We had a 12 hour layover in AUH between flights and chose Capital Gate because it is easier to get to and from than Sadiyaat.

We booked two base rooms and I emailed to ask for one to be a Capital Suite and a connecting room, meaning the base room was upgraded to a Deluxe. Both requests were granted.

Because of EY's cost cutting we didn't get a EY Chauffuer Drive so booked the hotel limousine. I became irrritated when I saw the man holding the Hyatt Capital Gate sign was also representing many other hotels and it became apparently he was negotiating with other agents as to who would take us. Other than the sign there was nothing to indicate his association with Hyatt unlike other ports where a dedicated hotel rep greets you by name and takes you to your car.

He said "Wait, your call will be 20 mins." Needless to say I wasn't impressed.

Check In

We got to the hotel and went to check in on the 18th floor. Check in was painless but we weren't escorted to the room which I found odd. It didn't bother me but it's fairly standard at this level of hotel.

It was 40 degrees outside and very hot so we asked for some water and to their credit they gave us cold bottles of mineral water.

Room

If you have a fear of heights this is not the hotel for you. It has a huge atrium and I wouldn't walk near the balcony.

The Capital Suite is gorgeously furnished, luxurious and with high end materials. A large living room, smallish bedroom and a massive bathroom. The views were extensive, although obviously blocked by the building's steel frames.

The Deluxe room next door was sufficient however the air con console was inoperable and the room was extremely hot. I wanted to have a swim in the 15 mins before the pool closed at 8PM so told them to send the engineer while I was out.

When I came back the console was on but I couldn't alter any of the seatings. The room still would have been around 30 degrees Celsius. I called the engineer and he said "This is normal." I walked him through the connecting door to the suite where there was over a 10 degree difference in temp and he said "The suite has a bigger unit."

I pleaced my hand over the vents in the Deluxe Room and felt no cold air. Too late to move I told him I wanted it fixed. He then opened up one of the wooden panels in the room and "overode" the system settings to put it on 19 degrees. This was a ridiculous amount of time wasted just to allow a guest to cool their room.

One thing to note is that the rooms are mainly wooden decor meaning changes in temperature mean that the rooms creak during the night.

Some of the lights in the room were inoperable but given it was a short stay I didn't worry about it.

Photos below are from the Capital Suite
 

Service

I went down to use the pool and got changed in the spa. I don't know why but there is no direct entry from the locker rooms to the pool, rather you have to walk past reception. Being the UAE this meant getting undressed, putting your swimwear on and then getting redressed to walk back to the pool. Very poor functionality.

Swimming on the 19th floor towering over AUH was delightful.

Dining

We ordered room service and despite saying it would take 10-15 mins it was the standard 45 mins. Wouldn't have minded if they gave an accurate time, but we were tired and wanted to eat and sleep.

Location

Because of the height the views are greater than the PH, and only 10 mins from AUH.

Overall

Overall this is an ok hotel. It's pricepoint is about half of the PH and that is reflected in its service and clientle.

In future I will always choose the PH.