I don’t know about you, but when it comes to chatting about “where to stay” and snagging the best accommodation deals, I just can’t get enough. Seriously, with the right tips, hotel points, travel credits, and gift cards, you can totally transform your travel experience!
Today, I’m switching things up a bit. I’ve gathered three awesome stories from planning our 7-week family adventure across the South Pacific and Asia, where we managed to save up to 50%. So, let’s dive in—your family will love these tips!
Tip 1: Always Comparing Different Redemption Options
Park Hyatt Auckland: “Premium Suite with Points + Cash” Saved Us 50%
Auckland was our first stop on the 7-week Pacific adventure. I’ve already shared our last-minute redemptions on United Airlines business class by using Air Canada Aeroplan miles. The standard room only accommodated two people, so booking two rooms for our family (me, my partner, and our younger daughter) would have costed 40,000 Hyatt points (20,000 Hyatt points / night x 2 rooms). Not only was this less cost-effective, but our youngest also didn’t want to be separated from us. So, I opted for a suite that could fit all three of us with a rollaway bed.
Based on TripAdvisor recommendations, we narrowed our choices down to the Hilton Auckland and the Park Hyatt Auckland. I chose the 850-square-foot Premium Suite – Harbor Suite at the Park Hyatt Auckland to maximize my Globalist membership.
The cash price for the Harbor Suite was between US$850 ~ $1,000 (NZD 1,300+) per night. While redeeming points alone sounded ideal, my approach was to compare, compare, and compare! I never expected that upgrade: cash + points would be more appealing in this case. Let’s look at my break-down:
“Premium Upgrade + Cash” was a value deal, saving us half of the listed price. Here’s how I finally booked it:
- The 1st Night: Upgraded to the Premium Suite (Harbor Suite) – 9,000 Hyatt points + $274. My out-of-pocket cost was around $454 (vs. $900 nightly), saving 46% (assuming a point value of 1.85 to 2.0 cents per point).
- The 2nd Night: Points only for the Premium Suite – 40,000 points. The value was approximately 2.55 cents per point.
- The 3rd Night: Upgraded again to the Premium Suite (Harbor Suite) – 9,000 Hyatt points + $274. Out-of-pocket cost remained around $454.
Pro Tip: Even though it stated “Upgrade Premium Suite”, I didn’t need to book a standard room first.
As mentioned before, maximizing the benefits of Hyatt Globalist status is a great way to get more value from our stay. The perks of Globalist status with Hyatt are substantial – from complimentary breakfast for two adults and two children (subject to the age policy of the individual Hyatt hotel), late checkout on the day we departed for Queenstown, to early check-in at 9:30 am upon our arrival in Auckland after a 13-hour flight from San Francisco. With Chase World of Hyatt credit card, I also earned at least 8,000 Hyatt points from those two nights with the cash and points upgrade.
Tip 2: Maximizing High – Earning With American Airlines Portals
During our local stays in New Zealand and Hokkaido, Japan, we earned almost enough American Airlines (AA) miles through various AA portals to get a ticket from the States to Japan.
If fast-tracking to major hotel elite status isn’t for you, and the cities you visit lack international hotel chains, you can always use accommodation platforms like Booking.com, Hotels.com, and AA Hotels to book locally operated accommodations. Once again, I used TripAdvisor and its annual “Traveler’s Choice” awards to narrow down our options. Since these hotels in Queenstown, Christchurch, and Lake Tekapo are locally operated, I checked them out on AAdvantage Hotels and AA shopping portals for earning opportunities.
Queenstown Park Suite Boutique Hotel tops the charts and has been awarded “Travelers’ Choice Awards Best of the Best 2024” in the boutique hotel category. It’s a lovely, cozy hotel where everything was within walking distance. Since we traveled with our youngest daughter, we booked a suite that accommodated three people.
This year, one of my strategies is to earn AA status, loyalty points, and miles. I anticipated that my high school senior daughter would choose a school on the East Coast, which would necessitate frequent flights between the East Coast and San Francisco, where we could redeem flights via AA. Keeping this in mind, I obtained my Citi AAdvantage Executive credit card in March 2024. March 2024 to April 2025 marks their Loyalty Points year.
Incorporating this into our seven-week adventure, the card earned me 10x AA points per dollar spent on hotel bookings through the AAdvantage Hotels portal. Additionally, the AAdvantage Hotels portal awarded miles tied to the hotels (the amount varies based on status, travel dates, etc.). I deliberately booked our accommodations through either the AAdvantage Hotels portal or the AA shopping portal. However, I was late in arranging our stay in Queenstown, so there was no availability on the AAdvantage Hotels portal..
Pro-Tip: If you’re traveling to cities or countries that are not points-redeemable friendly, consider getting the Citi Executive AA card and booking hotels on AAHotels.com. It earns you at least 10+ points / dollars.
As mentioned, hotel booking portals like booking.com, expedia.com, etc., are partnered with AA shopping portals, offering 1 to 4 miles per promotion. Hotels.com had a rare promotion of 2 points per dollar. I searched on Hotels.com and found standard rooms in Queenstown for $129 per night and various suites that accommodate three people.
Thus, it came to $1,039 for three nights for three people. Through the AAdvantage Hotels portal, I earned 2,078 AA miles and 2,078 loyalty points. I’m also working on earning the sign-up bonus for my new credit card – Chase Business Ink Preferred and Chase IHG One Rewards Business. The new credit cards typically offer 10 or more points per dollar spent, motivating me to meet the minimum spending requirement as quickly as possible.
You might wonder about the logic behind ‘saved me 50%’? The hotel’s central location eliminated the need for a car for the 4 to 5 days in the South Island, reducing my car budget from $1000 to $450. My approach is to explore other ways to earn miles and points, rather than focusing solely on point redemption. It is especially in most areas of New Zealand, Hokkaido, and Aomori in Japan.
Tip 3: Staying Open To Any Travel Hacks That Can Change Your Plans Flexibly
From Hyatt To Westin: Marriott Gift Cards And AA Earning Platforms To The Rescue In Seoul
Did you change your mind at the last minute and book a different place to stay? While I had meticulously planned to stay exclusively at Hyatt hotels for our 6 days in South Korea using points, I encountered some disappointments. Therefore, I decided to switch accommodations last minute.
Here’s my original booking itinerary:
- Day 1: Grand Hyatt Seoul
- The room policy allowed only 3 people, so I booked two rooms.
- Room A: Redeemed 20,000 Hyatt Points per night for the basic room and used a Suite Upgrade Award for a standard suite.
- Room B: Redeemed 25,000 Hyatt Points for 1 night
- Day 2: Park Hyatt Seoul
- The room policy allowed only 3 people, so I booked two rooms.
- Room A: Used a category 1 to 7 Free Night Certificate for 1 night.
- Room B: Redeemed 25,000 Hyatt Points for 1 night
- Day 3-5: Park Hyatt Busan
- Booked a Family Executive Suite for 4 persons using 25,000 Hyatt Points per night for 3 nights + Suite Upgrade Award.
- Day 6: Park Hyatt Seoul
- Redeemed 25,000 Hyatt Points for 1 night each for 2 rooms.
What works for others with Hyatt doesn’t always work for me! There were hiccups across these Hyatt stays, leading me to return to the Marriott group – specifically the Westin Josun Seoul – to wrap up our time in Seoul. We shortened our stay in Busan and switched from Park Hyatt Seoul to Westin in Seoul.
Here’s how I handled our last-minute change of accommodations in South Korea using a combination of travel hacks:
For Room 1 (for me and my husband):
As a Marriott member with Platinum elite status, this room included lounge access for breakfast and happy hour.
- Sunday Night: Used 49,000 Marriott points for a room valued at almost $500 a night.
- Monday Night: Booked through the AA Shopping Portal on Marriott, earning 1 AA mile and Loyalty Points per dollar spent on accommodation. At checkout, I used a Marriott gift card purchased at a 20% discount in 2021 / 2022, lowering the cost to $320 a night from $400. Additionally, I have earned AA miles and Loyalty Points.
Pro-Tip: I am actively pursuing Platinum and higher status as I aim to achieve Lifetime status within 3 years. An easier way to achieve this is through the Amex Marriott Brilliant credit card, which automatically grants you Marriott Platinum Elite status, including free breakfast and executive lounge access at most Marriott hotels.
For Room 2 (for my kids on both days):
I booked through the AAdvantage Hotels portal to earn AA miles and loyalty points. While prices are sometimes higher, this isn’t always the case. I prefer using the AAdvantage Hotels portal because Marriott policies rarely extend Platinum benefits to the second room. Therefore, I balanced between booking through Marriott.com, the AA shopping portal, and the AAdvantage Hotels portal.
In 2024, my priority is to maximize miles and points, using my Citi AAdvantage Executive credit card to earn 10 times AA miles for every dollar spent on this booking. In total, I’ll earn 11,000 AA miles and 3,500 loyalty points (verification pending). Marriott impressed me with connecting rooms that felt like a spacious 2-bedroom suite, spanning over 850 square feet and valued at $900! Marriott continues to exceed my expectations!!
- Further Reading: How To Best Reach American Airlines Elite Levels With Daily Spending
Final Thoughts
With these three insider tips, I have successfully built my 7-week family hotel redemption in the South Pacific and Asia. You certainly can steal them and are able to do it if you follow the tips:
- Always Comparing Different Redemption Options
- Maximizing High – Earning from American Airlines portals
- Staying open to any travel hacks that can change your plans flexibly
