Free night certificate? Hyatt Regency Koh Samui

One of the most interesting perk of the World of Hyatt program is that they gift members a free Category 1-4 certificate for every five different brands under the Hyatt umbrella. This creates an interesting opportunity to try out certain hotels that you normally wouldn’t stay regularly for fun. For instance, here are some of the previous Category 4 hotel redemptions that was featured:

1. Grand Hyatt Taipei
2. The Confidante Miami Beach (now Category 5 unfortunately)
3. Hyatt Centric South Beach (now Category 5 unfortunately)

Since we had an early flight out the next morning, we decided to stay nearby the airport at the Hyatt Regency Koh Samui — a brand new Category 4 hotel for 2022.

Cash vs. Certificate vs. Points

The constant conundrum. In every hotel stay, we’re always analyzing, which approach will maximize the best value out of a hotel stay. Should I use a free night certificate? Should I pay cash? Or should I use points?

Each to their own but for category 4 properties if the cash rate is under 150 bucks, we usually opt to just pay cash instead of points. If you have a certificate that is expiring… use that instead!

Arrival

To our pleasant surprise, we got upgraded to the 1 Bedroom Regency Suite Room, which normally retails for double the price of a standard room.

It’s a 750 square feet suite that feature a separate living room and bedroom area.

A massive modern bathroom. Side note: huge plus is that the water pressure in this suite is super strong.

Even a balcony to chill. Not too shabby for a Category 4 hotel.

Amenities

This Hyatt Regency’s highlight is definitely their pool amenities. As you walk in a twirling path towards the ocean, there are multiple pools for guests to swim, play, and lounge.

This property is very family-friendly and has a playground area featuring a mini-airplane.

At night, there’s a cool oversized tent/hammock area to lounge in. This thing feels like it came straight out from a “Bachelor in Paradise” show where couples come here to cuddle/talk after a romantic stroll along the beach.

Overall, this short 12-hour stay was surprisingly pleasant. Out of all the category 4 hotels, this is probably one of the nicest Hyatts that fall under the “free night certificate tiers”. On top of that, a surprise upgrade to a Regency Suite gave it even more of an outsize value.

Granted, this is nothing compared to the Conrad or the Four Seasons, but properties like this are much appreciated if you’re not staying long…

or have a free night certificate that’s expiring 😉