madderlake

Kacee thanks for this report! Heading there in mid Feb and wondering if the club will be back open - any idea? Where did you end up taking breakfast most days? Looking forward to revisiting Berlin and this property ... it's been a minute!

Kacee

The club reopened on Jan. 1. We ate in Vox one morning, in the lobby bar area the other. The service in Vox was slightly less bad. The basic problem they have here is the staff have no specific responsibility for tables at breakfast. It is literally a service free-for-all.

We checked out the newly-reopened club one afternoon (it was described to us as "renovated"). The club space remains very small, and with a strange mismatch between the chairs and table heights (chairs too low, so you feel like you're four years old).

madderlake

Kacee that's wild about the club! Is it different than it was pre-Covid? I'm assuming breakfast and evening happy hour are the same as before now back in the club? I applied a TSU to a grand suite which I've never stayed in before so hopefully that works out well!

Kacee

It looked similar to pre-covid, though it had been several years since I was last there. Yes, they now do breakfast and an evening happy hour in the club, though you can still elect to take breakfast in Vox, which has a broader selection. Hopefully the property will be calmer for your visit than it was over new year's!

SF1K

Also just got back from 8 night stay over NYE. We had Grand Suite View King. This is our go to for NYE. Maybe we hit the breakfast at “good times”. Didn’t really have any issues with waits for things (unlike at PH Vienna - that’s a whole other story). I can’t remember the day maybe it was on the 1st that they served in 3 locations because of the demand. We started in what was the former lounge on the lobby - back to being the lunch restaurant. But that closed at 11, whereas the Vox breakfast was until 2pm. Which I think is really nice of them for January 1. They could make say 11 and they’d certainly save some money as most people are probably on a breakfast package or have it comped somehow. At 11am we moved over to Vox. I also appreciate how there is sparkling wine at breakfast at no charge each day. Lounge moved during our stay - must say I do prefer the lobby space as it provides more room and is more open overall. But food was good and seemed to actually be better when the lounge was back upstairs. We had some billing issues but they were addressed in the most professional manner. Our laundry service was also excellent and although always expensive not outrageous. And they did a great job pressing our tuxedos for NYE. On a side note the NYE at Grill Royal was absolutely amazing!! We are hoping for a repeat next year!!

ElevatorEnthusiast

Has anyone stayed here and at the Ritz-Carlton? I'm considering using my Cat 4 certificate here at the Grand Hyatt instead of spending a night at the RC. Any thoughts on the quality of the GH compared to the RC?

TravisMT81

I have stayed at both. The Ritz Carlton is more it intimate and you do get free breakfast as platinum and above. I also like the Grand, but generally you can get the hotel for 200-250, so not a great redemption value. Any specific questions?

ElevatorEnthusiast

No specific questions - this is helpful, thanks! The GH is at 300 on the night I'm looking at, so basically exactly 2 CPP. I could probably find better but don't have many other Marriott nights I would consider switching in an area with good Cat 4s.

madderlake

Just wrapped up a six night stay - booked a standard King room on points and used a TSU to upgrade into a Grand Suite (View Suites were not avail as it was during the Berlin Film Festival so hotel at capacity). The Lounge wasn't serving breakfast - choices were Vox or room service. We did both during our stay and room service was always delivered within 20-25 min so very convenient. Vox was a bit of a free for all lol. The Lounge did still have afternoon tea (around 3-4pm) and evening wine and snacks (6p-8p). Service was great as always across the board. Let me know if there's any questions!

Kacee

That's a bit odd that they've stopped breakfast in the lounge, especially during such a high demand period. I wonder if there's a staffing issue - that was certainly a big part of the problem with Vox when we were there over New Year's.

madderlake

Yeah I'm not sure if it was temporary due to the film festival or if they've completely changed the policy....

ElevatorEnthusiast

Overall, I enjoyed my stay at the Grand Hyatt Berlin, and I think it's a good hotel. However, there were issues with pre-stay sentiment due to a poorly-worded upgrade email and a subsequent failure to deliver the promised replacement benefit (yes, I didn't ask for it, but if you're going to promise something, you should deliver). I find it ironic that the stay would have been better had they not said anything at all. I'll detail that before hopping into my pros, cons, and photos - again, this is a nice hotel with a good offering, and I think most would be happy here.

Email Saga:

I received the following from the GH the afternoon before my arrival day:

Thank you for your reservation at Grand Hyatt Berlin. We are happy to welcome you soon. I would love to inform you that unfortunately we do not have a Globalist suite upgrade available anymore to allocate, but I would love to ask you if there is anything else we could prepare or arrange to value your Globalist status with us? For example could we offer you a drink in our bar, offer the minibar for free or offer complimentary parking? Please let me know if I could do anything to make your stay even more comfortable for you. May we ask as well what type of welcome amenity we may arrange in your room, would you prefer something sweet, savory or fruity? We are happy to welcome you and if you have any further questions, please do not hesitate to contact us at any time. In case you could give us an arrival time, we would appreciate it.

After checking online and seeing that Junior Suites were still being sold, I responded an hour later with:

Thanks for reaching out! If a suite or other upgraded room happens to open up before arrival, I’d love to be included for consideration, but in case not, I’ll never say no to a drink at the bar. As for treats, I’ll always pick something sweet! I’m staying at the Westin tonight, so I’ll likely walk over and perhaps arrive around 2 PM. On Wednesday morning, my train to Hamburg departs around 10:30 AM, so I’ll have no need for late checkout.

The next morning, I received the following reply (after seeing this, I did check and see that Junior Suites were no longer being sold):

At the moment unfortunately the suite situation did not change, but I have upgraded you to one of our bigger Deluxe rooms with the access to our Grand Club lounge on the 7th floor of course. My colleagues will hand out a voucher for you at time of check in, so that you will be flexible in regards to your drinks. As well we are trying our best to have the room ready at 2pm latest. At the moment the room is still checked in, but I will cross my fingers that the other guest will check out early.

I know some on this forum will disagree with me, but my problems with this exchange, besides the poor translation of "love to inform you", are that 1) it creates a lack of excitement for the stay before it even happens and 2) the supposed "drink voucher" never appeared. Nothing was mentioned at check-in or otherwise, and I didn't want to pull a "you promised a drink voucher" at the front desk as I'm sure the FDA would have thought I was being entitled. Plus, I don't need any more notes in my Hyatt profile to get me on any bad lists.

Pros:

• Was upgraded to a Deluxe King, which was the highest category available online on the day of arrival
• The room is pleasantly designed and reminds me a lot of a cross between the Andaz Fifth Avenue (overall aesthetics), Park Hyatt Tokyo (bedside furniture), and Grand Hyatt DFW (bathroom counters)
• The bed was very comfortable - lovely plush covers (great to see in a Hyatt), just-right mattress, plush pillows
• Shower pressure was very nice and strong + the shower is massive and has full glass (so it still gets steamy)
• Very large walk-in closet
• Desk chair was comfortable
• Despite the missing "drink coupon," the mentioned sweets from the email chain were in my room - some interesting chocolate truffles coated with (some good, some a tad too sour) flavor powders + a chocolate caramel crunch bar I'm keeping as a souvenir
• Grand Club (7th floor) is interesting
  • Afternoon tea is only for 1 hour, but the desserts are massive - full slices of tiramisu and several other dessert choices
  • Evening service did not have any desserts, and I didn't try any of the appetizers (so I can't comment)
  • No breakfast service in the lounge
• Breakfast is only served in Vox (restaurant on ground floor) and starts at 7 AM - not in the lounge or the other restaurant (despite it having breakfast hours)
  • Crispy bacon
  • Made-to-order eggs from the server includes Eggs royale, benedicts, omelets, etc (yummy) - scrambled on buffet
  • Cappuccinos were pretty good
  • Pancakes were fluffy (though a tad savory since they were some sort of brown wheat mix vs. buttermilk)
• 110 V shaver / toothbrush outlet in the bathroom - major win!

Cons:

• Room stayed pretty warm - despite turning the climate control all the way to cold - I had to open the windows overnight and keep the shades open (which meant the sun woke me up far too early)
• No Internet connectivity options on the TV
• Courtyard view is not very private as you could see into my bathroom and bed from the elevator lobby across the courtyard

Notes:

• Somewhat odd interaction at check-in - generally friendly agent asked about my trip so far - I mentioned I had been to Frankfurt - he asked where I stayed, and I replied the Marriott and Westin - he mentioned "oh, so you didn't get to take advantage of your Globalist status?" - I laughed it off and mentioned that I have a lot of statuses to balance - though, later, I looked and there aren't any full-service Hyatt options in Frankfurt - just a Hyatt Place and Hyatt House (where Globalist benefits don't apply for the most part)

Overall, I thought this was a good use of a Cat 4 certificate, and I think many folks would be happy to stay here.

Photos:

exactlyaron

It's interesting that has happened again.

Great review though ElevatorEnthusiast



https://www.headforpoints.com/2022/0...-berlin-hotel/

ElevatorEnthusiast

It was interesting as I don't believe my room had a minibar (just three snacks, but no beverages anywhere despite beverages listed on a menu). I was disappointed that the drink certificates didn't come to bear as the property promised in the email, but if this had never happened (and I got the room I got - I get that suites can sell out), it would be a nice stay. This is a comfortable hotel.

UA-NYC

All sounds like a proactive hotel going above and beyond to let loyal Globs know that they would do a suite for them (one that of course could have been booked in advance with a TSU), but that they aren’t available. And then moved to the best possible room at check-in.

I would have been more direct about my make-good offer vs just waiting for it to show up, but maybe that’s just me.

Just confirms why WOH is the best loyalty program out there bar none!