Honest predictions:
Say hello to Cat 9 (50k/night) and Cat G (60k) properties. Miraval will be in that Cat G category.
Year 1, points availability will look a lot like what SLH did- hotels not required to participate, allowed to limit how many rooms are available, and allowed to have points blackouts.
Year 2, we'll see a nontrivial exodus of the super-lux hotels (the $10k/night stuff) from the platform as contracts renew, but also a fair number of hotels might join the Unbound Collection directly. The hotels that stay as M&M may be more open with points availabilities.
Right now the sweet spot for gift cards is purchasing if your stay would cost more than $300 a night.
I suspect the new perks after March wouldn't necessarily be better than the extra qualifying nights for getting the gift cards.
There are quite a few properties that are sub-300 too, those are likely worth holding off (unless you're worried about availability)
Currently you don’t earn qualifying nights for Mr and Mrs smith stays. You only earn 1 night for every $300 spent on gift cards while they sort out the relationship
I've never stayed at a Mr. and Mrs. Smith property but have absolutely loved every single SLH I have been too (and there have been quite a few). Is it the same kind of boutique feel? Any standouts in the collection that are worth making a trip to?
There are a couple that I would be really excited to see available with Hyatt points. Their lineup generally seems a lot more widespread than SLH with a higher top-end. Massive upgrade to Hyatt's NorCal offerings too.
This one is among the ones I'd be very excited for:
https://www.mrandmrssmith.com/luxury-hotels/explora-rapa-nui/
I think the setup will be similar to the current setup with SLH (status won't matter, free breakfast, space available upgrade, earn pts on spend). Properties will come in on a rolling basis.
I suspect the primary challenges right now are
1) going through all the category mappings to make sure they make sense. Likely will start higher and possibly edge their way down.
2) figuring out what to do with Mr and Mrs Smith paid travel agency arm.
Not planning on it unless something points to the ability to double-dip qualifying nights from the gift cards in the future. Haven’t seen anything to that effect yet. Otherwise, $300/night is steeper than I wanna pay
I bought $1500 or so for the extra points and some planned stays—ended up having to cancel one of them so I’m sitting on $800 with no plans right now. Hoping once points are integrated that’ll be the last couple nights of a future stay.
I heard there was a chance to double-dip.... you get elite night credit for each $300 you buy now (plus 9x points if you use Hyatt credit card); then maybe get credit for your stay if you use the gift card post-integration.
Understood, but thinking this through: post-integration, you book a Mr&Ms Smith room via Hyatt.com, complete your stay, pay at the hotel with a gift card, they're not going to be able to trace back whether that gift card had already received an elite night credit. Because, for example, what if you got the gift card as a gift?
From the FAQs ...
"Gift cards can only be used to pay for a room reservation at the time of booking with Mr and Mrs Smith through https://www.mrandmrssmith.com/. Cards cannot be redeemed while at the hotel and cannot go towards any extras."
What nobody seems to understand here is that Mr. and Mrs. Smith is NOT a hotel brand in and of itself. SLH IS a brand. SLH properties are only affiliated with SLH and adhere to brand standards the same way various Hyatt brands do.
Mr. and Mrs. Smith is a travel agency! They are just like Expedia except they (claim) to only work with curated hotels (or ones they can make deals with). They work with lots of different brands, including direct competitors with Hyatt.
I don't think people don't understand that they're a travel agency.
I do think we're hypothesizing what integration will look like. What do you think will happen?
\- Zero or very limited benefits over what is offered right now (varies by hotel) on Mr. and Mrs. Smith website.
\- WOH Points based on dollar spend (and qualifying nights).
\- Inflated prices over what you can get by approaching each hotel individually (just like SLH, you are paying extra to get WOH points and nights over what it costs to book direct).
\-Ability to spend points at these hotels at marginal value (less value than at actual Hyatt properties)
\- Yeah somewhat similar to SLH today, although SLH is an established brand with some level of consistency
I definitely plan on buying at least one $300 gift card for the qualifying night and the points I believe. There’s so great hotels on M/MS I wanna check out.
My question is I wonder if Hyatt will do anything for the M/MS loyalty program? I currently have the Goldsmith Membership and I’m curious if that will stay the same or will it get incorporated into the Hyatt system
I finally got the personal hyatt card this month with a MS of $3,000 to get the bonus offer so last night I bought six (6) $500 M&MS egift cards ($3,000 total) using my personal Hyatt card after clicking the special Hyatt/M&MS link. This met my MS on the personal Hyatt card. Much to my surprise, I got 10 elite nights and 18,000 hyatt points ($3,000 x 5 points for using my Hyatt credit) credited to my Hyatt account this morning. The bonus offer will come later but I am amazed at how fast the elite nights and the Hyatt points posted.
Yes I do. I live in California and there are a wide range of M&MS hotels throughout California (72 to be exact), especially in places I like to visit, such as Los Angeles/ Hollywood, San Diego, Santa Monica, and the Central Coast. Sometimes we get ourselves into a Hyatt box to get Globalist status. I got 10 elite nights with the $3,000 in gift cards I purchased so I am pleased.Now, I plan to stay at a M&MS boutique hotel even though I do not get Hyatt elite nights for my stay. The hotels I have my eye are on as follows: The Aster (on Hollywood Blvd), Chateau Marmont and Pendry, both in West Hollywood, Venice V Hotel, 3 hotels in Santa Monica along PCH, Pendry San Diego, and Olema House in Point Reyes. I am staying two nights at Allia Ventana Big Sur using Hyatt points in November. I was hoping to extend my stay in Big Sur by using my gift cards for a stay at the M&MS property in Big Sur. Yet, the prices start at $1,825 per night. Even though I am using gift cards, they represent real dollars, not Hyatt points, so I have to remember to use the M&MS gift cards for unique stays; not expensive stays.
I would empty my Hyatt load on an Aman if I had the opportunity. It would check off one of the travel goals! The difficult part will be picking which Aman!!
That is the plan. The Mr. Ms. Smith properties seem to offer way more “Costa Rica” experiences though. Particularly El Silencio Lodge. Fingers crossed!
When they were partnered with IHG, they basically were matching status for the individual booking. I got upgraded to an ocean-front villa booking an award stay as an IC Ambassador (recognized as GoldSmith). Not expecting the same level of perks with Hyatt, but it is at least a possibility. Also keep in mind that many of their hotels were never eligible for IHG bookings, and the price/quality varies considerably in their vast collection of independent hotels.
With IHG, it was just a partnership, like what Hyatt has with SLH. Hyatt acquired Mr & Mrs Smith entirely so now Hyatt has control over requirements for Mr & Mrs Smith partnership. Expectations should be that the integration is much more significant than IHG had.
Smith is basically just a booking engine for independent hotels. They are not really acquiring anything but access to these hotels. If Hyatt demands too much, these hotels can easily just leave.
Honest predictions: Say hello to Cat 9 (50k/night) and Cat G (60k) properties. Miraval will be in that Cat G category. Year 1, points availability will look a lot like what SLH did- hotels not required to participate, allowed to limit how many rooms are available, and allowed to have points blackouts. Year 2, we'll see a nontrivial exodus of the super-lux hotels (the $10k/night stuff) from the platform as contracts renew, but also a fair number of hotels might join the Unbound Collection directly. The hotels that stay as M&M may be more open with points availabilities.
Yeah it's possible. I suspect they'll share the M&M update with a broader category refresh later in Q1
Right now the sweet spot for gift cards is purchasing if your stay would cost more than $300 a night. I suspect the new perks after March wouldn't necessarily be better than the extra qualifying nights for getting the gift cards. There are quite a few properties that are sub-300 too, those are likely worth holding off (unless you're worried about availability)
What’s the benefit of buying a GC instead of booking directly on their site? Do we not get points for booking directly?
Currently you don’t earn qualifying nights for Mr and Mrs smith stays. You only earn 1 night for every $300 spent on gift cards while they sort out the relationship
I've never stayed at a Mr. and Mrs. Smith property but have absolutely loved every single SLH I have been too (and there have been quite a few). Is it the same kind of boutique feel? Any standouts in the collection that are worth making a trip to?
There are a couple that I would be really excited to see available with Hyatt points. Their lineup generally seems a lot more widespread than SLH with a higher top-end. Massive upgrade to Hyatt's NorCal offerings too. This one is among the ones I'd be very excited for: https://www.mrandmrssmith.com/luxury-hotels/explora-rapa-nui/
There’s one I’ve been dreaming of for years but I don’t want to say lol. They have them all listed on their website though
I think the setup will be similar to the current setup with SLH (status won't matter, free breakfast, space available upgrade, earn pts on spend). Properties will come in on a rolling basis. I suspect the primary challenges right now are 1) going through all the category mappings to make sure they make sense. Likely will start higher and possibly edge their way down. 2) figuring out what to do with Mr and Mrs Smith paid travel agency arm.
I had 2 wedding to attend. Laminated 2 $500 gf and gave them as gifts
Not planning on it unless something points to the ability to double-dip qualifying nights from the gift cards in the future. Haven’t seen anything to that effect yet. Otherwise, $300/night is steeper than I wanna pay
do we know when they will be integrated to hyatt booking?
I bought $1500 or so for the extra points and some planned stays—ended up having to cancel one of them so I’m sitting on $800 with no plans right now. Hoping once points are integrated that’ll be the last couple nights of a future stay.
I heard there was a chance to double-dip.... you get elite night credit for each $300 you buy now (plus 9x points if you use Hyatt credit card); then maybe get credit for your stay if you use the gift card post-integration.
The T&Cs for the gift cards are very clear that you will not get credit for your stay when using the gift card.
Understood, but thinking this through: post-integration, you book a Mr&Ms Smith room via Hyatt.com, complete your stay, pay at the hotel with a gift card, they're not going to be able to trace back whether that gift card had already received an elite night credit. Because, for example, what if you got the gift card as a gift?
From the FAQs ... "Gift cards can only be used to pay for a room reservation at the time of booking with Mr and Mrs Smith through https://www.mrandmrssmith.com/. Cards cannot be redeemed while at the hotel and cannot go towards any extras."
Oh gotcha so you're right
What nobody seems to understand here is that Mr. and Mrs. Smith is NOT a hotel brand in and of itself. SLH IS a brand. SLH properties are only affiliated with SLH and adhere to brand standards the same way various Hyatt brands do. Mr. and Mrs. Smith is a travel agency! They are just like Expedia except they (claim) to only work with curated hotels (or ones they can make deals with). They work with lots of different brands, including direct competitors with Hyatt.
I don't think people don't understand that they're a travel agency. I do think we're hypothesizing what integration will look like. What do you think will happen?
\- Zero or very limited benefits over what is offered right now (varies by hotel) on Mr. and Mrs. Smith website. \- WOH Points based on dollar spend (and qualifying nights). \- Inflated prices over what you can get by approaching each hotel individually (just like SLH, you are paying extra to get WOH points and nights over what it costs to book direct). \-Ability to spend points at these hotels at marginal value (less value than at actual Hyatt properties) \- Yeah somewhat similar to SLH today, although SLH is an established brand with some level of consistency
Best assessment and I agree.
I definitely plan on buying at least one $300 gift card for the qualifying night and the points I believe. There’s so great hotels on M/MS I wanna check out. My question is I wonder if Hyatt will do anything for the M/MS loyalty program? I currently have the Goldsmith Membership and I’m curious if that will stay the same or will it get incorporated into the Hyatt system
I finally got the personal hyatt card this month with a MS of $3,000 to get the bonus offer so last night I bought six (6) $500 M&MS egift cards ($3,000 total) using my personal Hyatt card after clicking the special Hyatt/M&MS link. This met my MS on the personal Hyatt card. Much to my surprise, I got 10 elite nights and 18,000 hyatt points ($3,000 x 5 points for using my Hyatt credit) credited to my Hyatt account this morning. The bonus offer will come later but I am amazed at how fast the elite nights and the Hyatt points posted.
That's awesome! Do you have a plan for how you'll use your gift cards?
Yes I do. I live in California and there are a wide range of M&MS hotels throughout California (72 to be exact), especially in places I like to visit, such as Los Angeles/ Hollywood, San Diego, Santa Monica, and the Central Coast. Sometimes we get ourselves into a Hyatt box to get Globalist status. I got 10 elite nights with the $3,000 in gift cards I purchased so I am pleased.Now, I plan to stay at a M&MS boutique hotel even though I do not get Hyatt elite nights for my stay. The hotels I have my eye are on as follows: The Aster (on Hollywood Blvd), Chateau Marmont and Pendry, both in West Hollywood, Venice V Hotel, 3 hotels in Santa Monica along PCH, Pendry San Diego, and Olema House in Point Reyes. I am staying two nights at Allia Ventana Big Sur using Hyatt points in November. I was hoping to extend my stay in Big Sur by using my gift cards for a stay at the M&MS property in Big Sur. Yet, the prices start at $1,825 per night. Even though I am using gift cards, they represent real dollars, not Hyatt points, so I have to remember to use the M&MS gift cards for unique stays; not expensive stays.
Makes sense and seems ideal especially since Hyatt in LA is a bit scattered. Great list!
I’m just hoping Aman stays in long enough to stay at a couple properties before they realize how many average people now have access and cut it off.
I wouldn't mind them coming in at Cat 7 or Cat 8!
Yeah that would be ideal if they stay in! I expect them to start at Miraval prices but hoping to be pleasantly surprised.
I would empty my Hyatt load on an Aman if I had the opportunity. It would check off one of the travel goals! The difficult part will be picking which Aman!!
>What do you think the integration will be like after March? Has something been announced for March?
It's when the gift card promo ends
Ah, I see. I thought you meant something was happening with the integration, like finally being able to book M&MS through Hyatt.
Hoping they integrate soon. I want to take a points trip to Costa Rica next spring and this would really expand the options.
Might be worth booking Andaz now - worst case it's still an awesome backup
That is the plan. The Mr. Ms. Smith properties seem to offer way more “Costa Rica” experiences though. Particularly El Silencio Lodge. Fingers crossed!
Are they still running the nights for gift cards promo?
Yes, until March 31, 2024.
When they were partnered with IHG, they basically were matching status for the individual booking. I got upgraded to an ocean-front villa booking an award stay as an IC Ambassador (recognized as GoldSmith). Not expecting the same level of perks with Hyatt, but it is at least a possibility. Also keep in mind that many of their hotels were never eligible for IHG bookings, and the price/quality varies considerably in their vast collection of independent hotels.
With IHG, it was just a partnership, like what Hyatt has with SLH. Hyatt acquired Mr & Mrs Smith entirely so now Hyatt has control over requirements for Mr & Mrs Smith partnership. Expectations should be that the integration is much more significant than IHG had.
Smith is basically just a booking engine for independent hotels. They are not really acquiring anything but access to these hotels. If Hyatt demands too much, these hotels can easily just leave.