I recently visited Tulsa, Oklahoma for the Travel on Points (ToP) meetup. ToP is a large Facebook group focused on travel using points earned from credit cards. There were about 250 people at the meetup and there were lots of good tips I learned, particularly in smaller group discussions outside the main presentations. I try and attend these meetups in cities that are new to me as it gives me a chance to see friends and explore a new part of the country.
The meetup was held at the Hyatt Regency, which was only 7500 Hyatt points per night (Cat 2) vs. over $200 per night at the time of booking. The hotel is in downtown Tulsa, which is fairly compact and walkable. I arrived from Atlanta around noon and contacted the hotel for their complimentary shuttle. It arrived in about eight minutes and whisked me directly to the hotel in about 15 minutes.
My room was ready on arrival which was appreciated as I had lunch plans that afternoon with some friends. I didn’t ask for an upgrade as 1) there were tons of Globalists there for the meetup anyway and several arrived on Thursday and 2) I prefer not to have a suite at these meetups as that is sometimes where people congregate until late in the night – although as you will see, that was not necessary at the Tulsa Hyatt Regency.
My room was a perfectly typical older Hyatt Regency room. I received a “goodie bag” with a granola bar, Chex mix and a bottle of water. My view was of the building next door.
I checked out the gym and indoor/outdoor pool later in my stay. They are located on the third floor of the hotel. There is also guest laundry available near the gym.
One nice feature of the Hyatt Regency Tulsa is an executive lounge. Those staying on the lounge floor and any other Globalists get access to the lounge. It was surprisingly nice, with hot and cold soft drinks, coffee, and snacks (including fruit and yogurt etc.) available 24/7. We used it as a place to gather late into the night and not bother other hotel guests with our loud rambling about points and miles. No suite parties needed!
Breakfast at the hotel was served in the main restaurant. It was busy with so many Globalists, but service was good, although Sunday morning we had to wait quite a while for a table as they had limited staff so kept people waiting for a table rather than giving them slow service.
We could order anything off the menu, including steak and eggs, which I tried on Sunday and was not super impressed with the toughness of the steak. I had an omelet on Saturday and it was much better. They also had espresso-based drinks available.
On Saturday morning before the meetup, I took a long walk down to the river and back including partway on the famous Route 66.
After the meetup ended on Sunday before my flight home, I took in a couple of tourist attractions, the Greenwood Rising/Black Wall Street museum and the Bob Dylan Archives. Both were interesting in their own way.
If you find yourself in Tulsa for work or leisure, the Hyatt Regency is a perfectly serviceable hotel and a good value for your Hyatt points. It’s not modern or fancy, but the staff are nice and the location is great to explore the city.
If you have questions about this post, let me know in the comments or send me an email at emptynestermiles@gmail.com. If you are thinking about opening a new credit card, please contact me via email and I will be happy to recommend the best new card for your situation. I also recommend using CardPointers to track your credit card spending discount offers.
