Hyatt Brand Explorer Remix

Through World of Hyatt's Brand Explorer, Hyatt members can earn a free category 1-4 nights for every five unique Hyatt brands they stay at over the lifetime of their membership. Members can track the brands, the total number of brands they've hit, and their progress toward their next award via their account page on the Hyatt website or the mobile app. It's a nice incentive to check out different types of hotels in the Hyatt portfolio. Before jumping into things, it's worth mentioning how Hyatt's portfolio has changed significantly over the last few years. 

We've seen the partnership with Small Luxury Hotels end, while Hyatt has welcomed Mr. & Mrs. Smith Hotels into its ecosystem. Hyatt's 7-year shopping spree has been robust, bringing in Standard Hotels, Dream Hotels, Two Roads Hospitality (Alila, Destination, Joie de Vivre, Thompson, and tommie brands), Apple Leisure Group (various all-inclusive brands), all in this time. The seeds of strategic growth plans set in motion years ago have started to fruit - Hyatt's UR Cove brand has sprouted and continues to scale in China, while we've seen the first Hyatt Studios and Caption by Hyatts enter the market. Lots of changes have meant lots of new stamps in Brand Explorer.

Some Hyatt brands represent a large share of the global footprint (select-service hotels like Hyatt Place, business-focused brands like Hyatt Regency, all-inclusive brands like Secret, luxury brands like Park Hyatt, and lifestyle brands such as Hyatt Centric), and they are easier stamps to collect on your brand explorer passport. Other brands can be a bit trickier for many reasons, including, but not limited to: the brand is newer, and thus, there are not a lot of properties; the brand serves as a placeholder brand for properties Hyatt hasn't yet figured out what to do with yet; or all of the properties in the brand are located in one place or region (looking at you, UR Cove). 

To give you an idea of some of the recent changes to brand explorer, here's two screenshots of my Brand Explorer Passport below. On the left, you'll find a screenshot I took in November 2024 and I took the screenshot on the right just a few days ago in December. Both of these look wildly different from the Brand Explorer page from a few months back (not pictured).

Not including the brands of the Inclusive Collection, the separate luxury-inclusive brand Impressions by Secret, and the 'party-over-here' Breathless Resorts & Spas, I have eleven other stamps outstanding. I've listed them below alongside a handful of intriguing properties that caught my attention and could be potential stays. I'm not too keen on all-inclusive resorts so while I'm not very likely to check any of those properties out soon, to be thorough, I've identified my most-likely-destination for each of those brand as well:

HYATT

HYATT - The namesake brand that, in many ways, seems to be a forgotten stepchild. Historically, there haven't been many properties branded as HYATTs, and this is a brand that might serve as a placeholder for newly acquired, newly upgraded, or in-the-process-of-rebranding properties. A few months ago, the Barnett and Maison Metier, two New Orleans properties Hyatt took over from Ace Hotels, were both HYATT properties in Brand Explorer (I know this as I had a reservation!). As the formal transition started to take shape, these properties were reclassified and are now part of the Unbound Collection and JDV by Hyatt, respectively. 

The good news is that there are four new-ish properties to the HYATT brand, three in the US and one in the Caribbean. The Rio Hotel & Casino in Vegas, the Galeria Park Hotel in San Francisco (rebranded from the Unbound Collection), and the Bentley Hotel Southampton are new options for getting your stamp in the US.

If I want to get my stamp in the Caribbean, the intriguing Placenia Resort in Belize could be my move. 

Hyatt Studios

HYATT STUDIOS—As of this writing, there's just one HYATT Studios in the Mobile-Alabama area, Tillmans Corner. This property isn't online yet—it'll debut in March 2025—but for anyone who is near or frequently drives that FL-AL-MS-LA stretch of I-10, this could be a cozy option. If that's not your fancy, you can wait on this one, as another 31 HYATT Studios are upcoming across the United States.

Hyatt Vacation Club

Hyatt Vacation Club—The Residences at Park Hyatt Beaver Creek caught my eye for quick jaunt to hit some slopes. If not that, one of the three HVC locations in the Florida Keys could work as I've never been there.

UR Cove

UR Cove - There are 59 UR Cove hotels, all of which are in China. I was in Hong Kong late last year and thought of knocking this off by taking a quick trip across the border to China. I didn't end up doing it, but If you have a trip planned to Hong Kong (or somewhere nearby, like Macau), a fun day trip to Shenzhen might help you check off this elusive brand, as there are 8 UR Cove locations within a stone's throw of the Hong Kong / Shenzhen border. Protip: If you do plan on visiting mainland China you will need a transit visa (options for 24hr, 72hr or 144hr) which is available to citizens of 54 different countries and can be obtained upon arrival.

Caption by Hyatt

Caption by Hyatt - The newest location, Downtown Nashville - The Gulch might be the most convenient. However, the Namba Osaka looks quirky and could be a slick move since the luxury hotel scene in Osaka could be more impressive.

An aside: I'm interested to see how travelers receive this brand. Hyatt seeks an immersive experience that pulls in a true 'community' feel. Each location features a 'Talk Shop': "an all-day spot where you can eat, drink and get some work done, hang with friends, or just chill." K-E-W-L.

Early images of existing (and upcoming locations), everything from the food to the decorations, indicate that Hyatt is committed to spreading the 'vibes.' That said, reviewing the locations of the upcoming Caption properties, I can't help but feel that someone in Hyatt's strategic planning division charted the entire expansion plan after skimming a pre-COVID issue of AFAR while in the waiting room bathroom of their dentist's office. I mean Roseville and Sacramento, CA; Chattanooga, Tennessee; Capital Square Sydney, AU; Saigon, Vietnam; and Kabutocho, Tokyo, JP. "The Hippest Neighborhoods in the World: Visit Now Before Everyone Else Does." 

All-Inclusive Collections

Again, all-inclusive is not my jam so let's handle these all-inclusive hotels rapid-fire style:

Zoetry Wellness & Spa Resorts - Zoëtry Marigot Bay St. Lucia
Hyatt Zilara - Hyatt Zilara Rose Hall
Secrets Resorts & Spas - Secrets Cap Cana Resort & Spa
Sunscape Resorts & Spas - Sunscape Dorado Pacifico Ixtapa
Alua Hotels & Resorts - AluaSoul Menorca or AluaSoul Mallorca Resort
Dream Resorts & Spas - Dreams Madeira Resort Spa & Marina

I'd likely knock these four out together on one trip:

Hyatt Vivid Hotels & Resorts - Hyatt Vivid Grand Island
Hyatt Ziva - Hyatt Ziva Cancun
Breathless Resorts & Spas - Breathless Riviera Cancun Resort & Spa
Impression by Secrets - Impression Isla Mujeres by Secrets

Ok, now for some more exciting ones.

Thompson Hotels

Thompson Hotels—This is an easy winner for me. The Thompson Rome is expected to come online in 2025. It is possibly my favorite city in the world, and its location is right around the corner from one of my favorite points of interest, the Largo di Torre Argentina, a cat sanctuary amongst Roman ruins. 

Dream Hotels

Dream Hotels—If you know how I feel about wine, it should come as no surprise that I'm hoping to stamp my Dream brand stamp on the upcoming Dream Valle de Guadalupe in Mexico's most prominent wine-producing region. (Dream Hotels is not to be confused with Hyatt's all-inclusive resort brand 'Dreams.')

me and all Hotels

me and all hotels - In mid-2024, Hyatt acquired the quirky me and all brand from Lindler Hotels AG. It's expected the brand will grow primarily (if not exclusively) around Europe. All current locations are in Germany, save for one - the me and all Hotel Films which is in Switzerland.

Miraval

Miraval - The upcoming Miraval The Red Sea in Saudi Arabia checks in here.

Alila

Alila - Without a doubt, it will need to be the Alila Purnama. Hyatt thought it could sneak a pirate ship in on me and have me not notice. More on this in a future post!

Mr. & Mrs. Smith

Mr. & Mrs. Smith—I recently stayed at a Mr. & Mrs. Smith property, Hermitage Bay, in Antigua, after the partnership went live, but I didn't get credit for the stay. So, this one still needs to be stamped. I'm thinking of going big and checking out the Awasi Atacama.

Destination by Hyatt

Bonus: I already have Destination by Hyatt checked off, but a new-ish property to the portfolio that intrigues me is the SCHLOSS Roxburghe in Scotland. For anyone planning a trip from London to Edinburgh (or vice versa), the SCHLOSS Roxburghe is a historic estate featuring several outdoor amenities and a championship golf course.

And there you have it. We'll see how much of my plan comes to fruition in due time, but this investigation is a good way to scope out more of the Hyatt portfolio. What properties do you have your eye on?