Firewind

+1

BotB

Pictorial Review of London Hyatt Regency ‘Churchill’.

Post -1- of 2 due to image limitations

Absolutely Massive King Sized Bed:



Diamond amenity:



As part of my exploration of Hyatt hotels to see if the hotels and loyalty program would be of interest, I recently booked a paid stay at the London Hyatt (basic room) and used a suite upgrade to see how they compare to other hotel chains I regularly use. I did call the Hyatt number to do the suite upgrade at the same time as booking the room and this worked flawlessly if a bit irritating to have to call a US number internationally from the UK.

The stay, hotel, lounge and staff were all wonderful, very very good. It was definitely up there with some of the best hotel stays I have experienced. ^

Floor plan 7th floor:



Originally, the plan was to stay here as we would be attending the recent BA FT DO in London, however, work and traffic conspired against us so that we arrived quite late in the evening and decided to simply go straight to the hotel and then get something to eat before turning in for the night.

From reading this thread I knew to use the lounge to check in and it seems I had some luck as others were going up to that floor on the same elevator (I didn’t realise that you needed a key card to access those floors at the time!) Anyway, we were checked in quickly by the friendly clerk at the desk once you get out of the elevator (desk with lounge clerks to the left with the business side of the lounge to the left behind the desks and the ‘family’ area of the lounge in a separate area to the right.

I was a bit surprised to have to show some photo ID as we are foreign nationals but living in the UK permanently, the chap explained that this was hotel policy so we obviously went along with it but AFAIK this is only required if you are not a UK resident.

We were soon on our way with our room key to our suite and told that we could have breakfast in the lounges and any other useful bits…

Entrance area: (walk in closet to the right in this photo)



Nice area to place keys, wallets, and dangerously good sweeties along with mirror:



The suite was lovely, a decent size and very nicely appointed. Certainly on par with better quality suites I have stayed at in other chains. I liked the layout with the walk in closet and area to put keys as well as the sweets (which I had to do quality checks for FT of course)…

Now some pictures of the room finally!

Walk in closet / Wardrobe room (off the main entrance area):

Wardrobe shelves, safe and other bits:



Wardrobe with bathrobe, slippers, iron and board as well as umbrella:



Full size mirror and shoe area:



Living / Working Space:

View into room from entrance:



Entrance Desk area:



Close up of Desk:



It seems a new and strange concept to me to see useful office accessories in a hotel room: (but shouldn’t I guess)



iPod radio / dock:



TV, side board with mini bar and table with Nespresso machine, glasses:



Detail:

BotB

Pictorial review of London Hyatt -2- of 2 (due to image limitations)

Bedroom area:

View to living space from bed:



Vanity area: (here misappropriated!)



Detail of bedside table lamp with alarm clock feature:



Bathroom:

View from bedroom into Bathroom:



Lovely oversized separate shower cubicle:

Glass Cubicle:



Shower detail:



Rain shower fixture:



Bath amenities: (Molton Brown, here shampoo, conditioner and body wash) on shelf in shower:



Loo / Bidet:



Full size bathtub: (turn the water on using the lever on the bit in the bathtub, which I would usually think is the overflow regulator…every day is a school day )



I always find it a novel idea that one would watch TV in the bathroom…but hey:



Sink area (the wife was quicker I’m afraid…)



Other bath amenities: (hand soap, mouthwash, body lotion, etc…)



We really enjoyed the incredibly large bed (I had to search for my wife a few times during the night to make sure she was still there it was so big!)

The fixtures and quality in the room was great and we both enjoyed long sessions in the bath and shower with excellent water pressure and hot water along with the nice Molton Brown amenities.

The next day (Saturday) we had breakfast in the lounge (business side) at around 10:00 and although fairly busy we still found a table and had excellent service from the lounge attendants. I appreciate that the breakfast is a continental with some extras but I have to say I liked the Andaz buffet breakfast much more (when staying privately I really enjoy a long and full English breakfast). The atmosphere was pleasant and the tea was even loose tea in proper tea pots with china ^

The selection of breads was good and generally we found enough to get us started for the day.

I do have to say the hotel is quite large and it felt a bit too posh for my personal taste to use every time, however, as a treat once in a while it works for me…YMMV.

I loved the fact that it was close to everything with Oxford street just around the corner.

A lovely hotel, one I could recommend if you like a bit of the classic interiors and high quality.

Hope this review and pictures help others out considering this hotel.

OsakaWino

Thanks for the review and for all the pics, especially the floor plan. I wish I had the floor plan for the 8th and 8th floors as well. Last stayed in the same suite as you, except on the 8th floor.

In future you should be able to contact the UK Hyatt number (0845 888 1234) for DSUs. I never have a problem using the Japan number.

sensei

We recently stayed at the Churchill for the first time, two stays about a week apart. Both stays were terrific. Great location, excellent service, and a nice club. The gym is small, but we found it sufficient for our purposes.

This minimum for the terrace is indeed regrettable. We went down to the bar after dinner one night and just wanted to have a quick nightcap outside and were told in no uncertain terms that there was a 25 pound minimum. It seemed a little tacky, especially considering that at 17 pounds plus tip for a typical drink puts you easily at 40 pounds for a couple. Needless to say the terrace was rather empty. Only after speaking to a manager was the minimum waived and he seemed himself a little unhappy with the policy and noted that the minimum is waived frequently.

sam_goh

Hi All,

We're going to be here in about a month for 5 days at the end of May. Have a suite booked for 2+2 (9+4). Are there particular room numbers/areas we would want to request (am Diamond)?

Open to any tips/hints you guys might have of stuff to do around the hotel. We've only been to London once for a few days, nearly 15 years ago. Reasonable family dining and/or recommendations welcome!

PortlySpartacus

Roti Chai Indian restaurant 2 blocks away, very good food.

RichardInSF

There's a whole bunch of "upscale casual" places on Baker Street, about 5-8 minutes walk away, including chains like Itsu, Toss'd, and (yes) Chipotle. Plus for in-room munchies, the food hall at M&S is only 1 1/2 blocks away.

Avoid food places on Oxford St itself.

tinnub

I have enjoyed The Three Tuns pub, which is around the corner from the hotel. Decent food, beer, and service.

OsakaWino

We much preferred (primality for selection) the food hall at Selfridges, which, if you're into desserts, has big discounts close to closing.

price123

Definitely +1 for Selfridges. There are also some reasonable restaurants in St Christopher's Place (cheapish e.g. Ping Pong)

meducate

All the restaurants that way are good; even the chain restaurants. When the weather is nice you can eat outside...

kkl

London has no shortage of late night food.

OsakaWino

Staying at the Churchill next week and we'd like to stop into a pub in the evening around 9 pm just to experience the atmosphere. Probably just one drink and a nibble, so food quality is not very important, but would like something close to typical pub atmosphere. I guess I'm thinking noisy and crowded with locals, but we also want to stay pretty close to the hotel.

I've seen The Running Footman, The Grazing Goat, and The Three Tuns mentioned above. Any preferences?

Just looking at websites, I noticed that The Grazing Goat has oysters on the menu, and although they might be a bit out of season the first week in May, as my wife loves oysters that is the one I'm leaning to right now.

sam_goh

Thanks for all the suggestions guys. Open to more food suggestions or stuff for kids around.