Hyatt Place Brand Future
Most “travel hackers” have stayed in a Hyatt Place or a dozen of them. Staying in Hyatt’s “budget brand” is certainly a right of passage for anyone looking to re-qualify for Diamond status. No matter whether you stay occasionally or often, you probably have noticed one thing. They all pretty much look and feel EXACTLY THE SAME!
Now there are the occasional oddities when it comes to Hyatt Place hotels. For example, there is a Hyatt Place in Honolulu that is a few blocks from Waikiki and was converted from another hotel. It is nothing like any of the other Hyatt Places, but has the same amenities. At 12,000 points per night it is not a bad deal either all things considered.
But I don’t want to talk about the Hyatt Place in Hawaii, but instead I want to mention two others that I have stayed at recently. The first is in Panama City and the second in Miami. Both of these Hyatt Places are fairly new and both do look sort of familiar, but neither is like the hundreds of clones we have grown to know.
Hyatt Place Panama City
The Hyatt Place in Panama City is an impressive hotel. With free valet parking out front, it almost feels more like a full service Hyatt. Of course it isn’t and you will find Hyatt Place staples like free breakfast and the gallery menu. The room also looks familiar with a mini suite type of feel, but it is much more modern and contemporary. The bathroom even has a surprisingly upscale feel, although it does lack a tub if that matters to you.
While a few things are familiar at this hotel, there are two huge differences in the rooms. The bathroom is located towards the front of the room instead of the middle and the rooms are much smaller. Yes there is still a separation between the couch and bed, but the entire layout is more constricted. Overall not a huge deal considering this hotel’s central location and upscale feel.
Hyatt Place Miami Airport East
There are two Hyatt Place hotels at Miami International Airport. The Hyatt Place Miami Airport West is a very typical clone Hyatt Place. The East location is only five months old and is something completely different. (It also has a better location.) Like the hotel in Panama, this one too has valet parking, but it is not free. A shame given the area, but we found a street out front with free parking to avoid the fee.
The room layout at this hotel is very similar to the one in Panama as well with a smaller size and the bathroom located in the front. It feels smaller, but more modern. The Miami property also features a very nice pool and attractive seating areas. Overall it was definitely a step up from the normal Hyatt Place experience.
Growth of Hyatt Place
Hyatt remains one of the smallest major hotel brands unfortunately. While they are growing rather fast, it appears a good part of their growth strategy is new Hyatt Place properties. While I wish there were more full service Hyatt hotels around, I think these more upscale Hyatt Place properties are definitely a step up from their run of the mill brothers.
Conclusion
As a Hyatt Gold Passport Diamond member I am still missing a lot of benefits at Hyatt Place properties and for that reason I wish Hyatt would push to expand their other brands. With that said, it is clear that the Hyatt Place brand is growing fast and I for one hope more of these nicer properties pop up in lieu of the more traditional, dare I say boring ones.
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This is key. The other thing is maybe Hyatt could come up with different amenities for Diamond members at Hyatt Place properties. I agree it’s a ‘flaw’ with the Diamond program. Just no attractive incentive to stay at Hyatt Place AND in many areas this is the only property Hyatt invests in (for example, Hyatt Place is the only Hyatt brand in the state of Tennessee, even in big cities like Nashville and Memphis – no Hyatt Regencies). Hyatt Place and Hyatt House are great parts of the Hyatt portfolio, but nothing special for Diamond members.
“Conclusion: As a Hyatt Gold Passport Diamond member I am still missing a lot of benefits at Hyatt Place properties and for that reason I wish Hyatt would push to expand their other brands.”
Hyatt Panama City is fantastic. We stayed in December of 2014 a couple months after it opened. We were just Platinums at that time but we got an upgrade to a great corner room.
I’m staying at the Hyatt Place in Charleston as I write this. This is a new build and the room looks like the Hyatt Place Panama room. The lobby is spacious and the quality of service is exceptional. They have a great work-out room and pool at this location. I didn’t bother with a car as this Hyatt Place is in “the hot spot” of Charleston for great restaurants; but they do have reasonable valet parking. It seems to me that Hyatt is trying harder than most, so I will continue to stay with them.
Hey MtM Community:
I was just wondering what type of room can I book under Reward Nights for Hyatt? Seems like Hyatt and any other hotel chain only allow Reward Night reservations apply to standard rooms??
So I guess thats why elite status is so critical for upgrades then? I always thought that you can book “better” rooms or suites with points. I guess not!
Hyatt House/Hyatt Place hotels are fine. I stay in them for corporate travel because they are cheaper. Doing that builds my balance of GP points and requalifies me for Diamond, allowing me to stay at better properties for family travel. I have no problems with them.
There’s another Hyatt Place in Champaign/Urbana that’s new and has a similar lobby to the one in Miami.
The Hyatt Place in Honolulu is actually the only Hyatt Place I’ve stayed in lol. It was a nice enough place, I wouldn’t mind staying there again.
That’s the version 2.0 of Hyatt Place, which has been rolled out in all new-builds. Similar setup at Hyatt Place LGA.
Hyatt Place are very nice BUT not $160+ nice like I usually see in Minneapolis or Raleigh.