I'm writing this from the hotel, as I'm about to check out. This was the Saturday night of a Cincinnati BWB run, with Friday night downtown at the Hyatt Regency Cincinnati.
Location: This 6 story Hyatt Place, a converted Amerisuites, is in a suburban office park. There's a big sign, but the hotel is back from the street. It uses the same turnoff as the Residence Inn. The Hyatt Place has a big American flag, but the Residence Inn's flag is bigger.
Almost everything nearby needs a car, like most of suburbia. However, there's a Chipotle
, coffee shop, and Ruby Tuesday about a 10 minute walk to the south.
Check-in: The gentleman checking me in asked about the 500 point Diamond Amenity. I asked about the G2 bonus listed on goldpassport.com. He said that they had stopped offering it at the end of February, that Hyatt's website was wrong, and that I should call Gold Passport.
The man said that there were youth sports teams staying there, so he was sure to place me on the top floor. It was a different experience than gijoe24jp in this thread:
http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/hyatt...att-place.html
Common Areas: The sitting area is clean and nice, though hall carpets are somewhat worn. All the handrails are in the elevators, though there are some nicks. I don't think this is a problem, given that I don't spend time hanging out in the halls. The fitness area is small, but guests can go to the nearby Bally's for free, according to the clerk.
Rooms: I like the Hyatt Place king bed layout, which includes a second sink and small refrigerator. With a slightly larger kitchen and more closets, this would be a wonderful basis for studio apartments. Unfortunately, the desk doesn't have a view of the TV - I like the Hyatt Lisle layout a little better. Overall, though, I like this room much more than the older Hyatt Regency Cincinnati.
The bed was a little saggy, showing a couple years of use, but not a big problem. Also, the A/C had the "burnt heat" smell for a couple minutes when turned on. This property is showing a few years of age, but it's still acceptable.
Food: To get above $100 and fully use a 2nd Costco certificate, I ordered some food. The chicken wings were pretty good, but pricey at $6 for 6 wings. The cookie was quite nice. While down there, I saw the night staff handling a bus full of senior citizens who were also staying overnight. (With the youth sports teams, it's a weird contrast.) They did a pretty good job.
As with other Hyatt Places, breakfast is toast, bagels, fruit, cereal, and juice. Hot items are not free. Breakfast ends precisely at 10 AM, 7-10 AM on weekends.
Overall, this is a quality hotel, better for staying than the older hotel downtown. If I had business in the area, I would have no problem staying here. For tourism, I'm not sure; I might prefer the downtown location, given that on weekends they're about the same price.
For BWB weekend runs - building nights for Seoul and Shanghai - if it had kept the G2 the extra $30 worth of points would often push Cincinnati above Indianapolis or Nashville on a price/benefit ratio. (My hometown of Louisville is expensive on many weekends, and Lexington is almost never cheap.) Without it, it will be best less often.