Grand Hyatt Istanbul REVIEW - MASTER THREAD
Jul 23, 19, 11:39 pm
* At the entrance to the restaurant, there is a [email protected] museum figure of, I think, some Hollywood male. Spooky, when I go to the gym at 2:00AM.
Jul 24, 19, 12:00 am
* At the entrance to the restaurant, there is a [email protected] museum figure of, I think, some Hollywood male. Spooky, when I go to the gym at 2:00AM.
Dec 29, 20, 8:35 am
Grand Hyatt Istanbul
Grand Hyatt Istanbul
Taskisla Caddesi Taksim Istanbul, TR 34437
Grand Hyatt Istanbul = Well Maintained Aging Hotel with Superior Soft Product (17 Photos)
Grand Hyatt Istanbul
I was aware that Grand Hyatt Istanbul was an older hotel with aging rooms so I was not overly interested in booking there in the past and I regularly chose other hotels instead. Because of the current generous Hyatt promotion and the lack of promo from Marriott, this time I wanted to stay with a Hyatt-chain hotel. I was unimpressed by our stay at Park Hyatt a few months ago so I finally decided to try GH once and for all. I am glad I gave a chance to GH which exceeded my expectations and I will probably return in the future especially for stays where I value extra space over a more modern room.
Location
The location of GH is one of the best in the city near Taksim square. I like the area around Park Hyatt as well but it’s not close to public transportation so it normally requires to take the taxi or have a longer walk to take the metro.
Room
Given the low occupancy of hotels in Istanbul at the moment I was not surprised to be upgraded to a Grand Suite without having to use a Globalist Suite Upgrade award. The suite was aging as expected but I found it to be reasonably well maintained. The room was very spacious at 80 sqm which is one of the largest suites I have seen in Istanbul, bigger than StR, Ritz Carlton, Renaissance, and Park Hyatt, all of which only have 1 bathroom but GH had 1.5 (Conrad suites do too). GH is close to a busy road but there were double windows spaced at least 10 cm apart which was great for soundproofing and we could not hear traffic at all.
Bathroom amenities were Aromatherapy instead of the no-name generic crap at some Grand Hyatts in the Middle East such as Dubai and Doha, so I was glad that GH Istanbul did not cut corners in that regard.
Dining
The Club Lounge was closed during our stay due to covid and instead they provided Globalist happy hour in the hotel bar near reception which had individually wrapped hors d’oeuvres and desserts. In addition we could order three different warm appetizers prepared in the kitchen and brought directly to our table. They also accepted to prepare cocktails rather than only offer cheap booze which contributed to making happy hour feel more upscale generally speaking than the lounge offerings at Conrad where we stayed a few months ago. Also the GH bar was very quiet due to the circumstances; at times we were all alone so it could not have been a more private and relaxing happy hour. My main takeaway was that it was one of the best happy hours I have seen in Istanbul except perhaps Hilton Bomonti.
I found the breakfast buffet to be quite good, entirely served by staff as a covid precaution. There was also some variety in the buffet choices from one morning to the next and in my opinion it was a better breakfast than other hotels of that caliber such as Renaissance or Conrad.
Service
Service during our stay was good all around, either at reception or in the restaurant where they offered proactive service and even remembered our room number every day. I felt service was a notch above Conrad.
Wifi
Wifi worked well during our stay with speeds of over 50 Mbps. I would note that many Istanbul hotels have subpar wifi by worldwide standards; from memory GH was the fastest wifi I have seen out of about a dozen of hotels in the city.
Overall
In the end I tried GH in large part because of the promotion which is specifically the incentive that promos are supposed to provide, and in this price range I was quite happy by what I received. The room is old and for sure the suites at Conrad are infinitely better but GH is a good choice for Hyatt Globalists guests who want more space available. In addition, the location of GH is a plus, the service was excellent, and happy hour + breakfast were better than other hotels in this price range. GH can sometimes be booked for almost half the price of Park Hyatt which does not have new and modern rooms either – consequently I found GH to be better value than PH. For a future stay where I don’t mind a smaller suite and if I prefer newer hardware, I will try Hyatt Centric Istanbul, but I am certainly not opposed to returning to GH.
Oct 29, 21, 7:48 am
We had a 4-night stay in October 2021.
At first, on check in, we were offered a Club room with an extra bed for a child. I was told that no suite was available. Unfortunate, but that's the way it goes some times. When we saw our room, though, we knew we needed to do something. The extra bed took up way too much space in the room; it was nearly impossible to move around with all the extra(neous) furniture in the room. My wife went down to the front desk to plead our case with the manager. He said that, Yes, a suite was available, but it would mean we would not be on the Club floor and would be on a much lower floor. Um, no problem. We'll take it.
We moved rooms and were very happy we did. Plenty of space for a family. Yes, these rooms do need a refresh, but the spaciousness made up for the somewhat tired look. Really, it was fine.
The Club was open but with limited offerings, food wrapped in cellophane etc etc. Having said that, the staff were extremely helpful and even brought us a few things from the restaurant when we asked. We went to the Club every evening for pre-dinner drinks.
As a Globalist there was no problem having breakfast every morning in the downstairs restaurant. Crowding was a bit of a problem from 08:30 - 10:00. Perhaps in warmer weather more seating would be available outside.
Fitness centre and spa area were open, with restrictions on the number of guests who could use, say, the sauna at one time. Only a minor inconvenience.
We found the staff throughout to be courteous and genuinely friendly.
On the advice of other posters here, we went across the street to the IC for an after-dinner drink in their rooftop bar. The views were delightful. Thanks for the recommendation.
We were happy with our stay at the GH Istanbul.
Jan 7, 22, 12:50 pm
We had a 4-night stay in October 2021.
At first, on check in, we were offered a Club room with an extra bed for a child. I was told that no suite was available. Unfortunate, but that's the way it goes some times. When we saw our room, though, we knew we needed to do something. The extra bed took up way too much space in the room; it was nearly impossible to move around with all the extra(neous) furniture in the room. My wife went down to the front desk to plead our case with the manager. He said that, Yes, a suite was available, but it would mean we would not be on the Club floor and would be on a much lower floor. Um, no problem. We'll take it.
We moved rooms and were very happy we did. Plenty of space for a family. Yes, these rooms do need a refresh, but the spaciousness made up for the somewhat tired look. Really, it was fine.
The Club was open but with limited offerings, food wrapped in cellophane etc etc. Having said that, the staff were extremely helpful and even brought us a few things from the restaurant when we asked. We went to the Club every evening for pre-dinner drinks.
As a Globalist there was no problem having breakfast every morning in the downstairs restaurant. Crowding was a bit of a problem from 08:30 - 10:00. Perhaps in warmer weather more seating would be available outside.
Fitness centre and spa area were open, with restrictions on the number of guests who could use, say, the sauna at one time. Only a minor inconvenience.
We found the staff throughout to be courteous and genuinely friendly.
On the advice of other posters here, we went across the street to the IC for an after-dinner drink in their rooftop bar. The views were delightful. Thanks for the recommendation.
We were happy with our stay at the GH Istanbul.
Jan 13, 22, 2:22 pm
We had a 4-night stay in October 2021.
At first, on check in, we were offered a Club room with an extra bed for a child. I was told that no suite was available. Unfortunate, but that's the way it goes some times. When we saw our room, though, we knew we needed to do something. The extra bed took up way too much space in the room; it was nearly impossible to move around with all the extra(neous) furniture in the room. My wife went down to the front desk to plead our case with the manager. He said that, Yes, a suite was available, but it would mean we would not be on the Club floor and would be on a much lower floor. Um, no problem. We'll take it.
We moved rooms and were very happy we did. Plenty of space for a family. Yes, these rooms do need a refresh, but the spaciousness made up for the somewhat tired look. Really, it was fine.
The Club was open but with limited offerings, food wrapped in cellophane etc etc. Having said that, the staff were extremely helpful and even brought us a few things from the restaurant when we asked. We went to the Club every evening for pre-dinner drinks.
As a Globalist there was no problem having breakfast every morning in the downstairs restaurant. Crowding was a bit of a problem from 08:30 - 10:00. Perhaps in warmer weather more seating would be available outside.
Fitness centre and spa area were open, with restrictions on the number of guests who could use, say, the sauna at one time. Only a minor inconvenience.
We found the staff throughout to be courteous and genuinely friendly.
On the advice of other posters here, we went across the street to the IC for an after-dinner drink in their rooftop bar. The views were delightful. Thanks for the recommendation.
We were happy with our stay at the GH Istanbul.
Jan 14, 22, 11:01 am
One big issue that I had and people should keep in mind is the way they settle the final bill. I booked through the website quoted in Euros. At check out, they didn't give me an option and just charged me in Lira. The problem is that I was there when the exchange rate was very volatile. After arriving back in the US, I noticed the charge was somehow 40-50% what I was expecting. Taking another look at the bill, they convert the Euro rate to Lira on day 1 (which for me was 1 USD to 18 Lira). By day 5, the exchange was 1 USD to 13 Lira), but I was being charged the same amount in Lira calculated on day 1. And for whatever reason, the final credit card charge was also another $75-$100 more (not sure if that was a bank conversion thing). Hotel has refunded me approximately the right amount, but if I didn't catch it, I would've lost ~$300
Jan 14, 22, 12:01 pm
Jul 14, 22, 7:37 am
Lounge is open I presume? Didn't actually check before booking.
Jul 14, 22, 1:21 pm
Aug 11, 22, 4:48 pm
Aug 11, 22, 11:11 pm
Lounge was open and the food was enough to make a meal.
Choice of breakfast in lounge or 'restaurant'; amazing spread at the restaurant. Would take a long time to get bored with the food options. Only possible advantage to lounge breakfast is maybe less busy and the prosecco is free.
Istanbul in general I'm sure is covered elsewhere. Lots of touts and the shoeshine dropped brush scam is prevalent in the neighborhood of this hotel.
Aug 12, 22, 10:48 am
As for the hotel, the lounge is great. We went back and forth between globalist breakfast in the lounge and in the restaurant. Not as many choices in the lounge but it's nice and quiet and the espresso machines always work. The lounge "happy hour" in the evening generally had enough of a food spread that we called it dinner.
The GH Istanbul really is an oasis. With lounge access you get a nice easy breakfast, go and explore Istanbul for the day, and then come back for swimming and dinner and drinks in the lounge. I'd recommend Istanbul and this hotel to anyone.
Aug 18, 22, 8:20 pm
My brother and I received shocking treatment during this stay for business, clearly two people are arriving from different continents for a stay, the guests name is on the reservation and I have reached out in advance to confirm this and checked in using my Credit card.
Even though the room is guaranteed and I have used points to upgrade to a suite why would you not provide access to the room and club access and instead threaten to throw them out whilst I am unreachable and clearly travelling!
The On-site management are clueless, very rude and arrogant, also on-site security displayed unneeded aggression bordering thuggery typical of Turkish stereotypes, I tried to raise this to on-site management in Club Lounge and they could not give a cr*p! Stay away!
