Since the European Capital is deserted these days, basically all hotel chains are offering rock bottom sales at the moment.Fortunately Hyatt makes no exception and with the last month of FFN going on, I could not resist to take a quick city break in our European Capital.

Rates/Rooms
Weekend rates seem to be available around Euro 90 throughout the year.If you are lucky you can get an Euro 80 hyatt.com rate.Weekday rates seem to average around Euro 150, cheaper in summer and during EU Parlament breaks...

We checked in around 2 p.m and the manager told us that the room will be available in 30 minutes, so we decided to walk around the hotel a bit.Actually the first time I had to wait for my room to be cleaned in a very long time, so I was already looking forward to a nice suite upgrade.Unfortunately this was not the case, but we could see that all suites have a balcony and are located on the top floor.We were upgraded to a Deluxe room, which is 4 square meters bigger, according to hyatt.com
Other additional amenities are a JVC Mini CD Player and a seperate toilet as well as a bathtub and seperate shower.
Since Europe was cooking last weekend and Brussels was no exception the shower test was handled immediately after checking in.Good water pressure and soft towels, but only one bathrobe...

The seperate toilet is located right next to the bathroom, unfortunately you will have a tough time, if you are taller than 6 foot or a little overweight.The room is way too small, probadly only one and a half by one metres.

Our room was facing the inner courtyard and we were on the fifth floor, ironically german TV was broadcasting a Grace Kelly Bio and you felt like being in the good old Hitchcock Classic „Rear Window“

TV had about 30 channels from all over Europe as well as CNN and MSNBC.Unfortunately the air conditioning was really slow, the room was quite hot, when we checked in and after returning several hours later, the air conditioning was not able to cool it down significantly, although it was running on full throttle for 6 or 7 hours.

While waiting for the room, our luggage was already delivered to the room and the Diamond amenity was also waiting as well as a nice handwritten Welcome Letter and our Breakfast coupons.The Amenity was a big box of „Spekulatius“, a kind of Gingerbread as well as two bottles of water.Spekulatius is quite popular during X-Mas season, but I would not give it away in summer...

Public Spaces:

While checking in, I picked up a printout of the belgian „Elle Decoration“ mag, which featured the Hyatt in one of its last issues.A nice photo story, which represents the true character of the Hotel.The public spaces are beautiful, plushy on one side, but very elegant, maybe a little bit too dark.However the old stone statues are fitting in very well.The restaurant has some very intimate spaces and a nice terrace area.A small fitness center is located on the second floor as well as a big hot tub.Parking is available for Euro 20 per night, however some public spaces are available against a small fee ( Euro 1 per hour, free after 6 p.m and on sundays ) in front of the Hotel.If you want to save some bucks, you should find a place to park your car in the vicinity.

Service:

Friendly staff, Diamond amenities were already waiting in the room.Every time you met one of the waiters or the manager on duty they were greeting friendly.Bell service was available on monday morning, a cab is always waiting in front of the hotel or around the corner.

Dining:

We only had breakfast, they normally charge Euro 22 for the continental breakfast, a full american breakfast is not available, but the continental breakfast was very nice.A great selection of fresh bakery items as well as some cold cuts and fresh salmon, cheese and cereals.In addition to that they offer fresh fruit and several fruit juices.In Room Dining is expensive as well as goodies from the Mini Bar ( Euro 4 for a Snickers, Euro 5 for 0.5 l bottle of water )
However a „Why not“ Convenience store is located across from the Hotel.It is comparable with a 7-11 over in the US.Two internet terminals are availabel for a small fee.

General Comments:

Hyatt is lacking depth in Europe, so the addition of the Le Meriden chain, or at least some Hotels would be appreciated.Le Meridien has a property right across from the Central Station in downtown Brussels, so the Hyatt could be rebranded as a Park Hyatt, if necessary.Le Meridien could become the new Regency Brussels right across from the Convention Center.The Location of the Regency Brussels Barsey is too far away from the city center, even the closest Metro station ( Louise ) is still 5 or 6 Tram stops away.You need at least 30 minutes to Central Station.If you look for an architectual gem, the Hyatt seems to be your best bet in town.It is like a W from two centuries ago, so if you like to stay in a Grand Hotel the Hyatt is perfect.

Personal Appreciation:

Beautiful Hotel, friendly and competent staff, great weekend rates.If you do not like the big business complexes, make sure to stay at the Hyatt next time in Brussels