Comparison of a Hyatt Hotel Suite to a Hyatt Timeshare

As I explained in this post, this past year I attempted and succeeded at earning Hyatt Globalist status almost solely to take advantage of the various perks offered for our trip to Maui during Christmas. 

Once we checked into the Andaz Maui property, our confirmed suite upgrade that we were promised disappeared and was put in a standard room overlooking a concrete wall. 

As I detailed in this post, that stay broke my loyalty to Hyatt and will not likely achieve Globalist status this year. 

While I was disheartened by that experience as a "top tier" member of Hyatt, I still have Globalist status for the entire 2018 year.  There are definitely some perks associated with this status including getting suite upgrades upon check-in.  Of course, you are not guaranteed a suite as it will be entirely up to availability and the front desk representatives desire to actually give you a suite upgrade. 

While I am not going out of my way to stay at Hyatt properties, I still enjoy them and I might as well get some perks out of my status while I have it. 

I was recently in Santa Rosa, California and had the opportunity to stay at the Hyatt Vineyard Creek Hotel and Spa.  I was there on business so there was not much time to do any fun wine tours or explore the hotel so I have not done a review of that hotel.  The hotel is undergoing renovations at the moment so breakfast was very poor and served in a conference room and there were areas of the hotel that were closed.  While the hotel can be nice, my initial reaction was not overwhelmingly positive and it seemed more of a business hotel.  

I reserved a standard room and was upgraded to an Executive King room.  The Executive King room was not the largest or highest tier suite but one of the top rooms available.  

Here are some photos of the room:

As you can see, the room was definitely more spacious that a typical hotel room and had a nice couch and sitting area.  However, your bed was directly in the same room which doesn't make it very conducive to entertaining with other people if that was something that you wanted to do.  

Additionally, the couch was not a sleeper sofa so this "suite" would be a disaster for traveling with a family of four. 

I have stated this before but the most frustrating thing with getting "free" upgrades at hotels is that they almost NEVER occur when I want them (traveling with family) and generally only happen while traveling alone on business.  When I travel on business, having a suite is fine but I would be perfectly comfortable in a standard room without a view.

When I travel with my family, I want as much space as possible so that we can spread out and all get a good nights rest, ideally in our own beds!  

Comparison to the Hyatt Wild Oak 2 Bedroom Suite

As I wrote about here, we recently stayed at the Hyatt Wild Oak Ranch in San Antonio Texas.  We received a free two night stay in a 2 bedroom suite in their newest building, Cedar Elm.  

I thought it would be interesting to compare my suite upgrade at the Hyatt Vineyard Creek and Spa to my 2 bedroom suite at Hyatt Wild Oak Ranch. 

An important point in this comparison is that the suite at the Hyatt Vineyard Creek and Spa was not confirmed as it was completely subject to availability while my reservation at the Hyatt Wild Oak Ranch was for a 2 bedroom unit. 

It is an important distinction because as I have said before, you simply cannot rely on a suite upgrade when staying at a hotel unless you book it directly and booking a suite directly can be ridiculously expensive.  Therefore, you have to just hope that get a suite or pay a expensive premium to reserve one prior to check in.  

Many times, even though it appears that suites are available at check-in, in my experience, the front desk agent claims that they are not in order to save those suites for more important  guests (higher tier members or other guests who may have paid a higher rate) or simply wants to save those suites for last minute bookings for those people who do not mind paying those rates for suites. 

The 2 Bedroom Suite

Here are some photos of the 2 bedroom suite.  As you can see, the 2 bedroom suite comes with 2 bedrooms, one bedroom with a King size bed and one bedroom with 2 full beds.  The suite also comes with 2 full bathrooms, both with tubs and showers, and has a full size kitchen, living room and dining area, large outdoor patio and a washer and dryer.  

As you can see, the 2 bedroom unit is absolutely massive especially when compared to the "suite" at the Hyatt Vineyard Creek and Spa.  

I should note that even if this was a one bedroom unit, the layout is generally the same with the only exception being that the second bedroom and second bathroom would not be available.  The other amenities, living room, dining room, patio, kitchen, laundry facilities, etc. would still be part of the one bedroom.

Conclusion:

In my opinion, the difference between a timeshare unit and a hotel suite is astronomical with the timeshare unit being far superior.  The amount of space in a timeshare unit compared to a hotel suite is drastically different.  There are other items to consider when comparing timeshares vs hotels but when you only consider space, timeshares seem to be a clear winner. 

What are your thoughts on timeshares vs. hotels?