The other day I shared what I thought was a pretty good sunset from our long weekend getaway location. There were several guesses and a few that came close to guessing the location. It might have been too difficult to guess given the lighting.

We are fortunate to have a bank roll of points & miles that we used for a quick weekend trips like this. Without points and miles the trip may not have made sense. But for such a low cost, who could pass up a weekend at the beach and poolwith the added benefit of catching up with old friends in town.

For our flight, we used a free one way from the tail end of an international award ticket to get us down to Fort Myers. From there we headed down to the Hyatt Regency Coconut Point where we checked into our Bay Suite using Diamond upgrade certificates. I would have used points for the room itself and not just the upgrade, but I found a rate that would have made the point redemption a bad value. Still, a long weekend in a suite with another connected room isn’t a bad way to go. I’ll have a more detailed report but I’ll share that the pool at this place is a kids dream. Not quite the likes of the Hyatt on Kauai, but close enough. And this place recently completed a multiple million dollar renovation in mid 2012.

We were able to reduce the cost of this long weekend and make it more enjoyable with a suite upgrade thanks to points & miles. While I must say, traveling with kids certainly can change the way you travel, don’t let that change stop you, especially if you have points and miles to help get you there.

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The new Hyatt in midtown Atlanta is targeting July to opens it’s doors. The hotel is now accepting reservations for arrivals starting July 10, 2013. The new hotel will open as a Haytt category 3 and will require 12,000 points for a one night award stay. A quick check of weekend rates shows rates in… continue reading

After 5 days at the reef, we returned to the Park Hyatt Sydney for three more nights after having spent 2 previous nights which resulted in me claiming this may be the best Hyatt period. Part I covered most of the hotel itself so head there if you are interested. Part II will focus on… continue reading

As a Chicago resident the past few years, I have had the chance to visit several Chicago hotels. However I never had the opportunity to try to the Park Hyatt Chicago until now.  I landed a good advance rate and used an expiring Confirmed Suite Upgrade to confirm into a Park Suite. The Park Hyatt… continue reading

We asked for you opinion on the best coffee loyalty program and many shared their favorite coffee program and reason why. We’ve randomly selected four winners of the coffee wars Grand Hyatt New York City drink certificate giveaway and posted the winners below. Free Grand Hyatt NYC Coffee Giveaway Points, Miles & Martinis ran a giveaway for 4… continue reading

Sometimes change is a good thing. So a friend and I headed out to a new restaurant near the new Hyatt in Midtown Atlanta. The hotel is being built but already has a great thing going for it with the location and strong southern restaurant scene. Wathen’s Single Barrel Wathen’s Single Barrel Bourbon is a… continue reading

After hearing several rumors over the past week, Hyatt confirmed Friday the purchase of The Driskill hotel in downtown Austin.  The Driskill is a gorgeous 127 year old property with a perfect location in downtown Austin near the “Raucous on 6th street” .  While the hotel is haunted, I have enjoyed several late nights sipping… continue reading

The stars were aligned this past week as several uncharacteristically awesome points opportunities stacked together to significantly boost my points earning.  In an average 5 night business travel week with no special promotions as a top tier elite, I generally earn around 4000 Southwest points for the round-trip flight and another 5000 SPG OR Hyatt… continue reading

When I have the opportunity, I start my calendar year bouncing between cheap Hyatt properties to secure Hyatt Diamond status quickly on stays.  I consider Hyatt Diamond the most lucrative status one can earn with only 25 check-ins.  I was fortunate this year to complete my 25th stay this week earning me Hyatt status valid through February… continue reading

In early February, we shared the details of Hyatt’s More Possibilities promotion where you can earn up to 45,000 bonus points by staying at Hyatt hotels during the promotion period. The registration for the promotion is up on Hyatt’s home page as of this morning. The promotion runs from March 1, 2013 through May 31,… continue reading