- Planning A Romanian Road Trip
- Introduction: Transylvania Unknown
- Getting An International Driving Permit
- Review: The Club At ATL
- Review: Turkish Airlines 787 Business Class
- Review: IGA Lounge Istanbul Airport
- Review: Turkish Airlines A319 Business Class
- Review: DoubleTree By Hilton Cluj, Romania
- Romanian Road Trip: Amazing So Far
- Review: Art Hotel Sibiu, Romania
- Brunch In The Transylvanian Countryside
- Review: Copsamare Guesthouses, Romania
- Review: Casa Savri Sighișoara, Romania
- Romanian Road Trip: Part Two
- Review: Vila Economat Sinaia, Romania
- Driving In Romania: My Experience
- Review: JW Marriott Bucharest, Romania
- Review: TAROM Lounge Bucharest Airport
- Review: TAROM Business Class A318
- Review: Hyatt Place London Heathrow
- Virgin Atlantic’s Puzzling (But Still Great) New Business Class Seat
- Review: Virgin Atlantic Clubhouse Heathrow
- Review: NEW Virgin Atlantic A350 Upper Class
We had one night in London, as we were arriving at around 3PM from Bucharest, and were departing the next day at around 12PM to New York. We were going back and forth about whether to stay in the city or near the airport.
Eventually we decided to just stay near the airport and go into the city in the afternoon. But then when we actually got to our hotel and realized that it was already getting dark shortly after 4PM, the idea of that went out the window. Fortunately there are some phenomenal Indian restaurants near Heathrow.
In this post:
Booking The Hyatt Place London Heathrow
I wanted to try something new near Heathrow, and Tiffany recommended the Hyatt Place London Heathrow. Generally a Hyatt Place doesn’t sound like a hotel I’d seek out, though much to my surprise this was unlike any other Hyatt Place I had ever stayed at.
The Hyatt Place Heathrow is a Category 2 property, so we booked it for 8,000 points per night. I value World of Hyatt points at ~1.5 cents each, so that’s the equivalent of paying ~$120 per night including taxes and fees, which is pretty great.
If you’re looking to earn World of Hyatt points you can redeem towards a stay here, the good news is that points are pretty easy to come by.
In addition to being able to earn World of Hyatt points with the World of Hyatt Credit Card (review), you can also transfer over points from Ultimate Rewards.
- Earn 4x Points at Hyatt Properties
- Free Night Every Year
- Complimentary Discoverist Status
- $95
- Earn 4x Points at Hyatt Properties
- Complimentary Discoverist Status
- Gift Discoverist Status up to 5 Employees
- $199
- 5x total points on travel purchased through Chase Travel
- 3x points on dining
- 2x points on travel purchases
- $95
- 3x points on Travel after the $300 Annual Travel Credit
- 3x points on Dining
- $300 Travel Credit
- $550
- Earn 3x points on travel
- Earn 3x points on shipping purchases
- Cell Phone Protection
- $95
- Earn unlimited 1.5% cash back on all purchases
- Car Rental Coverage
- Extended Warranty Protection
- $0
- Earn 5% Cash Back at office supply stores
- Earn 5% Cash Back on internet, cable TV, mobile phones, and landlines
- Car Rental Coverage
- $0
- Earn 3% Cash Back on Dining
- Earn 3% Cash Back at Drugstores
- Earn 1.5% Cash Back On All Other Purchases
- $0
See this post for everything you need to know about earning Hyatt points with credit cards.
Hyatt Place London Heathrow Review
Now let’s take an in-depth look at the Hyatt Place Heathrow, including the rooms, lobby bar, breakfast, gym, and more. At the end I’ll also talk a bit about the location, and my overall thoughts on staying at a hotel near Heathrow (but not directly at the airport).
Hyatt Place Heathrow King Bed High Floor Room
The Hyatt Place Heathrow is the biggest Hyatt Place I’ve ever stayed at, with nearly 350 rooms.
Hyatt Place London Heathrow exterior
Reception was straight ahead once inside, and I immediately noticed that this didn’t feel like your typical Hyatt Place in terms of the design.
Hyatt Place London Heathrow reception
Hyatt Place London Heathrow lobby
Check-in was friendly and efficient, and we were informed that as Globalists we received free breakfast (which other guests don’t receive at this property), and we were also both upgraded to high floor king rooms.
They gave Tiffany and me rooms next to one another, on the fourth floor. Interestingly you need to enter your key to even call the elevator, but then once inside the elevator you can go to any floor.
Hyatt Place London Heathrow hallway
I was assigned room 459, towards the end of the hallway on the right.
Hyatt Place London Heathrow room exterior
With Hyatt Place properties I’m used to big rooms that are most like junior suites, but that wasn’t the case here. This was definitely a “cozy” room, but it was more nicely appointed than your average Hyatt Place. There was an entryway with the bathroom on the right.
Hyatt Place London Heathrow room entryway
The room featured a very soft and comfortable king size bed. There was a daybed by the window, across from that was a desk and TV, and then on the wall closest to the entrance was an exposed closet.
Hyatt Place London Heathrow room
Hyatt Place London Heathrow room
Hyatt Place London Heathrow room
Hyatt Place London Heathrow room desk
Hyatt Place London Heathrow room daybed
There was a small welcome amenity of two bottles of water and a few apples.
Hyatt Place London Heathrow bottled water & fruit
The room had a lovely runway view, which I love as an avgeek. The view isn’t quite as good as from the Renaissance since you’re towards the center of the runway rather than towards one end, but it was still cool to have those views.
The windows had excellent soundproofing, as I didn’t hear any planes. Unfortunately the same can’t be said for the doors, as I could hear just about everything from the hallway.
Hyatt Place London Heathrow room view
Near the entrance was a kettle, a safe, and a mini-fridge.
Hyatt Place London Heathrow coffee & tea
Hyatt Place London Heathrow mini-fridge
The bathroom was compact but functional, and had a sink, toilet, and a shower-tub combo.
Hyatt Place London Heathrow bathroom
The shower wasn’t particularly well designed, mainly because I wish the glass shield had extended further. With how it was designed, so much water sprayed onto the floor.
Hyatt Place London Heathrow shower
Toiletries were the standard Hyatt Places ones, which are alright.
Hyatt Place London Heathrow toiletries
While I didn’t eat in the room, here’s what the in-room dining menu had on it:
Wifi in the room was fast and free.
Like I said, I thought the room was nicely appointed and felt modern for an airport hotel, though it in no way reminded me of a Hyatt Place.
Hyatt Place London Heathrow Lobby Bar
The Hyatt Place has a beautiful lobby bar, which again, in no way made me feel like I was at a Hyatt Place. It’s open 24/7 (which I love — coffee at 4AM, yay!), and is called “Coffee To Cocktails Bar.” You can find the menu here.
This consisted of a bar, as well as a variety of comfortable couches and chairs.
Hyatt Place Heathrow lobby lounge
Hyatt Place Heathrow lobby lounge
Hyatt Place Heathrow lobby lounge
Hyatt Place Heathrow lobby lounge
As is standard at Hyatt Place, there was also an area with self serve drinks and snacks for purchase.
Hyatt Place Heathrow pantry
Hyatt Place Heathrow pantry
Hyatt Place Heathrow pantry
Tiffany and I worked from here in the afternoon for a bit, and I thought their cappuccino was excellent (and nicely presented).
Hyatt Place Heathrow cappuccino
We didn’t eat anything here, as we instead went to Kaniz Restaurant, which was an Indian restaurant just a five minute walk away (and which I’d highly recommend).
Hyatt Place London Heathrow Breakfast
The Hyatt Place Heathrow serves breakfast daily from 6AM until 10:30AM. As I stated above, breakfast actually isn’t complimentary, with the exception of Globalist members, and those booking a rate inclusive of breakfast (at other Hyatt Place properties breakfast is free as long as you book direct).
Hyatt Place Heathrow restaurant
Breakfast consisted of a fairly substantial buffet, along with eggs cooked to order. In the end I just had a couple of cups of coffee here, as we had our real breakfast in the Virgin Atlantic Clubhouse. I’ll let the pictures speak mostly for themselves.
Hyatt Place Heathrow breakfast buffet
Hyatt Place Heathrow breakfast buffet
Hyatt Place Heathrow breakfast buffet
Hyatt Place Heathrow breakfast buffet
Hyatt Place Heathrow breakfast buffet
Hyatt Place Heathrow breakfast buffet
Hyatt Place Heathrow breakfast buffet
Hyatt Place Heathrow breakfast buffet
Hyatt Place Heathrow breakfast buffet
Hyatt Place Heathrow breakfast buffet
Hyatt Place London Heathrow Gym
The Hyatt Place has a gym on the basement level, which was reasonably decent. It had no natural light, but then again when it gets dark shortly after 4PM, it might not be that different than if you have windows. 😉
Hyatt Place Heathrow gym
Hyatt Place Heathrow gym
Getting To & From The Hyatt Place Heathrow
I generally get quite frustrated by the layout of Heathrow Airport. Airside buses between some terminals take 15-20 minutes, so it’s pretty incredible how spread out the terminals are.
There are some hotels connected to terminals (there’s a Hilton Garden Inn Terminal 2, Hilton Terminal 4, Premier Inn Terminal 4, Sofitel Terminal 5, etc.), and there you at least have the convenience of being able to walk there.
For the hotels not connected to the terminals, you have a few options:
- You can take an Uber, but I have absolutely horrible luck with Uber drivers at Heathrow canceling after 10-15 minutes; I think my record is three drivers in a row canceling on me after 10+ minutes
- You can take the Hotel Hoppa bus, but that only goes to certain terminals and it’s surprisingly pricey (£5.50-6 one-way or £10.50-11 return per person)
- You can take the free buses around Heathrow’s “ring” road
Tiffany is a public transportation ninja, so she navigated our way to the hotel using free buses. The catch? It was an hour from the time we got off the plane to the time we arrived at the hotel. In that amount of time we could have also gone to the city.
And I’m not sure there were better options:
- Like I said, I’ve had horrible luck with Uber drivers canceling, so I’m not sure it would have been that much faster
- Best I can tell, from T4 taking the Hotel Hoppa would have still required a transfer to get to the Hyatt Place
On the plus side, on the return it was a much faster journey, though it still took 20+ minutes to get from the hotel to the entrance of Terminal 3.
Hyatt Place Heathrow free bus service
My point is simply that in the future I think I’d only stay at a Heathrow Airport hotel if it’s connected to the terminal, because otherwise time savings are very limited compared to just going into the city.
Hyatt Place Heathrow Bottom Line
I really liked the Hyatt Place Heathrow, and think it’s one of the nicer Heathrow airport hotels. To me it felt a lot more like a standard Hyatt than a Hyatt Place, as it didn’t have the typical Hyatt Place features — breakfast wasn’t free for everyone, the room wasn’t big, the hotel had a proper restaurant and lobby lounge, and the room was more nicely appointed.
So while I think this is a great option for a Hyatt loyalist, I’m going to do everything in my power going forward to either stay at a hotel connected directly to the terminal, or to just stay in the city. Otherwise the whole process is just too time consuming, and you might as well head into the city.
What’s your hotel strategy when you have an overnight at Heathrow?
Bus to hotel: If at T2 or T3, go to Central Bus Station. Exit the door for local busses. Ask any employee or any bus driver: which bus to Hyatt Place? Or use Google Maps. We normally take U3 but several buses can take you to hotel. Alight at the Compass Centre (blue building) and walk across the street. If you're at LHR T5, there are direct buses and you do not need to go...
Bus to hotel: If at T2 or T3, go to Central Bus Station. Exit the door for local busses. Ask any employee or any bus driver: which bus to Hyatt Place? Or use Google Maps. We normally take U3 but several buses can take you to hotel. Alight at the Compass Centre (blue building) and walk across the street. If you're at LHR T5, there are direct buses and you do not need to go to Central Bus Station.
Dining in area: Aforementioned indian restaurant is very good. About 3/4 mile walk each way. Three Magpies Pub is also excellent, and approx same distance.
Bus to airport: best bet is to ask Google Maps. U3 runs every 12 minutes and picks up just in front of hotel (no need to cross Bath Road). Takes you to Central Bus Station. Several other options to Central or to T5.
Sofitel T5 is my go-to for LHR night-before-early-flight stays. Bit tricky to find the first time, then it’s easy. Staff remember you after a few stays and the odd upgrade happens. Decent bar, two restaurants, traditional English afternoon teas and well equipped, if small rooms. Room/floor numbering is odd and can require satnav the first time, then you figure it out.
Transfers to T2/3/4 are easy too. Pop down to the Thiefrow Express, ride free...
Sofitel T5 is my go-to for LHR night-before-early-flight stays. Bit tricky to find the first time, then it’s easy. Staff remember you after a few stays and the odd upgrade happens. Decent bar, two restaurants, traditional English afternoon teas and well equipped, if small rooms. Room/floor numbering is odd and can require satnav the first time, then you figure it out.
Transfers to T2/3/4 are easy too. Pop down to the Thiefrow Express, ride free one stop and go for a long walk to 2 or 3, or change train for 4.
In contrast, the Bath Rd hotels are a PITA. Pricey, slow Hoppa or finding the right open air bus stop for a free ride is the last thing you want to be doing on a winter night after sundown at 3.45pm. And you need to leave extra time next morning in case the free buses are slow or the Hoppa is full because it’s collected a planeload of pax off of a cancelled flight returning for their rescheduled trip.
@W Ho - Good luck with the Atrium...
Just booked the Atrium Hotel Heathrow for 1 night, it's next to the Hatton Cross tube station & the HGI is down the street. Felt that the premium for the HGI wasn't worth the extra GBP30-40 - I booked via Expedia & paid about GBP 70.
Would have considered returning to the Premier Inn @ T4 but I had a bad experience there last month so decided not to.
And the rates were...
Just booked the Atrium Hotel Heathrow for 1 night, it's next to the Hatton Cross tube station & the HGI is down the street. Felt that the premium for the HGI wasn't worth the extra GBP30-40 - I booked via Expedia & paid about GBP 70.
Would have considered returning to the Premier Inn @ T4 but I had a bad experience there last month so decided not to.
And the rates were only about GBP 10 less than the Atrium.
Or the Hyatt Place @ LHR but I decided that getting a good rate was more important than hotel perks & benefits.
p/s re: Indian "take-aways", Google Map is your friend :)
Lucky,
I have stayed here several times and have usually paid around $60 USD. I am treated very well. My strategy is if you are going to stay a couple of days the hastle back and forth is not worth it. Being a Globalist when I had stayed at the Andaz which on Sunday night was $169 British Pounds Sterling and the Hyatt Place was 60 Pounds and had an early morning flight out...
Lucky,
I have stayed here several times and have usually paid around $60 USD. I am treated very well. My strategy is if you are going to stay a couple of days the hastle back and forth is not worth it. Being a Globalist when I had stayed at the Andaz which on Sunday night was $169 British Pounds Sterling and the Hyatt Place was 60 Pounds and had an early morning flight out so it was perfect had a late check out at the Andaz got an Uber ( there were 3 of us) saved $$ and time.
Lucky - the HGI Terminal 2&3 seems to be getting good reviews. I am booked into it in a few weeks. Seems like THE place for AA fliers as it is connected to T3 as well. This is a brand new HGI and not the same as the HGI Heathrow...(need to be very careful when booking)
+1 for the Premier Inn T4
Preferred it to the Hilton T4.
My family and I stayed in Windsor on a overnight layover. It was the perfect location for us. It had the benefit of being close to LHR, but a quieter start to our trip than the center of London( which we did on our return) without sacrificing an interesting locale.
Be careful when you book a hotel at Heathrow. It can be a real pain to get from many hotels that advertise being at Heathrow, but rarely point that you need transport to get to the airport because they are not connected to a terminal. The Sofitel connected to Terminal 5 is a place we’re very satisfied with and its a short walk to the BA check-in hall. Clearly the place to stay for BA flights.
I realize humanity has survived until now, but the food hygiene shown in the pictures would presumably lead to health department comments in North America.
Specifically, no sneeze guards. Cured meats, fruits and vegetables no on cooling table. Utensils not swapped out when encrusted with food.
Taking an uber to a local hotel will always get you a 1 star rating. The drivers wait an hour on line hoping for a lucrative trip downtown, not a 5 dollar journey. Always avoid it when you can. If you're rating gets low, drivers will skip you
Brushed over by Ben, but a huge issue for non-Globalists: Unlike all(?) other Hyatt Places, breakfast is not free when booking thru Hyatt. Quite a shock in the morning after a long flight and checking in close to midnight and no prior notification. Not a hotel I will stay at again.
We also were happy for a night at the Hilton Garden Inn near Hatton Cross station. Less confusing for first timers.
I’m not surprised that Ubers cancel this journey. They’re often waiting several hours at LHR so a fare this small would be a brutal return for them
Re LHR hotels on Bath Road, I always book a minicab back to my terminal, it usually fixed fee GBP 10 from all the hotels. Not cheap, but they turn up exactly when you asked for and they drop you off right at the terminal you want so it is all done in about 5 minutes.
@james c also near Heathrow is Southall, home to one of the UK’s largest Sikh communities and the Broadway in Southall Is foot to door cheap and tasty Indian restaurants. Punjabi food predominates but you can also find good Gujarati, bengali sweets and other cuisines as well.
There’s even another Hyatt place up there as well.
The big advantage of the Hotel Hoppa is around Christmas, when public transportation stops running early or shuts down entirely.
I use this hotel a lot when I have an early morning flight back to the States. I like it because it's fairly quiet and cheap (I frequently pay less than $100. Menu limited but I've found dinner items I like and I always skip breakfast. Hoppa is the bugbear but learned to live with it.
Stayed here last summer w/ family of five during overnight layover. Took black cab to hotel from LHR night before flight; the front desk arranged private transport van back to airport early next morning. The transport hassles almost outweigh the point of staying close to the airport.
Please more about Tiffany's ninja public transportation skills in future posts!
Hyatt Place breakfasts in US are only free to WoH members, change was made about a year ago.
Typically, I have stayed at the HGI not far from Hatton Cross Station - in addition to the convenience of being within walking distance of a Tube stop, it's adjacent to a free bus stop and is reasonably priced.
As my next flight out of LHR this year will be departing from T5, I thought I might give this Hyatt Place a shot - even though it'll be more expensive here (GBP 56 as opposed...
Typically, I have stayed at the HGI not far from Hatton Cross Station - in addition to the convenience of being within walking distance of a Tube stop, it's adjacent to a free bus stop and is reasonably priced.
As my next flight out of LHR this year will be departing from T5, I thought I might give this Hyatt Place a shot - even though it'll be more expensive here (GBP 56 as opposed to GBP 47 for the HGI), it'll be easier to get to T5. Plus, having restaurants nearby (as opposed to around Hatton Cross, where I'll have to take a bus or the Tube to eat anything worthwhile) is also a worthwhile consideration.
Tiffany, could you explain how to take public transportation and not the Hotel Hoppa bus to this hotel?
I'm a public transit person and recently helped my partner figure out a hotel after arriving on the American dayflight from Chicago. I was about to have her spent the night in the city (before catching a train to Bath the next day) but when I saw she would be cutting it close to catch the last...
Tiffany, could you explain how to take public transportation and not the Hotel Hoppa bus to this hotel?
I'm a public transit person and recently helped my partner figure out a hotel after arriving on the American dayflight from Chicago. I was about to have her spent the night in the city (before catching a train to Bath the next day) but when I saw she would be cutting it close to catch the last train on a Sunday, I realized the Hilton Garden Inn at Hatton Cross was the best bet since the Hoppa buses run much later than the tube/trains. She still made one of the last Piccadilly line trains to from Terminal 3 to the hotel (cheaper than the Hoppa bus) so staying there was perhaps unnecessary but gave much more piece of mind to not having an expensive uber/taxi ride into London.
@SubwayNut -- Gladly! https://onemileatatime.com/heathrow-airport-hotel-bus-free/
rich -- I was asking myself the same question. What was the cost of this room. I used my certificate because it was a month away from expiring but value for points was poor from what I recollect with rooms going for just around $100.
Could not agree more with Paolo. The food options were awful and the room I stayed in was 1 star at best. This was the worst Hyatt we have stayed at in years. Probably ever.
Great review, thank you Lucky. I have two separate layover nights booked here next year, might change that up based on the transit factor you talk about.
You should go check out the SLH "country estate" properties that are nearby... Monkey Island Estate (Cat 6) is pretty close. Tylney Hall (Cat 3) is a little further but not bad. Would want a longer stay to make it worth it, but I am thinking about doing it. Good for summer only I would say.
I consider the Hilton Paddington a very good option for Heathrow, especially now Heathrow Express are doing advanced purchase discount to take the sting out of that option
Other good ones are the Premier Inn terminal 4 as it is usually very reasonably priced or the Hilton at Hatton Cross as it's very easy to take the Piccadilly line to your terminal then (use a contactless card to tap in and out)
I'll be in a similar situation on a Virgin Atlantic flight from TLV to IAD with a 24 hour layover at LHR. I've been going back and forth about staying near the airport vs. just going into the city. Based on what you're saying here, I'll just go into the city. Sounds like a good chance to use my free weekend night Hilton certificate!
Thanks!
Pathetic, unbalanced menu: 3 types of beef, pork, chicken, fish...but vegetarians are left with pizza or 1 Indian dish. Hyatt seems oblivious to changing dietary preferences and continues to serve up the same old stuff. Little wonder young people avoid these places like the plague ,choosing Moxy and similar instead ( or eat out).
Maybe I missed it but why did you work backwards from points to cost? When you are figuring out how much points are worth you usually compare the room cost vs. the number of points used. Instead you said it cost 8,000 points which is $120. How much was the room?
you can always take a "normal" black-cab .. not cheap but they wont cancel you ..
Can you please tell us more info regarding those phenomenal Indian restaurants, so we know where to look for food if we don't want anything from the room service menu ;)
@ James C -- Kaniz Restaurant (https://goo.gl/maps/A1DpESDdrQL5sBxd8), right on Bath Road, and easy to get to from most of the Heathrow-area hotels.