Rakuten is sweetening Cyber Monday with one of the best hotel bonuses we’ve seen all year: 15% cash back on paid Hyatt stays. If you’ve got a Hyatt hotel stay on the horizon – or even one you can rebook today – this is an easy way to pocket serious savings.
When you first click through Rakuten on your way to booking with Hyatt, you’ll see that 15% cash-back banner right away. But before you lock in your stay, it’s worth noting a few limitations. The offer only applies to Hyatt properties in the U.S., Canada, and Mexico – and only cash stays qualify. Rakuten won’t award cash back on any portion of a reservation paid with Hyatt points. Gift card purchases don’t count, either. And you’ll only see the rebate post after you’ve completed your stay.
Hyatt is a brand-new addition to Rakuten, joining the portal just last month, which makes a 15% rebate an especially eye-catching way to kick off the partnership. Getting 15% back on a major hotel brand is about as good as these shopping portal bonuses get – and this one is unusually generous.
A Huge Bonus for New Rakuten Users
If you’re new to Rakuten, this deal gets even better. First-time users can currently earn a $50 bonus after making their first purchase of $50 or more within 90 days of signing up.
It’s simple: Create an account, click through Rakuten before making your eligible purchase, and the bonus is yours.
Full disclosure: We also earn a bonus if you use our link, and we appreciate it.
Why This Deal Is So Valuable
What sets Rakuten apart is that your rewards aren’t limited to cash back. You can take the standard payout as a cash rebate through PayPal (or even a physical check) — a nice discount on a stay you’d be booking anyway – or you can convert those rewards into valuable transferable points.
Your options here are American Express Membership Rewards or Bilt Rewards, which Rakuten recently added as a new transfer partner. Both convert at a 1:1 rate … at least for now (more on that in a bit). With this Hyatt promo, your 15% rebate can be converted into 15x Amex points or 15x Bilt points per dollar spent on paid Hyatt stays.
Considering Bilt points transfer 1:1 to Hyatt, booking a $1,000 Hyatt stay through Rakuten (today) would earn you enough points for four free nights at an off-peak Category 1 Hyatt hotel later on. That's a pretty incredible return on your spending!
While Bilt is the newcomer to Rakuten’s lineup, it can be especially compelling for renters or travelers with Bilt elite status, which unlocks even stronger redemption value. For most travelers, however, Amex Membership Rewards will still offer a better overall return … especially in the long term. That's because Rakuten cash back will only convert to Bilt points at a 1:1 rate through May 2026 as part of an introductory offer. After that, you'll need Bilt elite status to maintain the 1:1 transfer ratio.
This rebate also stacks with the points you’d earn from Hyatt directly. World of Hyatt members earn up to 5 base points per dollar on paid stays, and paying with a World of Hyatt Credit Card or World of Hyatt Business Credit Card adds even more – up to 4 extra points per dollar spent.
Finally, you can stack even more savings on top of that. Hyatt is running its own Cyber Monday sale, offering up to 30% off stays across the Americas. Pairing Hyatt’s discounted rates with Rakuten’s 15% rebate, plus all the points you’re earning along the way, makes this one of the most lucrative opportunities of the year to book a Hyatt stay.
Bottom Line
If you’ve got any paid Hyatt stays coming up in the U.S., Canada, or Mexico, this 15% back Cyber Monday promo is a rare chance to score some serious savings – and it gets even more valuable depending on how you choose to redeem your rewards. Combine it with Hyatt’s own 30%-off Cyber Monday sale, the current $50 Rakuten new-user bonus, and your usual Hyatt earnings, and you could come out far ahead on a stay you were already planning.
Lead photo courtesy of Hyatt Hotels
