How to give (or receive) top-tier Globalist perks with Hyatt Guest of Honor awards

Hyatt has a relatively small footprint compared to Marriott and Hilton. But where Hyatt really shines is its loyalty program, World of Hyatt.

Not only does the Hyatt award chart offer great value, but Hyatt also offers a unique Guest of Honor perk that lets members occasionally enjoy top-tier Globalist benefits without having Hyatt Globalist status. Here’s what you should know about earning and using Hyatt Guest of Honor awards.

What is Hyatt Guest of Honor?

A Hyatt Guest of Honor award provides on-site Globalist benefits on an eligible stay of up to seven nights. You can use a Guest of Honor award when you book an eligible paid rate or redeem Hyatt points for a standard room, suite or points-and-cash stay.

You can’t apply a Guest of Honor award to a booking that includes free night awards, such as those you can earn through the World of Hyatt Credit Card (see rates and fees), the Brand Explorer promotion and the Milestone Rewards program. You also can’t apply a Guest of Honor award to a stay at select properties, including all Hyatt Vacation Club properties.

Related: World of Hyatt elite status: What it is and how to earn it

How to earn Hyatt Guest of Honor awards

You can earn Guest of Honor awards through Hyatt’s Milestone Rewards program. Specifically, you’ll earn Hyatt Guest of Honor awards at each of the following milestones each calendar year:

• 40 qualifying nights or 65,000 base points: One Guest of Honor award
• 60 qualifying nights or 100,000 base points: Two Guest of Honor awards
• 70, 80 and 90 qualifying nights: One Guest of Honor award
• 110, 120, 130 and 140 qualifying nights: One Guest of Honor award

Guest of Honor awards earned through the Milestone Rewards program are valid for the year you earn them, plus 14 additional months. So, if you earn a Guest of Honor award in 2025, you must use it for a stay with a checkout date on or before Feb. 28. 2027.

Additionally, lifetime Globalist members get five Guest of Honor awards when they earn lifetime status and then around March 1 each year. These Guest of Honor awards are valid for 12 months from insurance.

Related: Ways to earn Hyatt Globalist elite status

How to use Hyatt Guest of Honor awards

When you log in to your World of Hyatt account, click on your name in the upper right-hand corner and then select “My awards. ” If you’ve earned (or been gifted) Guest of Honor awards, you’ll see them here.

You can use a Hyatt Guest of Honor award for yourself or for someone else. Here’s a closer look at both options.

Use a Hyatt Guest of Honor award for yourself

If you don’t have Hyatt Globalist status, you might want to use a Guest of Honor award to get Globalist benefits on an upcoming stay. There are two ways you could earn a Hyatt Guest of Honor award without having Globalist status: Someone could gift you a Guest of Honor award, or you could earn one after staying 40 qualifying nights or earning 65,000 base points within a calendar year.

Either way, if you have a Guest of Honor award in your account, you’ll see an additional option when you book eligible stays on the Hyatt website. Go through the booking process as normal until you’ve selected a property. On the page where you can see the available room types for a specific stay, you’ll see Guest of Honor listed as an award you could apply if your stay is eligible.

If you want to apply a Guest of Honor award to this stay, select the award and then continue booking as normal.

Use a Hyatt Guest of Honor award for someone else

You can also use a Guest of Honor award for someone else’s stay — and if you have Globalist status, this is the only way you’ll get value from using these awards.

You can contact Hyatt to redeem a Guest of Honor award when booking a stay in the name of another person. In this case, you could redeem points from your account to book the stay or book an eligible paid rate.

However, you can also easily gift another Hyatt member a Guest of Honor award online. From the “My awards” page mentioned above, click the three dots next to an award, select “Gift your award,” verify your account via text message or email, and then enter the recipient’s World of Hyatt number and last name.

If you gift your Guest of Honor award, the member can book their stay using their points or another payment method. Plus, you’ll earn a tier-qualifying night each time another member stays on a Guest of Honor award you gifted them.

However, once you gift an award, you can’t get it back even if the member decides not to use it. So, if the member isn’t confident they’ll use the stay, you may want to book a stay in their name instead of gifting a Guest of Honor award. You won’t get the tier-qualifying night after they stay, but you’ll retain your Guest of Honor award if the member cancels their stay.

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Hyatt Guest of Honor benefits

Members staying on a Guest of Honor award stay will enjoy on-site benefits usually offered to Hyatt Globalist members. These benefits include:

• Room upgrade to the best room available at the time of check-in, as determined by the hotel (including standard suites and rooms with Club lounge access, when available)
• Club lounge access at properties with a Club lounge, and daily complimentary full breakfast (one entree or standard buffet plus juice and coffee) at properties without an open Club lounge
• 4 p.m. late checkout upon request (subject to availability at hotels with a casino, Hyatt resorts and Destination by Hyatt Residences locations; not offered at Hyatt Vacation Club properties)
• Waived resort, destination and facility fees when paying an eligible rate (not offered at Hyatt Vacation Club properties)
• Free parking when redeeming points for your stay (only when you can charge the parking fees to your room; not offered at Hyatt Vacation Club properties)

On some stays, such as at a Hyatt Place property, Guest of Honor benefits won’t provide much value. But on an award stay at an urban property with high parking fees and expensive breakfast rates or a resort with a nice Club lounge, Guest of Honor benefits can provide significant value.

Related: Here’s why lounge access is my favorite hotel elite status perk overseas

Bottom line

Hyatt Guest of Honor awards let Explorist members enjoy Globalist benefits on one stay if they reach 40 qualifying nights or 65,000 base points within a calendar year. Plus, Guest of Honor awards let Globalist members share their benefits with other members several times each year.

World of Hyatt even gives members a tier-qualifying night each time another member stays on a Guest of Honor award they’ve gifted. So, Hyatt incentivizes its members to gift Guest of Honor awards to other members. As such, don’t feel bad asking your Globalist friends whether they’re willing to gift you a Guest of Honor award if you don’t have Globalist status but plan to book a Hyatt stay for which you could enjoy Globalist benefits.