Legacy Hyatt Credit Card Customers Being Migrated To World Of Hyatt Credit Card On January 11, 2021

by Gary Leff

I receive compensation for content and many links on this blog. Citibank is an advertising partner of this site, as is American Express, Chase, Barclays and Capital One. Any opinions expressed in this post are my own, and have not been reviewed, approved, or endorsed by my advertising partners. I do not write about all credit cards that are available -- instead focusing on miles, points, and cash back (and currencies that can be converted into the same). Terms apply to the offers and benefits listed on this page.

Customers with the original Hyatt Credit Card launched in 2010 who kept that card and didn’t convert to The World Of Hyatt Credit Card after it was introduced in mid-2018 are going to have their legacy cards coverted over January 11, 2021.

The new card is more lucrative in almost every way, but comes with a $20 higher annual fee. The Hyatt Credit Card had a $75 annual fee, the World of Hyatt Credit Card has a $95 annual fee. I converted mine as soon as it was an option to do so. The benefits customers lose giving up the legacy card,

  • $20 lower annual fee
  • 2 points per dollar spent on car rentals


World Of Hyatt Globalist Complimentary Room Service Breakfast, Park Hyatt Vendome

And customers won’t see a higher fee for converted cards until renewals that process in August 2021. So anyone whose converted cards renew January through July will still see a $75 annual fee for a year, while having the benefits of the newer card.

The World Of Hyatt Credit Card comes with an anniversary category 1-4 free night, and an additional category 1-4 free night after $15,000 spend [starting January 1, 2022 this will be calculated based on calendar year rather than cardmember anniversary year].

It also comes with Discoverist status plus 5 elite nights every year for having the card, and 2 qualfiying nights for every $5000 spent with no cap. Spending $15,000 on the card can earn 6 qualifying nights and a free category 1-4 night, in addition to points for the spend. And you can reach top tier status entirely through spend, or any other benefits threshold (such as the free nigth at 30 nights or at 60). As a result it’s one of the cards I do really put spending on.

The offer announced in late October for legacy Hyatt Credit Card cardmembers (only) to earn a free category 1-4 night after spending $4000 spend between October 27 and December 31, 2020 seems related to this move. (Register by November 30.)

About Gary Leff

Gary Leff is one of the foremost experts in the field of miles, points, and frequent business travel - a topic he has covered since 2002. Co-founder of frequent flyer community InsideFlyer.com, emcee of the Freddie Awards, and named one of the "World's Top Travel Experts" by Conde' Nast Traveler (2010-Present) Gary has been a guest on most major news media, profiled in several top print publications, and published broadly on the topic of consumer loyalty. More About Gary »

More articles by Gary Leff »

Editorial note: any opinions, analyses, reviews or recommendations expressed in this article are those of the author’s alone, and have not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any card issuer. Comments made in response to this post are not provided or commissioned nor have they been reviewed, approved, or otherwise endorsed by any bank. It is not the responsibility of advertisers Citibank, Chase, American Express, Barclays, Capital One or any other advertiser to ensure that questions are answered, either. Terms and limitations apply to all offers.

Comments

  1. Hi Gary – do you have any insight on why some discontinued cards continue to allow cardholders? I’m thinking of cards such as the IHG Visas that allow the customer to have both old and new, the Ritz Carlton Visa that some still have, or even the the AMEX Marriott Bonvoy Personal card. Are these all just individual contracts with the bank and hotel company?

  2. I think the only time I’ve used this card in the last couple of years is to spend the $4000 this month and next for an additional free night.

    So, $20 more per year for my annual “free” night. Boo.

  3. Wouldn’t it be better (for those uner 5/24) to just cancel the legacy card and then apply for the new one for a new sign up bonus then?

  4. My free night for being a cardholder usually posts sometime in March. So does that mean I will not be getting a free night this year?

  6. Just like @Tigris23 and @Greg said, it making sense to cancel the legacy card and then applying for the WoH sign up bonus. My wife and I both have the legacy card that we have had for 5+ years and under 5/24, I just want to make sure that we shouldn’t have an issue canceling and then getting the sign-up bonus, correct? No one has heard of any strange stipulations surrounding how long you have to wait to apply for the WoH card after you cancel the legacy to get the sign-up bonus or anything, have they?

  7. @david The only eligibility stipulation I could find is below. That doesn’t mean there isn’t something hidden that I couldn’t find. If my free night I’m working on from spending $4K before the end of 2020 posts before I’m converted on January 11th, I’ll be cancelling and reapplying.

    “The product is not available to either (i) current Cardmembers of any Hyatt Credit Card, or (ii) previous Cardmembers of any Hyatt Credit Card who received a new Cardmember bonus within the last 24 months.”

  8. When I called Chase to ask questions about this conversion, I was told that the conversion would actually take place on January 1 2021, not January 11 2021.

Comments are closed.