Can you use a World of Hyatt club lounge access award for someone else?
I finally decided to give World of Hyatt a try. After all, decreased elite requirements and lucrative World of Hyatt promotions put earning top-tier World of Hyatt Globalist status well within reach for me this year. Although some TPG staffers decided to earn Globalist status by mileage running, I'm working toward Globalist status more slowly. As such, I recently earned my first milestone award by reaching 20 qualifying nights: two club lounge access awards.
I can use these club lounge access awards to snag lounge access if I happen to stay at a Hyatt property with a lounge before I reach Globalist status (which provides lounge access as a perk). However, I'll likely earn World of Hyatt Globalist status before I stay at any World of Hyatt properties with a club lounge. As such, I wondered whether I could use these awards to give lounge access to friends or family.
Today I'll discuss what I learned about using World of Hyatt club lounge access awards for someone else.
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World of Hyatt club lounge access awards
You can earn World of Hyatt club lounge access awards each year by reaching milestone award thresholds. In particular, you'll earn two club lounge access awards after staying 20 qualifying nights or earning 35,000 base points in a year. And you'll earn two more club lounge access awards after staying 30 qualifying nights or earning 50,000 base points in a year.
Once you earn a club lounge access award, it is valid for the calendar year you earned it plus an additional 14 months. You can track your awards and their expiration dates through the My Awards section of your account.
You can only redeem club lounge access awards for reservations with a checkout date on or before the award's expiration date. And you can only redeem a club lounge access award before checking in for a stay. Club lounge access awards are valid on stays of seven consecutive nights or less.
You can only redeem club lounge access awards for stays at participating Hyatt properties with a club lounge. However, even if the property has a club lounge, you can't use these awards the following World of Hyatt brands: Caption by Hyatt, Hyatt Place, Hyatt House, Miraval, Hyatt Zilara, Hyatt Ziva, Destination Residences and Hyatt Residence Club hotels and resorts.
You must pay an eligible rate or redeem points for a standard-room free night award, suite free night award or a points and cash award to use a club lounge access award. However, you can't use club lounge access awards with any other types of free night awards, including free night awards from the World of Hyatt Credit Card, five-brand free night awards and other promotional free night awards.
Finally, you won't get complimentary breakfast in another venue if you use a club lounge access award when the lounge isn't accessible. So, if you're traveling during the coronavirus pandemic, you'll want to ensure the lounge will be open before you use a club lounge access award for a stay.
Related: Booking direct: How much value does The World of Hyatt status provide?
Can you use club lounge access awards for someone else?
World of Hyatt club lounge access awards can be a great way to ensure you'll get club lounge access on a particular stay. As such, these awards can be valuable to World of Hyatt loyalists who stay enough nights to earn these awards but not enough nights to earn top-tier Globalist status. After all, one of the perks of Globalist status is club lounge access at properties that offer a club lounge.
But Globalists may not have much use for club lounge access awards since they already get club lounge access as an elite perk. As such, Globalists may wonder whether they can use their club lounge access awards to give friends or family club lounge access.
Luckily, World of Hyatt's terms specifically addresses gifting awards in Appendix B section II.a.13. In particular, the terms note:
Members may request that certain awards be issued to another person. Free Night Awards, certain Room Upgrade Awards, and Points + Cash Awards are currently eligible to be gifted to another person, as permitted under this provision. Club Lounge Access Awards (defined below), Complimentary Suite Upgrade Awards (defined below), and non-stay awards (such as Dining, Spa and More Awards) are currently not eligible for gifting.
As you can see, the terms are clear that you can't give your club lounge access awards to another person. In particular, you can't even book a stay for another guest and apply your club lounge access awards to this person's stay. However, as I'll discuss in the next section, there are still several ways to share your World of Hyatt perks with other travelers.
Related: 5 easy ways to maximize Hyatt award redemptions
How to share World of Hyatt perks with other travelers
Although you can't gift a club lounge access award to another traveler, there are several ways you can share perks with other travelers. In this section, I'll discuss two of the top ways to do so.
If you are traveling with others, you may want to book multiple rooms per night at the same hotel or resort. After all, World of Hyatt members can earn points on up to three rooms per night within the same hotel or resort. Based on World of Hyatt's terms, only the member's room will receive World of Hyatt benefits. But, you could apply club lounge access awards to other rooms in your reservation if you want to treat your travel companions to club level access when traveling together.
World of Hyatt Globalists can also book Guest of Honor awards for other travelers. In particular, when a Globalist redeems World of Hyatt points to gift a free night award to someone else, the traveler gets Globalist perks on the stay. These perks include club lounge access (if available) and space-available upgrades up to standard suites at check-in.
Related: Hyatt’s best-kept secrets: 16 incredible hotels you’d never know belonged to World of Hyatt
Bottom line
World of Hyatt club lounge access awards are valuable to World of Hyatt loyalists who don't already get lounge access through top-tier Globalist status. After all, you'll earn these awards as milestone rewards each year when you pass the 20 qualifying nights or 35,000 base points threshold and the 30 qualifying nights or 50,000 base points threshold. So, lower-level World of Hyatt elites can unlock club lounge access a few times each year thanks to these awards.
But, since you can't gift these awards to other travelers, Globalists may find very little use in having these awards. After all, Globalists get lounge access as an elite perk when staying at Hyatt properties with a lounge. The primary time Globalists can use club lounge access awards is when booking multiple rooms on one reservation at a property with a club lounge. But unless you travel with family or friends, you may not have any need to book more than one room.