My spouse and I stayed at the Grand Hyatt New York for one night in
mid-April 2014. We reserved our room on-line using the Hyatt website,
and we paid our bill using multiple Hyatt gift cards.
This hotel
is located in Midtown Manhattan and connects directly to Grand Central
Terminal. Many bars, restaurants, and shops are located around the
hotel, and additional facilities are inside Grand Central. In addition,
Cipriani restaurant is located directly across the street from the
Hyatt.
The hotel lobby is spacious, and contains multiple seating
groups arranged in a chic, Zen atmosphere with a water feature and a
giant Buddha head. Guests enter this hotel on the street level, but they
access the second-floor lobby using an escalator or elevator. At the
reception desk, several employees are available for check-in; however,
one employee serves Hyatt Gold Passport executive members only. In
addition, guests can use several self-serve kiosks to check in / check
out, print a receipt, and return (recycle) room keys. One employee
supervises the kiosk area.
A 24-hour market in the hotel lobby
sells cold drinks, coffee, and snacks such as hot pretzels, bagels, and
pastries, as well as Sugar and Plum confections. The hotel restaurant,
New York Central, is located a few steps up from the lobby (a ramp for
handicapped access is available), and its bar, the Lounge at New York
Central, is adjacent to the restaurant.
This property has ten
elevators arranged in two groups. The first bank of five elevators
serves floors 1 through 24, and the second bank of five elevators serves
floors 25 and higher, including the fitness center (FC) level. Although
ten elevators seems like a reasonable number, with 1,300 total rooms at
this property, guests always wait for an elevator.
The top
floor of the hotel contains the fitness center, which features windows
that overlook the city. The facility contains 12+ machines (such as
treadmills, elliptical machines, bikes, and weights) in a somewhat
cramped space. The hotel provides cold towels and headsets during your
workout. It seems as if outdoor space exists on the fitness center
level, but we could not access it.
This hotel offers rooms in
several different categories: Standard (King, Two Doubles, or Queen),
Hypoallergenic, Grand Club, Deluxe, Suite, and rooms with views. We
booked a Standard Grand One King; however, we were placed in a corner
unit (although still a Standard Room), which gave us more space. The
foyer area was large (but it was essentially empty / wasted space), and
it led to the main living / sleeping area that contained a king-size bed
with two nightstands, a small lounging sofa with a table in front and
chair aside, and a console table unit that held the empty mini-fridge
and flat screen TV. (The mini-bars are empty, so guests can purchase
their own drinks and snacks at one of the nearby shops.)
The Grand Hyatt New York is well located, well designed, and attractive. We will stay there again!