I arrived in Amman at around 1:30PM, and my flight out of Amman was the following night/morning at 1:30AM, meaning I had about 36 hours on the ground.
Amman has a few options for Hyatt and Starwood loyalists. There’s the Grand Hyatt, Le Meridien, and Sheraton. While not yet open, there’s also supposed to be a W Amman opening on October 1, 2017, and a St. Regis Amman opening on December 1, 2017.
All the Hyatt and Starwood options were roughly comparably priced, so I ended up booking the Grand Hyatt, given that Tiffany was staying there, as my visit to Amman was overlapping with the tail end of her trip to Jordan.
The rate was about ~$160. This is a Category 3 Hyatt property, meaning a free night would have cost 12,000 points. In this case paying cash seemed like a best option, given my valuation of Hyatt points.
However, I decided to book two nights, since I wanted to be able to get some rest before my redeye flight. I’d have to check-out by 4PM as a Diamond member, so I valued being able to stay until 11PM or so. Besides, it would earn me another stay credit towards Globalist status for this year.
Tiffany and her husband picked me up at the airport, and the ride to the hotel took about 30 minutes. There’s a very high level of security everywhere in Amman at the moment (just a few blocks from the hotel we saw a tank-of-sorts set up with a sniper), including at the hotel. Before you can even enter the hotel you have to go through a separate entrance with a metal detector, and once you’re through that you get to the exterior of the hotel. So not only is there security to enter the hotel, but there’s security to even get anywhere near the hotel.
The hotel has a nice lobby that feels very typical of the “Grand Hyatt” brand, and reception was located inside the main entrance and to the right.
Grand Hyatt Amman lobby
Grand Hyatt Amman lobby
There I was helped by a very friendly associate. I used my German passport to enter Jordan, so presented that at check-in. He then handled the entire check-in process in German, which was pretty impressive. He acknowledged all the benefits I’d receive as a Diamond member, informed me I’d get access to the club lounge, etc.
Within a few minutes I had a key to my room on the ninth floor.
Grand Hyatt Amman lobby
Upon exiting the elevator I turned right, and then my room was at the end of the hall on the left.
Grand Hyatt Amman hallway
I was assigned room 914, a standard club king room.
Grand Hyatt Amman room exterior
Grand Hyatt Amman floorplan
The room was on the small side, though was well appointed. Upon entering the room there was the bathroom on the right and a closet on the left.
Grand Hyatt Amman club king room entryway
The hallway curved a bit, and then led into the rest of the room.
Grand Hyatt Amman club king room entryway
The room featured a comfortable king size bed with two nightstands.
Grand Hyatt Amman club king room bed
Grand Hyatt Amman club king room
In the corner under a lamp was a lounging chair.
Grand Hyatt Amman club king room
Grand Hyatt Amman club king room seat
Across from that was a glass desk with a chair that clearly wasn’t designed for an office.
Grand Hyatt Amman club king room desk
Across from the bed was a wall-mounted TV, as well as a dresser which had the minibar and kettle.
Grand Hyatt Amman club king room TV
In addition to the kettle, there were two small bottles of water, and instant coffee and tea.
Grand Hyatt Amman club king room coffee, tea, water, and kettle
Underneath was the minibar, which contained water, soft drinks, and beer.
Grand Hyatt Amman club king room minibar
The room had views of sprawling Amman. The skyline of Amman seems to be never-ending, which is probably largely because of how hilly the city is.
Grand Hyatt Amman club king room view
The bathroom was back near the entrance, and featured a sink, toilet, and a shower/tub compound.
Grand Hyatt Amman club king room bathroom
Grand Hyatt Amman club king room toilet
The shower and tub were in a glass enclosure.
Grand Hyatt Amman club king room bathroom
The toiletry brand was a new one for me — I don’t think I’ve ever seen it at a Hyatt property before.
Grand Hyatt Amman club king room toiletries
Overall I thought the room was perfectly nice, the Wi-Fi was fast, etc. My one major frustration was that there was a loud drilling noise for much of the day on my second day. I was trying to nap before my flight, but that proved impossible due to some sort of construction that seemed to be going on above. I guess I could have asked to move rooms, but that didn’t seem worth the effort at that point.
The hotel has a good club lounge, which was down the hall from my room. It’s a beautiful space physically, with a variety of seating options, ranging from couches to dining tables.
Grand Hyatt Amman Grand Club
Grand Hyatt Amman Grand Club
Grand Hyatt Amman Grand Club
The lounge also had great views facing the other direction of the city.
Grand Hyatt Amman Grand Club view
The lounge had soft drinks, water, and coffee available all day. In the afternoon there were also a couple of types of cake.
Grand Hyatt Amman Grand Club coffee machine
Then in the evening from 6PM until 8PM there was a happy hour. The spread was excellent, and could easily substitute dinner, if so desired.
Grand Hyatt Amman Grand Club evening spread
There were all kinds of Arabic dishes, soup, a couple of hot options, dessert, etc. I’ll let the pictures speak for themselves.
Grand Hyatt Amman Grand Club evening spread
Grand Hyatt Amman Grand Club evening spread
Grand Hyatt Amman Grand Club evening spread
Grand Hyatt Amman Grand Club evening spread
Grand Hyatt Amman Grand Club evening dessert spread
There was also a selection of self serve liquor and wine.
Grand Hyatt Amman Grand Club evening drink selection
Grand Hyatt Amman Grand Club evening wine selection
I found service in the lounge to be wildly inconsistent. During the day there were attendants who didn’t even acknowledge me when I said “hello” upon entering. They seemed to be there only to entertain themselves.
On the other end of the spectrum, Ahmed in the evening was fantastic. He introduced himself by name, cleared plates frequently, recommended some of the dishes, etc.
As a Diamond member I also received breakfast. That’s served at the hotel’s main restaurant, 32º North, which is located on the lobby level. Breakfast is served from 6:30AM until 10:30AM.
The restaurant was beautiful, as you can see below.
Grand Hyatt Amman breakfast restaurant
Grand Hyatt Amman breakfast restaurant
Grand Hyatt Amman breakfast restaurant
The breakfast spread was also great, especially the falafel.
Grand Hyatt Amman breakfast buffet
Grand Hyatt Amman breakfast buffet
Grand Hyatt Amman breakfast buffet
Grand Hyatt Amman breakfast buffet
Grand Hyatt Amman breakfast buffet
Grand Hyatt Amman breakfast buffet
Grand Hyatt Amman breakfast buffet
Grand Hyatt Amman breakfast buffet
Grand Hyatt Amman breakfast buffet
Grand Hyatt Amman breakfast buffet
However, the service was abysmal. I had breakfast right as the restaurant opened. As I entered the restaurant the one server didn’t acknowledge me, so I said “just to confirm, you’re open, right?”
“Yes.”
He pointed me towards a table, though didn’t offer me coffee or anything. After a few minutes I asked if I could have some coffee, and he got it within a couple of minutes. However, he didn’t offer any refills, didn’t clear plates, etc. Instead he made himself a plate of food and went to the back room to have breakfast himself. Oy…
In terms of other amenities, the hotel also had a gym, which could be accessed 24/7. I didn’t have a chance to use it, but it looked pretty decent.
Grand Hyatt Amman gym
Grand Hyatt Amman gym
Grand Hyatt Amman gym
Grand Hyatt Amman bottom line
The Grand Hyatt had a great location, nice rooms, a club lounge with a good evening spread, and an excellent breakfast. However, there’s certainly some room for improvement when it comes to service at this hotel — the associate at check-in and one of the club lounge attendants were excellent, while I wasn’t as impressed with the other club lounge attendants and the service at breakfast.
So all things considered I’d recommend this place for a Hyatt loyalist, though when I return to Amman I look forward to checking out the new W and St. Regis, which will no doubt bring quite some competition to the market.
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