Good morning everyone, I hope your weekend is going well. I received this screenshot from a reader who participated in a Hyatt survey. For this survey, Hyatt wanted to know if you would redeem 450,000 Hyatt points for a 5 night South African safari package ($3,500 retail value per person). Personally, I do not have 450,000 Hyatt points or 450,000 Chase Ultimate Reward Points, so this option is totally out of my league, but let’s give this redemption a look. $3,500 / 450,000 points = 0.78 cents per point, which is pretty low for Hyatt points. Also, 450,000 Hyatt points could get you 15 nights at top tier category 7 hotels (30,000 Hyatt points per night) or 18 nights at category 6 hotels (25,000 Hyatt points per night). You could also get 90 nights at a budget category 1 hotel (only 5,000 Hyatt points per night).
So… what would you do if you were presented with this option?
If you have any questions, please leave a comment below. Have a great weekend everyone!
The short answer is, “Probably Not”, but its a question of details. An African safari is among the sublime experiences our planet has to offer, is among the most aspirational trips for most of us, and up until now is impossible to do on points, so there is great appeal there. Also, this package (as any safari would) includes meals and excursions, and so has far more value than a simple hotel stay, no matter what category. But if the retail is $3500, I can’t imagine that the accommodations in question are top-of-the line, so I wouldn’t take it.
Great breakdown on the costs. I would prefer to pay for a safari if I knew exactly what the schedule would be and I liked the itinerary.
The HR in JNB is 12K points per night so the safari part of the package is essentially 226K points.
“Flights not included” So are the flights JNB to the reserve and back part of the package or not – I would assume so but? And without knowing where the reserve is located its difficult to know the quality of the game viewing. And on day 5 is there a morning game drive before leaving? If not its essentially 226K points for 2.5 days of a bush experience. Based on the available information no way I’d blow that many points.
At that price point I would either just pay the cash or use Chase UR points.
I agree, it would only be 233,000+ Chase Ultimate Rewards Points to pay the $3,500 price. That’s almost half the number of Hyatt points you need.
450K Hyatt Points per person??? That’s ~ $6800 per person (flights not included). Absolutely positively not! I’d utilize two or more travel credit cards and book similar or better safari tour for comparable price/quality.
I agree, the price in Hyatt points is way too expensive.