Hyatt’s growth in New York the past few years has been explosive. Going back a few years they only had one property in New York City, while they now have seven (the Grand Hyatt, Andaz 5th Avenue, Andaz Wall Street, Hyatt Union Square, Hyatt Times Square, Hyatt 48 Lex, and soon the Park Hyatt).
Up until now I’ve always stayed at the Andaz 5th Avenue and Andaz Wall Street. I consider those two hotels to be the best value in New York as a Gold Passport Diamond member. The service at both properties is great, the rooms are large, and both hotels are fairly good with upgrades. I know I’m crazy, but I love staying on Wall Street on weekends — it’s so quiet, and the rates are usually really good.
So on one hand it killed me not to return to the Andaz for this visit, but I figured it made sense to review some of Hyatt’s new offerings in New York. I decided to spend my first night at the new Hyatt Union Square, which opened just under a year ago. For what it’s worth, I booked a Courtyard Studio room at a rate of ~$160 for the Sunday night, which was booked under the “My Elite Rate.”
The Hyatt Union Square is located off 4th Avenue, just a couple of blocks from Union Square. I’m kind of indifferent when it comes to the Union Square area. I far prefer being further uptown, but at the same time when it comes to New York “Squares,” I’ll take Union over Times!
The exterior of the hotel is nice, and it’s kind of cool that the hotel is in an area without too many other chain hotels, so it does blend in pretty well.
Hyatt Union Square exterior
Hyatt Union Square exterior
Hyatt Union Square entrance
The hotel’s lobby is small but cozy. It’s one of those lobbies you can’t walk through without exchanging “hellos” with the front desk associate.
Hyatt Union Square lobby
Hyatt Union Square lobby
Hyatt Union Square lobby
Hyatt Union Square lobby bar
Anyway, upon arrival I was quickly assisted by one of the front desk associates, who explained the basics of the hotel to me, along with my Diamond benefits:
- I was upgraded to an Alcove Loft, which is basically a corner room
- I’d receive complimentary internet
- I was proactively offered guaranteed 4PM late check-out
- I was offered my choice of Diamond welcome amenities, and selected the 1,000 Gold Passport points
- I could have complimentary breakfast in the restaurant, and up to $25 per person would be taken off my bill (more on this later, because $25 isn’t enough to cover a full breakfast with tip, which is the Diamond Gold Passport benefit)
I was quickly sent on my way to the elevators, located right next to the reception desk. It’s worth noting that there are only two elevators in the hotel, which didn’t seem like enough to me for 178 rooms. So there was always a bit of a wait, and the elevators were usually crowded.
My room was on the sixth floor, and the hallway felt really “boutiquey,” which I liked.
Hyatt Union Square hallway
I was assigned room 611.
Hyatt Union Square room entrance
Hyatt Union Square floorplan
The room featured a large entryway, which let out into the living area.
Hyatt Union Square Alcove Loft Room entrance
There was a couch/daybed there, along with a chair.
Hyatt Union Square Alcove Loft Room couch and chairs
Next to that was the desk and a somewhat awkwardly placed flat screen TV, as it couldn’t practically be viewed from the desk or the couch.
Hyatt Union Square Alcove Loft Room
Hyatt Union Square Alcove Loft Room desk and TV
Behind the desk was the minibar and Nespresso machine.
Hyatt Union Square Alcove Loft Room TV and minibar
Hyatt Union Square Alcove Loft Room minibar
I was impressed to see a Nespresso machine at a (non-Park) Hyatt!
Hyatt Union Square Alcove Loft Room Nespresso machine
Then the room “opened up” a bit leading into the bedroom area, which featured a comfortable king size bed facing a second TV.
Hyatt Union Square Alcove Loft Room
Hyatt Union Square Alcove Loft Room king bed
The room boasted views of the surrounding area, so was nothing special. It didn’t have a direct view of Union Square or anything.
Hyatt Union Square Alcove Loft Room view
Hyatt Union Square Alcove Loft Room view
Across from the desk area was the small bathroom, which featured a sink, toilet, and walk-in shower.
Hyatt Union Square Alcove Loft Room bathroom
Hyatt Union Square Alcove Loft Room toilet
Kudos to the Hyatt for not falling for one of my biggest hotel pet peeves — the shower control was (correctly) placed by the door of the shower, as opposed to by the actual shower head. So you could turn on the shower and control the temperature without getting wet first.
Hyatt Union Square Alcove Loft Room shower
The toiletries were C.O. Bigelow branded, which is a brand I quite like.
Hyatt Union Square Alcove Loft Room toiletries
Hyatt Union Square Alcove Loft Room bathrobe
Interestingly on the bed instead of having chocolates they had biscoffs with turndown service.
Hyatt Union Square Alcove Loft Room turndown service
Since I’m about to move into hotels full time internet speed is very important to me, it’s worth noting that the Wi-Fi at this hotel was legitimately high speed, which I’d hope is the case at a new hotel.
In the morning I had breakfast at The Fourth, which is the hotel’s restaurant, located right next to the lobby. The restaurant serves breakfast from 7AM till 10:30AM seven days a week.
Hyatt Union Square The Fourth Restaurant
It’s quite a nice restaurant, though definitely on the small side.
Hyatt Union Square The Fourth Restaurant
Hyatt Union Square The Fourth Restaurant artwork
The tables are all quite close together, so it’s almost more like a coffee shop than a restaurant. Then again, space comes at a premium in New York, so this is much more common in New York than other cities — it sure isn’t an IHOP in Topeka!
Hyatt Union Square The Fourth Restaurant
The breakfast menu read as follows:
To drink I ordered a fruit & yogurt smoothie and a nonfat cappuccino, both of which were good.
Hyatt Union Square The Fourth Restaurant cappuccino and smoothie
Then to eat I ordered The New Yorker, which was an everything bagel with smoked salmon. Yum.
Hyatt Union Square The Fourth Restaurant breakfast
The cost of the breakfast was $33.75 plus tip. Clearly a $25 breakfast credit doesn’t cover a “full” breakfast no matter how much you spin it. In my case they took the full amount off the bill at check-out, though that might have been because my room was reserved for two people, so maybe they automatically applied a $50 credit. That being said, it’s definitely something I’d argue at check-out if I were actually staying with someone and the bill were over $50.
Hyatt Union Square The Fourth Restaurant bill
The only other thing worth noting about the hotel is that there’s a small but modern gym one floor below the lobby.
Hyatt Union Square gym
Hyatt Union Square gym
Hyatt Union Square bottom line
The Hyatt Union Square was what I expected. The employees I interacted with were all extremely friendly, though I generally find that to be the case at Hyatts. I still prefer both of the Andaz properties — when the price is right I love the Andaz 5th Avenue, and on weekends it’s tough to beat the value of the Andaz Wall Street. But otherwise it’s nice to have a good third option in New York.
Have you stayed at the Hyatt Union Square? If so, what did you think? What’s your favorite Hyatt property in New York?
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