Hyatt Best Rate Guarantee Success - Grand Hyatt Melbourne

A hotel chain's Best Rate Guarantee (or equivalent) can make or break a brand. While different hotels have different Best Rate Guarantee policies, I have had some successes with Hyatt recently when I was shopping for rooms at the Grand Hyatt Melbourne where I might be staying in a month or two. Hyatt guarantees the best rate when booking directly with them and they will match a lower, qualifying rate published on another site before beating that by an additional 20% - remember you will still earn your elite qualifying points and nights this way! While it isn't always easy to find a lower competing rate elsewhere (since the terms of the booking have to match entirely), it isn't at the same time, impossible. 

Hotel Entrance | Photo Credit: Grand Hyatt Melbourne

Since I will be traveling to Melbourne, Australia pretty soon, I wanted to check if it was more affordable to stay at the Grand Hyatt Melbourne instead of the Hilton Melbourne South Wharf which I loved. A quick check reveals a Standard Rate from AU$275 (and a My Hyatt Rate for AU$262 which has the same cancellation policies). Since I will be staying there for 8 nights, this will be approximately AU$2,200 before the ridiculous credit card charges that the country still practices. 

Premier Suite | Photo Credit: Grand Hyatt Melbourne

After shopping on an OTA, I managed to find a competing rate of approximately AU$238 a night with the same cancellation policy. After submitting a Best Rate Guarantee claim (remember you can submit a BRG Claim with Hyatt without an existing reservation), I was quickly informed (within 24 hours even on a weekend which is great!) that the competing rate has been matched and a 20% price beat has been given. All I had to do then was to make the booking via Hyatt and then contact the service representative who would then adjust my rate down to approximately AU$190. With a little time and effort, I have managed to reduce the total rate of my stay from AU$275 a night to AU$190 while still earning elite qualifying nights for status renewal - approximately 30% - which is not bad at all!