Is the Hyatt Residence Club Worth It?

World of Hyatt has a host of brands that cover every segment of the market from extended stay to all-inclusive hotels. Like Hilton and Marriott, it has a vacation club, too. Hyatt Residence Club gives members the opportunity to stay in numerous U.S. locations by accruing points and redeeming them for residential properties in resort destinations.

This timeshare program is different from World of Hyatt, and it has proven popular with many travelers.

Some vacation ownership programs can even fast-track your elite status. Here’s what you need to know to decide if the Hyatt Residence Club is worth it for you.

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Being a member allows you to invest in the program so that it feels like it’s your own home without having to worry about managing details like upkeep and maintenance. If you want to return to the same place year after year without fully investing in real estate property, this program could be for you.

For starters, you’ll want to review the properties in the portfolio to see if the destinations are a fit for your travel plans or are on your bucket list.

You’ll find properties in island destinations like Key West, Florida; Hawaii's Maui and Puerto Rico as well as mountain resorts like Colorado's Beaver Creek and Breckenridge. Outdoor fans will find properties in San Antonio; Aspen, Colorado; and Sedona, Arizona.

This is a shared ownership program, often called timeshare, and members purchase an interval of time (one week, one month, etc.) to use at properties that participate in the program.

The cost for the points you purchase varies based on the amount of time you want to spend there, which properties you prefer and the time of year you want to use them. Ski properties will certainly be more expensive during the winter months than during summer, for example.

If you purchase points for a high-demand week, you can trade them for more time during less-popular periods. This gives members flexibility if their plans change during the year.

You can redeem these points for Hyatt Residence Club or even World of Hyatt properties. The cost to owners is the annual purchase of points (based on your personal needs and travel patterns, which represents the purchase price of the interest), annual maintenance fees and annual club dues.

It isn't recommended to buy a timeshare at one of the presentations that the brand promotes since these are often priced quite high. It is cheaper to buy them on the resale market, and there are many online listings for them. Since this fractional real estate ownership depreciates over time, there is no sense in overpaying by buying it directly from the brand.

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These points are different from World of Hyatt points in that you pay for them outright as part of an annual contract. With World of Hyatt points, you earn them from staying at hotels, for example, or via co-branded credit cards like World of Hyatt Credit Card. You won’t earn Hyatt Residence Club points unless you pay for them. You can, however, use Residence Club points at World of Hyatt-participating hotels, but not the other way around.

So if you want to stay at a Residence Club property, you’ll need to join the program, purchase points and pay the annual fees. This can be worth it if you vacation often in the places where Residence Club has vacation properties.

Where can you use your Hyatt Residence Club points

If you’re wondering just where these properties are located, here’s a full list of Hyatt Residence Club locations:

• Hyatt Residence Club at Park Hyatt Beaver Creek, Colorado.

• Hyatt Residence Club Beaver Creek, Mountain Lodge, Colorado.

• Hyatt Residence Club Bonita Springs, Coconut Plantation, Florida.

• Hyatt Residence Club Breckenridge, Main Street Station, Colorado.

• Hyatt Residence Club Carmel, Highlands Inn, California.

• Hyatt Residence Club Dorado, Hacienda del Mar, Puerto Rico.

• Hyatt Residence Club Grand Aspen, Colorado.

• Hyatt Residence Club Key West, Beach House, Florida.

• Hyatt Residence Club Key West, Sunset Harbor, Florida.

• Hyatt Residence Club Key West, Windward Pointe, Florida

• Hyatt Residence Club Lake Tahoe, High Sierra Lodge, Nevada.

• Hyatt Residence Club Lake Tahoe, Northstar Lodge, California.

• Hyatt Residence Club Maui, Kā‘anapali Beach, Hawaii.

• Hyatt Residence Club San Antonio, Wild Oak Ranch, Texas.

• Hyatt Residence Club Sarasota, Siesta Key Beach, Florida.

• Hyatt Residence Club Sedona, Piñon Pointe, Arizona.

As you can see, they are in popular vacation destinations. If you prefer to take your vacations overseas, then Hyatt Residence Club has another option. You can use your points for certain World of Hyatt-participating properties overseas or at the program’s exchange partner, Interval International, which has its own collection of vacation properties.

» Learn more: Complete guide to Hyatt elite status

This all comes down to how often and where you vacation. If you prefer residential-style properties over a traditional hotel room, the program can make sense. With the backing of Hyatt’s hospitality reputation and its customer service agents, you have more reliability than with Airbnb, for example, where you’re often on your own without the resort amenities these properties offer.

Do the math. For many people, it just might be worth it if you want to lock in a specific week at a set rate. We all have different levels of risk and interest when traveling, and Hyatt Residence Club offers some unique properties that could be on your bucket list one day.