Get up to 15% off Hyatt stays with Hyatt Leverage and Freelancers Union

World of Hyatt has some incredible award sweet spots that all members (incl. non-elites) can enjoy with points to receive great savings on hotel stays.

However, unlike most other hotel loyalty programs, World of Hyatt members can’t really double-dip on Hyatt bookings through shopping portals like TopCashback and ShopBack to get additional savings.

Although travellers can get great rewards/savings by using the best cards for hotel bookings, there are some lesser-known ways to get even more savings!

Hyatt Leverage

Hyatt Leverage is a program targeted towards business travellers and it offers additional benefits and discounts on room rates. I’ve enjoyed my free membership for over a year now!

But you do not reeeally need to be a “business traveller” to use this program!

It seems really easy for anyone, especially content creators, to get a Hyatt Leverage account. These days, everyone’s a content creator, no? Just bring along your company ID or name card, in case the receptionist requests for one during check-in.

How to sign up

1. Visit hyatt.com/leverage
2. Sign in to your World of Hyatt account
3. Register for an account by filling up some basic details, including your company’s name, address and phone number (it’s free!)
4. You will then be given a corporate discount code that can be used on future bookings

Key benefits

• Get 5% to 15% off the Standard rates at Hyatt hotels worldwide
• Stays are eligible for points accrual and elite night credits
• Bookings typically come with free cancellation, up to 1-3 days prior to your stay
• Bookings typically do not require any prepayment

Freelancers Union

Freelancers Union is an organization that offers voice and community support towards freelancers based in the US.

Although it is based in the USA, it is not difficult to sign up for an account with a US address and a phone number, as previously shared by matthew from Suitesmile Chat.

I didn’t face any difficulties signing up with a US address and phone number of a freight forwarding company like ezbuy.

And again, anyone can call themselves a “freelancer” nowadays!

How to sign up

1. Visit freelancersunion.org and register for an account (it’s free!)
2. Use corporate code B200936 on your future Hyatt bookings

Key benefits

• Get 5% to 15% off* the Standard rates at Hyatt hotels worldwide
• Stays are eligible for points accrual and elite night credits
• Bookings typically come with free cancellation, up to 1-3 days prior to your stay
• Bookings typically do not require any prepayment

*Although Freelancers Union states a discount value of just 5%, I am able to find some hotels offering up to 15% discount with this corporate code.

Bonus: Hyatt Privé

I wrote a separate article about Hyatt Privé, which is another program that travellers should consider, to enhance their hotel stays.

Key benefits

• Complimentary breakfast for 2 guests daily
• Complimentary room upgrade
• US$25 to US$100 credit per stay (depending on property)
• Welcome amenity
• Priority early check-in and late check-out
• Stays are eligible for points accrual and elite night credits

Best cards for hotel bookings

As no prepayment is required for bookings made through these programs, travellers will be making the payments in-person, at the hotel.

For Singapore-based travellers, here are the best cards for hotel transactions in foreign currency:

UOB Lady’s

Earn 4 mpd on chosen bonus category

Apply now

🎁 Sign-up bonus

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UOB Lady’s Mastercard

Suitesmile rating:

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✍️ Short summary
This card, which is also available to men, gives you a great earn rate of 4 miles per dollar on your pre-selected bonus category, up to $1,000 per calendar month.

Take note that cardholders will only earn 0.4 mpd on other categories and spending above $1,000 per calendar month.

Cardholders can choose/change a preferred bonus category every quarter.

The 7 bonus categories available are:

1. Beauty & Wellness (e.g. cosmetic stores, hair salons, spas)
2. Fashion (e.g. clothing, shoes stores)
3. Dining (e.g. restaurants, food delivery)
4. Family (e.g. supermarkets, children clothing stores)
5. Travel (e.g. flights, hotels, duty-free stores)
6. Transport (e.g. public transport, taxi, petrol)
7. Entertainment (e.g. bars, night clubs, cinemas)

Cardholders may check existing selected bonus category by calling UOB.

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💸 Annual fee
$196.20
(First year waived)

💼 Income requirement
$30,000/year

🤑 Foreign currency fee
3.25%
(Avoid this fee by linking this card to Amaze!)

⏰ Points expiry
2 years from transaction

🫱‍🫲 Transfer partners
KrisFlyer and Asia Miles

💯 Transfer ratio
1 UNI$ = 2 miles

🧮 Transfer block
5,000 UNI$ (10,000 miles)

💲Transfer fee
$25 per transfer

🤗 Points pooling
UNI$ from this card can be combined with those from other UOB cards and transferred out together at once.

❓How/When points are credited
Earn 1 base UNI$ per $5 dollar spent, plus 9 bonus UNI$ for eligible transactions on the bonus category (equivalent to 4 mpd in total). Base and bonus points are credited immediately when the transaction is posted.

📜 Terms & conditions

HSBC Revolution

Earn 4 mpd or 2.5% cashback on selected online/contactless spending

Apply now

🎁 Sign-up bonus

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HSBC Revolution Visa Card

Suitesmile rating:

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✍️ Short summary
This card gives you a strong earn rate of 4 miles per dollar on online and contactless spending (in foreign currency too!) on certain spending categories like retail shopping, flight tickets, ride-hailing and dining (excl. fast food), up to $1,000 per calendar month.

Take note that cardholders will only earn 0.4 mpd on other categories and spending above $1,000 per calendar month.

This is a great fuss-free card that offers a great earn rate on key spending categories for most people, without any annual fee to worry about.

There’s a little quirk though. To transfer HSBC points to Frequent Flyer Programs, cardholders need to enroll in HSBC’s Mileage Programme, which costs $43.20 annually. Upon enrollment, cardholders can make unlimited points transfers, at no additional cost. (FYI: Most other cards charge about $25 fee per transfer)

Not into Miles or travel-hacking? Redeem your points for 2.5% cashback instead, on the aforementioned spending categories!

Cardholders also get complimentary access to the ENTERTAINER with HSBC app, where there are over a thousand 1-for-1 deals on dining, entertainment and hotels.

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💸 Annual fee
No annual fee, ever

💼 Income requirement
$30,000/year

🤑 Foreign currency fee
3.25%

⏰ Points expiry
3 years from transaction
(37 to 38 months to be exact)

🫱‍🫲 Transfer partners
KrisFlyer and Asia Miles

💯 Transfer ratio
2.5 points = 1 mile

🧮 Transfer block
25,000 points (10,000 miles)

💲Transfer fee
$43.20 annually
(Unlimited transfers)

🤗 Points pooling
Points from this card cannot be combined with those from other HSBC cards and can only be transferred out separately.

❓How/When points are credited
Earn 1 base point per dollar spent, plus 9 bonus points for eligible online/contactless spending (equivalent to 4 mpd in total). Base points are credited immediately when the transaction is posted, while bonus points are credited by the end of the following calendar month.

📜 Terms & conditions

Amaze

Turn offline transactions online and minimize foreign transaction fees

Apply now

🎁 Sign-up bonusGet 225 InstaPoints (worth $2.25) when you sign up as a new cardholder.

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Amaze Mastercard

Suitesmile rating:

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✍️ Short summary
Amaze is an innovative Debit Card that does not require topping up of an e-wallet to reap great benefits. In fact, this card actually makes some credit cards better!

By linking a credit card to Amaze, cardholders can save about 1.5% in foreign currency fees, after considering the InstaPoints that can be earned (see below).

Key points to note about the card:

• Link up to 5 Mastercards in the Instarem mobile app
• Choose 1 of those cards before your next Amaze transaction
• All Amaze transactions will be charged in SGD, directly to the linked card
• All Amaze transactions will be seen as online transactions by the linked card
• All Amaze transactions will retain the actual Merchant Category Code (MCC) and will be seen by the linked card
• Get 0.5 InstaPoint per SGD (equivalent to 0.5% cashback) on foreign currency spending (min. S$10, max. S$1,000 per transaction)
• DBS/POSB cards do not award miles/points for Amaze transactions
• Avoid Dynamic Currency Conversion (DCC) fees (if any)
• From 1 Apr 2024, when Amaze is linked to a card, all SGD spending in excess of S$1,000 per month will incur a 1% fee.

Pro tip: Link the Citi Rewards card to this card and use it to earn 4 miles per dollar on general spending categories like dining, groceries and online/offline shopping (except flights/hotels). This pairing turns all your offline transactions “online” (to earn 4 mpd) and lowers your foreign currency charges!

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🔗 Great cards that can be linked to Amaze
Citi PremierMiles (1.2 mpd)
HSBC TravelOne (1.2 mpd)
Citi Prestige (1.3 mpd)
Citi Rewards (4 mpd)
UOB Lady’s (4 mpd)
OCBC Rewards (4 mpd)

💸 Annual fee
No annual fee, ever

💼 Income requirement
No income requirement

🤑 Foreign currency fee
No foreign currency fee. However, Amaze’s foreign exchange spread currently stands at around 2% more than spot rates. Cardholders can get 0.5% cashback in the form of InstaPoints when transacting in a foreign currency, for a total FX loss of about 1.5%. This makes the card better than most credit cards that charge over 3% in FX fees.

⏰ Points expiry
1 year from transaction

💯 Conversion ratio
2,000 InstaPoints = $20

❓ How/When points are credited
Get 0.5 InstaPoint per S$1 of foreign currency spending (min. S$10, max S$1,000 per transaction). InstaPoints are credited immediately upon spending.

📜 Terms & conditions

Citi PremierMiles

Earn 1.2 mpd on local spend, 2 mpd on foreign currency

Apply now

🎁 Sign-up bonus

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Citi PremierMiles Mastercard

Suitesmile rating:

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✍️ Short summary
This card gives you an uncapped earn rate of 1.2 miles per dollar on SGD spending and 2 miles per dollar on foreign currency spending.

This is a great backup card, if you have exhausted all your specialized cards with better earn rates.

Having many transfer partners and miles that do not expire gives you fantastic flexibility. Because of these 2 key factors, I recommend this card more than other general spending cards with slightly higher earn rates.

Cardholders are also entitled to 2 free airport lounge visits (via Priority Pass) per calendar year! For example, if you apply for the card in March 2023, you will get 2 free visits for the current year, plus 2 more free visits from 1 January the following year.

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💸 Annual fee
$196.20
(First year waived, get 10,000 miles with subsequent annual fee payments)

💼 Income requirement
$30,000/year

🤑 Foreign currency fee
3.25%
(Avoid this fee by linking this card to Amaze!)

🛋️ Airport lounge access
2 free visits per calendar year via Priority Pass

⏰ Points expiry
Miles earned on this card do not expire!

🫱‍🫲 Transfer partners
KrisFlyer, Asia Miles, Miles&Smiles, Privilege Club and more!

💯 Transfer ratio
1 Citi mile = 1 mile

🧮 Transfer block
10,000 miles

💲 Transfer fee
$27 per transfer

🤗 Points/Miles pooling
Miles from this card cannot be combined with those from other Citi cards and can only be transferred out separately.

❓ How/When points are credited
Base miles are credited immediately when the transaction is posted.

📜 Terms & conditions

UOB Visa Signature

Earn 4 mpd on foreign currency and/or contactless spending

Apply now

🎁 Sign-up bonus

+ Card Summary

More information on the

UOB Visa Signature Card

Suitesmile rating:

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✍️ Short summary
This card gives you a strong earn rate of 4 miles per dollar on foreign currency (online or offline) and/or contactless spending. This covers most spending categories like dining, groceries, flights, hotels, retail shopping, food delivery and ride-hailing.

A minimum spending of $1,000 per statement month is required, with a $2,000 cap during the same period.

Take note that cardholders will only earn 0.4 mpd on other categories and spending below $1,000 and above $2,000 per statement month.

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💸 Annual fee
$218
(First year waived)

💼 Income requirement
$50,000/year

🤑 Foreign currency fee
3.25%

⏰ Points expiry
2 years from transaction

🫱‍🫲 Transfer partners
KrisFlyer and Asia Miles

💯 Transfer ratio
1 UNI$ = 2 miles

🧮 Transfer block
5,000 UNI$ (10,000 miles)

💲Transfer fee
$25 per transfer

🤗 Points pooling
UNI$ from this card can be combined with those from other UOB cards and transferred out together at once.

❓How/When points are credited
Earn 1 base UNI$ per $5 dollar spent, plus 9 bonus UNI$ for eligible online and mobile contactless transactions (equivalent to 4 mpd in total). Base and bonus points are credited immediately when the transaction is posted.

📜 Terms & conditions

Bottom line

Hyatt Leverage and Freelancers Union are seriously-underrated programs that World of Hyatt members should use to knock up to 15% off the Standard rates of every Hyatt hotel and get better flexibility.

Although some hotels have other internal discounted rates (usually 5% to 20% off the Standard rates), they can’t beat the flexibility that the above programs offer. Those internal rates usually require prepayment, do not allow any changes/cancellations and may require advanced booking (typically 14 days prior).