I was on the road last week when new perks and amenities were announced for HYATT house, Hyatt’s extended stay brand. They’re rewarding guests staying 30 or more nights at a time (single stay at one property) with special recognition.

There was some initial confusion (such as here) over whether the benefits were for ‘loyalty to a specific brand’ e.g. staying 30 or more nights in a year with HYATT house rather than with Hyatt more broadly, or whether they were for a single stay. I assumed the latter, since HYATT house is an extended-stay brand.

I don’t tend to do long stays for my business travel. I’ve been fortunate not to be assigned to projects in a city for a long period of time, though I have plenty of friends who do just this kind of travel. So I liked the new benefits a great deal, even if I’m unlikely to take advantage of them, and I asked if I might be able to extend those benefits to a reader?

The answer came back a yes — I can give away a 2-night stay at any HYATT house property, and as a special concession they’ll extend the on-property “Very Important Resident” benefits during that stay. Hopefully the person who wins will email me after their stay and share their impressions.

Here are details on the new HYATT house amenities and benefits for long-stayers:

The Very Important Resident program (VIR). The new program will provide guests staying 30+ nights with a more ‘personal touch,’ offering a variety of services to help guests keep their routine rolling on the road

As a VIR, you’ll enjoy things like:

• Pick-Your-Suite: Pick your own suite from available rooms in your room type at the time of your arrival.
  
• “Favorites” Folio: A place to make note of your likes, dislikes and special requests so HYATT house can personalize your stay.
  
• Grocery Shopping Service: Provide your grocery list to the House Host, and the staff will stock your refrigerator and cabinets even before you arrive or for when you come home.
  
• Grub Stub: Redeem for a $10 food and beverage credit from the H BAR or the Guest Market.
  
• Scrub Stub: This voucher can be redeemed for one washer and dryer cycle.
  
• VIP Welcome Amenity: You can select an amenity of your choice to be waiting for you when you arrive.

Additionally, all guests will newly be able to enjoy:

• The Morning Spread: A new complimentary breakfast featuring a made-to-order Omelet Bar, as well asoatmeal, yogurts, fresh fruit and other breakfast goodness is rolling out at Hyatt House hotels around the country. It includes more balanced items, such as vegetarian and gluten free options.
  
• Hyatt Has It – Borrows: A service that allows guests to borrow items commonly forgotten at home or that just weren’t practical to pack, such as phone chargers, curling irons, blenders and more.

The grocery shopping service sounds nice, especially if it works in practice although I suspect some of my more persnickety preferences might be tough to find in some of their ~ 58 locations.

But a guest staying at HYATT house for more than 30 days and qualifying as a ‘very important resident’ might like golf and have golf magazines in the suite, or might like dessert and they’d be sure to have branded cupcakes in-house. I think the idea is to get to know guests well enough that they can offer ‘little reminders of home’ while making their properties your home away from home.

I asked for a favorite example of this, and they shared this one:

One of my recent favorites is from Hyatt House San Jose/Sillicon Valley. When they heard one of their guests from Canada missed his rocking chair from home, they went to a local department store, purchased a glider and foot stool, assembled it, and had it ready in his room for his return that day. He loved it so much that the hotel stored it for him for his next visit.

The Very Important Resident benefits also include a ‘VIR Key Card’ so that guests can play “Don’t You Know Who I Am?” with staff that are supposed to provide them with recognition, and also a ‘personalized hotel tour’ in case they want to see the back of the house and laundry facilities I guess…

Coming up tomorrow, details on the giveaway of a 2-night HYATT house stay with Very Important Resident benefits.