 hotel versus the Grand Hyatt rated as a category 6.  All hotels rate their properties on their own scale and break out required point tiers to achieve an award night.  Hyatt category 4 properties require only 15K points per night, so my entire stay will cost 45K points.   Bangkok had a very nice Hyatt but I was swimming in Club Carlson points from many rebranding promotions plus, I also have a Club Carlson credit card that entitles me to status and bonuses.  I booked a highly rated ParkPlaza for my 2 night Bangkok stay and was charged only 15K points.  I have Gold status with Club Carlson that entitles me to automatic room upgrades, early check-in, late check-out, bonus free-nights and arrival gift.  The Hyatt  Regency Hua Hin stay was another category 4 property totalling 45K points for three nights.  The final stay for 5 nights is at RadissonBlu Plaza Resort Phuket, Rezidor’s highest branded property requiring a total of 132K points.  Thailand has some inexpensive hotels compared to other parts of the world and when I added the out of pocket costs for all the nights it priced out at around $2400.  When I compare that to my 8 night Paris stay for $15,000 at the Hyatt Vendome, it's almost disappointing.