I really like the Sheraton LAX. It is walking distance from the Airport, has great elite recognition, and many of the rooms have exceptional views of the very interesting LAX runways.
The Sheraton Toronto Airport is extremely convenient as it is directly connected to the airport. It is a nice hotel but has limited views.
The Marriott SeaTac is also walkable from the Airport and light rail station though it is up a bit of a hill (could be difficult with lots of luggage though it does have a reliable shuttle). The hotel rooms are comfortable and quiet though the Club Lounge is marginal and it has no views.
The Sheraton LAX can be quite a walk - like 30 minutes - if you come into Tom Bradley terminal And even if you come into the closest terminal (1 - Southworst), it is still a 15 minute walk. I live in LA and stayed there Wednesday night when I was evacuated due to the fires, and I’ve stayed there a few times before an early morning flight. It’s a perfectly fine hotel, but it’s nothing special at all. The rooms are a bit dated, the restaurant is mediocre, and the club lounge is quite pedestrian
I've stayed at the Sheraton Toronto Airport twice and really liked it.
Also agree with Ben on the Fairmont Vancouver Airport, definitely tops my list.
The Calgary Airport Marriott was convenient w/great views when i stayed there in 2018.
I see some value to the TWA Hotel at JFK, not like some of the posters. The location and history are great. The extra services beyond the room are a little spartan but are fine with me. The room rate is not necessarily overpriced. I have seen dates where the room rate is less than some midtown Manhattan hotels. In fact, I was going to stay the first night at the TWA Hotel for one business trip but the trip was cancelled for business reasons.
The Hilton at O'Hare is not mentioned. The exterior looks nice. I stayed there once many years ago. It was fine.
The Hilton in Seattle (SeaTac) is somewhat like an airport hotel. It is not connected to the terminal but it is across a small street from the Sound Transit light rail station. If you have a rollaboard carry on, you can walk. If you have heavier suitcases, then there is a free shuttle that is slower than walking with one carry-on.
There are several hotels that are technically on airport property and well connected to transit. For example, Taoyuan airport (Taipei) has a Novotel, soon to change names, if not already. That is connect to the MRT, 1 stop. Toronto has a hotel on the train that connects terminal 1 and 3.
It's a shame you've never visited Hyatt Regency SZX & HGH, two excellent airport Hyatts with runway views, *and Category 1*, and SZX one literally world second best.
Wow going to say that. People who doesn’t give a shit about china are missing out a ton.
Even the hyatt place in those two airport are awesome.
I get rates below 500rmb for hyatt regency there.
Also these people who.
The only thing sucks about Chinese aviation rn is the lack of wifi, but i can see that as a good thing or else someone uncivilized will blast their douyin. Which happened more time than often in US flights as well esp on LCC like spirit or allegiant or even southwest..
You lost me at Dallas eww
Singapore and Dallas on the same list? Nope Dallas is pure trash makes sense why AA is always trailing.
I would echo @Ben's assessment of the TWA hotel. The issue is that there really haven't been that many alternatives around JFK until very recently. The prices have thus been outrageous, and now that the novelty of the place is over for many, I suspect there won't be as many repeat visitors (though that's total conjecture!). If I need to overnight near JFK, I take a cab up to the Hyatt Place by LaGuardia...it's way cheaper than the TWA, and it costs far less to get there than into the city; nothing special, but what you would expect from a well-run HP, and great dumplings around the corner :). Airport hotels I've liked include the Sofitel at LHR, the Clarion and Comfort hotels at ARN, the Grand Hyatt at ICN, and the Sheraton at YYZ, and the Novotel (now Hyatt) at BKK (though I usually got upgraded to a suite so that might make me biased...); the worst have included the Hilton at SEA, the Ibis Budget at AMS (you get what you pay for...but this was awful), the Ibis Styles at CDG (super convenient and fun Star Wars theme, but needs refurbishment), and Sheraton BRU (well taken care of and adjacent to the airport but they do not care...).
Sheraton Manila -- next to terminal 3, attached to mall, resort pool
Intercontinental JNB -- 4 star hotel easy walk from arrivals hall and avoid all the Joburg hotel shuttle scams
Westin Detroit -- I don't think the TSA checkpoint is open much anymore tho.
Sheraton Hartford -- 60 second walk from lobby to Precheck
Intercontinental MSP -- Attached to airport and new
Sheraton Toronto -- Attached to terminal, very easy access to train into city
Westin at DTW has its own checkpoint for TSA open every day.
Intercontinental at MSP does not have an open checkpoint since covid. You have to take a bus to/from.
The hotel itself is a franchised Intercontinental that doesn't honor Intercontinental ambassador benefits and doesn't have a club lounge.
Concur on Westin Detroit (stayed there on a WX meltdown) and Sheraton Toronto (wound up there during a flight delay conga in '23). I'd also add the Montreal Airport Marriott (I've stayed there twice - once right as the pandemic was breaking out, once last year).
The rooms at the Marriott at the Montreal airport are virtually unchanged from a Marriott or Courtyard circa 2007-2008. And the club lounge is way too small for the number of rooms and elites.
Always have appreciated the DTW Westin. Food options are a little "lazy" but do like the plane views, convenience , and "private" TSA checkpoint
The food is good but sooooo expensive. That;s the one downside. There are also no food options in the terminal pre-security. So, you're stuck at the hotel. Though I guess with a boarding pass you could go inside the terminal and to the Sky Club to eat for free but the 3-hour rule probably makes that unrealistic.
I recall you wrote a very favourable report on the Le Méridien Cairo Airport a few years ago.
Staying 'in the city' if you've only got an overnight connection is a waste of time and money. The smart thing to do in the circumstances is look at the train/metro map and find a hotel that's next to a station 2-3 stops from the airport. The suburban stations are relatively quick and easy to navigate and the prices should be cheaper than the centre (unless you're unlucky enough to coincide with a trade fair held in the vicinity).
Not true. Quite often I will do so if I am flying in later in the day and connecting early the next morning. That airport /city may not necessarily be part of my trip and I don't much feel like going to a "airport" hotel that is called that but is actually 15 minutes away and could double as a homeless shelter. If you're on this site then you should be well versed with flying into a city on your own dime to catch a business class flight on another airline you got on points and you want to get in the day before so that you don't miss the flight. And sometimes it makes financial sense. I got into Changi at 11pm. I was staying at the Fairmont in Singapore but I wasn't about to spend $500 that first night to just literally go to bed so I stayed in the airports airside hotel overnight then head into Singapore.
It's baffling the TWA Hotel is so bad. As you said, it has the potential to be the worlds best airport hotel.
A 500-room airport hotel that doesn't offer room service?!? That is a license to print money they are missing out on.
Is there no ambition there? Surely the staff, dealing with all the complaints about how bad it is, wish they were working for a better hotel?
This baffles me. Were I the management, I'd charge what I needed to charge but I'd offer at least a limited 24-hour room service menu (a burger, some soup, a salad, and a few sandwiches) because you /know/ you're going to get folks coming in on a late flight who need a meal. As you've said, it's a license to print money.
This is why I always used to swear by the Royal York - I got in after midnight (bump hilarity had ensued, and I'd made like $1300 in vouchers, but I'd also had no time for meals between the last few flights) and I was able to get a decent meal (soup and a salad IIRC) at 0130. I didn't care that I had to pay like $35 or $40 for this - it was a decent meal at a clumsy hour and I was grateful for it.
Seriously, Hyatt or Fairmont should take up the TWA Hotel. Stick it in the Unbound Collection or something and put some stick about, but the price point, added "resort fee" or whatever, and so on just end up pricing me out of what I'm willing to pay for a half-effort experience. It /should/ be the AvGeek equivalent of a Monorail Resort at Disney World, but it isn't.
The Grand Hyatt San Francisco Airport (SFO) and The Hyatt Regency Zurich Airport (ZRH) are my 2 favorite airport hotels as well!
Two observations:
(1) I find it telling, but not surprising in the least, that 5/8 hotels you mentioned are Hyatt properties. The HR MCO is a personal favorite (I'll often stay here when visiting Orlando - a friend lives over in Lake Nona, and I usually stay on points so as a Hyatt Globalist I don't have to pay for parking, and as hotel restaurants go McCoy's is a personal favorite).
(2) I've stayed at the TWA hotel once, pre-pandemic in 2019. It was fairly nice (especially for being stuck with a clumsy layover), but the available food options were a bit desultory and it had the feeling of being "half a hotel". Since then...the only times I've considered it are when I'm pretty sure my travel insurance will be paying (this happens rather more than it "should"), and even then I'd rather get a night at a Hyatt downtown reimbursed and go out for ramen.
IC at JNB. Great use of a Chase free night! Just walk over, avoid driving at night around J-burg, get a good night's sleep, have breakfast, pick up your rental car and be in Kruger NP in time for lunch.
Couldn't agree more about the HR ZRH. They also offers one of my favorite Globalist welcome gifts! This stuff is amazingly good (and is available for purchase).
https://www.laeckerli-huus.ch/en/BaslerLackerliSelection820g/artdet/4883
The Marriott IAH next to Terminal C is my favorite domestic airport-connected hotel. Friendly staff, decent rooms, decent elite recognition for Marriott elites, and one of the better M-club lounges in the system.
And I like the convenience of taking the little underground train to the IAH Marriott; it goes to all the terminals from baggage claim ateas.
So are the Fairmont and the Grand Hyatt SFO worth a trip just to stay there?
I too stayed at TWA Hotel when it first opened and everything was new, The pool situation with incredible views of gate 5 where you see EY and EK A380's pulling in and out was totally. That said, I returned May of 2024 and everything was already dirty and worn. My runway view room that I paid a lot extra for all it did was give me a view of the Jet Blue sign of terminal 5. When I complained, they were absolutely horrible about it. Only thing good there is the gym which is unusually large and well equipped for any hotel.
I think there are two categories of "world's best airport hotels." One is hotels physically located inside the terminal, preferably with their own entrance and security checkpoint. The other is hotels physically located either outside the terminal or off-airport.
Within those two categories, you then have to look at which properties check all the boxes: elite recognition, upgrades, overall operating standard, F&B options, club lounge, etc. I think the Sheraton CDG is one of the few that can check all the boxes, even if the rooms are at least five years overdue from an exhaustive renovation.
If you slightly broaden the second category of off-airport hotels then you have airports like Kuala Lumpur, where you can book a VIP airport greeting for next to nothing, a train ride and then shuttle from the train station to your hotel. Basically, you get a bellman the whole way. The Le Méridien Kuala Lumpur even sends a butler with a luggage cart.
Meanwhile, in the first category, I couldn't even get the bellman at the Hyatt Regency inside MCO to carry my luggage to the airline check-in desk even with the offer of a generous tip.
That said, the Hyatt Regency at MCO is nice because you can get up super early and check your bags as soon as the ticket counters open as opposed to fighting the lines later in the morning. Sadly, you still have to deal with Orlando's awful TSA checkpoints since the Hyatt Regency doesn't have its own dedicated TSA checkpoint.
Ben - I believe you live in Miami, but am surprised that you did not include the luxurious MIA Airport Hotel! It was built in the 1950's and retains most of that charming era, HaHA. I know Mayor Daniella $$$ Cava is building a new airport hotel but am not sure if it is - or will be - connected to the terminal. Hopefully it will function better than the airport.
Thanks to the posters that mentioned the DTW Marriott in the DL terminal. Very nice property that I enjoyed due to a DL IRROP. DL did not offer the hotel but did reimburse me afterwards.
I also like the Marriott YUL - great for early am US departures but yes, it is a hike from the main terminal.
I have stay at the TWA hotel simple as an airline geek. Super high prices and, I may be wrong, but they open up the roof pool to anyone so its packed with non-hotel guests in the summer (or it was on the one time I was staying and it was open). Will avoid at most costs now.
Very much liked the Auckland Novotel with its very modern interiors and food options.
I agree with Grand Hyatt SFO. The lounge is especially nice for plane spotting and dinner (since their food comes from the attached restaurant.)
I’m staying at Hyatt Regency Taoyuan tomorrow… Flyertalk posts tell me the hotel is in a state of wild disrepair and to check all my expectations at the door. Maybe after they’re done refurbishing it, it’ll be another story.