SanDiego1K

Thank you, Firewind and rhu171. We ended up going to Din Tai Fung. I love their soup dumplings. We took a taxi there but realized it would have been faster if we had walked, thanks to the one way streets the taxi had to take. Indeed, it was just a 7 block/10 minute walk back.

The hotel sent us to Tai Pan Reflexology on Nathan Road. I was content with its service.

We had a lunch at the hotel restaurant, Hugo. This is their European restaurant. They have a 3 course plus beverage lunch for 380 HKD. Food quality was amazing and service was impeccable. They brought around a cart of appetizers for us to choose all that we wanted. It included shrimp with mango, and foie gras mousse. There were several choices of mains. The dessert was also a trolley and included both sweets and cheeses.

Back to the beginning, I was somewhat apprehensive about my decision to stay here. I don't like small hotel rooms, and all rooms are just 28 or 31 sq m. But I had a cert for a free night that only went to level 4. This hotel ticked that box.

In fact, we had an excellent stay. We rarely stay on Kowloon side, preferring the peace and quiet of Hong Kong Island. One of the last times we stayed in Kowloon was at the long gone Hyatt. It proved to be enjoyable to be able to walk out and within a block or two, find food and shopping. Watches? I have watches. I make you suit. Purses? OK, maybe that part wasn't so great.

We were taken to the lounge to check in. We were offered a deluxe harbor view on one of the top floors, but could have a suite on the 10th floor with no view. The suite was cozy, with a quarter circle sofa in the tiny living room, a desk in the bedroom, and the bathroom at the end. These were in a half circle, and the bathroom could be accessed from the hall or bedroom. It was an efficient design. But we saw the great view from the lounge, and it is possible we would have liked the deluxe room with view as well.

The lounge grew on me. Two of its three rooms had excellent harbor views, with the middle room the best view. Evening appetizers included two hot choices from a menu card. I chose spring rolls. I was given four beautifully prepared ones with sweet and sour sauce. There were two lovely salads on the buffet as well as other foods. It was much more of a meal than I expect from any lounge. Again, for breakfast, we were given a menu card with hot choices. We could have congee made with 1000 year old eggs or a mushroom quiche. There was a list of hot sides including asparagus.

The hotel won me over and we would be happy to return.

LuckDragon

Is one of the properties preferred over the other for a first timer? I will be redeeming points for one room and a diamond suite upgrade/cash for the other. Is one perhaps in a better location or more suited to first time visitors?

mclachlan4321

I like both properties, havnt stayed for a while mind you. The grand is excellent, good location and great views, but higher priced.

The regency is modern, smaller rooms but good location right above a major subway interchange.

carmy

Does anyone know if Diamond members can have breakfast at the restaurant? I ask because the Hyatt Sha Tin only allows breakfast in the club, where it's a pretty weak offering as far as Asian hotels go.

Guy Betsy

I've been told, no.

friedablass

Ok, I've read through the last few pages of this thread (and skimmed the older posts) and I have a couple of questions. Am still trying to decide between this hotel and the Sheraton Towers and would like to get a feel of the layout and room types of the Hyatt.

What is the lowest floor you can have a Harbor View Room at the Hyatt? [How does it compare to the views at the Sheraton, if someone has been to both and can tell me?] How high up does this hotel go - what's the highest floor? I am assuming the higher up you are the better the view will be. However, someone up-thread mentioned that Harbor View Suites don't really have much of a view, other than from the bathroom - I am opting for the Suite, because 31 sqm sounds a bit cramped, so we'd like to have something more spacious, but if there's no view then that's a trade-off.

ahcjar103

stayed at both and i see it as really a preference as to what part of HK you want to stay in. transit makes it easy to get everywhere.

i would consider:
- how long you are going to be in HK
- what you plan to do there and where those things are located
- what the difference in points and cash is between the two hotels and if that matters to you

personally, i like the TST. its cheaper, right on top of an MTR stop, and in a place like HK i'm more interested in spending as much time experiencing the city than fretting about who has the better diamond breakfast.

The_Wrath_of_Khan

I've stayed here before, had an absolutely awesome stay, but I'm wondering if the Grand Hyatt is worth the difference in location and points.

jpdx

The Sheraton is older and can feel depressing, rooms have a poor layout, bathrooms are outdated, it can be crowded with tour groups, etc. That said, SPG Platinum treatment is pretty good; you're practically guaranteed a high-floor harbor view room, full buffet breakfast, and access to a (not memorable) Platinum lounge. If you drink alcohol, it can make sense to use points to upgrade to the Towers level, which includes access to a proper lounge with a great harbor view.

Nothing at the Hyatt matches the harbor view you have from the Sheraton. The Hyatt has two of the standard suites per floor, at the at the ends of the building. Suites have a somewhat odd layout, designed to fit the space available, but not really with a suite feel IMO. The suites facing West will have no harbor view at all (you'll see the Elements mall in the distance). The suites facing East will have some view of the harbor (obstructed by other buildings and billboards), but only on floors 20 and up. The iconic HK skyline views are pretty much limited to the club floor and a few floors below, and even from there, there are significant obstructions.

So if the view matters, a Hyatt suite is not ideal, and the Sheraton is clearly a better choice. I don't particularly like the Sheraton, and actually try to avoid it, but it's not bad value if you have SPG Platinum status (or even if you use points to upgrade to the Towers level). OTOH, the Hyatt feels much more modern and upscale, the lounge is nice, and staff are very friendly. If you're willing to put up with the Sheraton, the rooms aren't any larger than the Hyatt club rooms, so maybe a club room with a view at the Hyatt is the way to go after all...

carmy

Stayed here last week and really enjoyed it. The hotel gave me a room on the 24th floor, the top floor, which had great views of Hong Kong island. Club staff were really friendly, although the food offerings at happy hour isn't enough to pass off for dinner. Having said that, Tsui Wah is just round the corner and there's a bunch of great restaurants all around, so it didn't bother me too much.

Just two gripes. First is that diamonds only allowed to have breakfast in the club lounge. It's ok, but really weak for an Asian hotel. Second is the gym is super, ultra, tiny with a capital T. Hardly any free weights and nowhere to do chin-ups, which is a major nono in my books.

friedablass

Thanks jpdx for your comments.

I am not SPG Plat, only Gold, but I would use points to upgrade to Tower room there. I have no status with Hyatt, but there are several things, including some that you mentioned, that are pulling me to stay at the Hyatt although I really also do want a good view. I stayed at Shangri-la last year and the views were excellent so would love to have that again, but I by far don't have enough points to stay there again this year, while I have plenty of SPG and can trade for Hyatt (or transfer from UR). I guess I can't have everything and will need to settle.

jpdx

I don't know what the rates are for the dates you're looking at, but if the rates for the Sheraton and Hyatt are lower than HKD1800, I would strongly consider paying cash instead of going for a (marginal) redemption. In fact, if the corporate websites show rates in the HKD1800 range, you could probably find a BRG or other low rate in the HKD1300-1500 range. And of course, once you're open to the concept of paying cash, you're open to other options, including the IC Grand Stanford, further up the East TST promenade (past the Shangri-La), which combines some of the best features of the Hyatt and Sheraton, while avoiding some of the problems...

friedablass

Unfortunately, I will be there during a fair week in the winter and the rates begin at HKD2115 at the Hyatt, HKD 2244 at the Sheraton, and HKD2520 at the Grand Stanford. All for the lowest level non-view room. So, in this case redeeming for the room with points makes sense, especially if I want a Harbor View room for which the rates are of course higher than the above rates. A suite at the Hyatt is 23,000 points and the cost of the room would be HKD4150 which in my opinion is a very good points redemption.

RhubarbPie

How generous is this hyatt about platinum upgrades? My parents are staying here in mid-August (1 night is an award, and 2 nights are paid) and right now, a harbor view room for their dates, is like 8-9USD more than a standard room, but its full pre-payment, non-changeable. There is like only a 1% chance their dates would change, but who knows. Is there a decent chance of an upgrade or should I just prepay the room so they have a guaranteed view?

SanDiego1K

They aren't generous about diamond upgrades, so I wouldn't expect them to be generous about platinum upgrades. You have to be on a higher floor in order to get a harbor view. As a diamond this year, I was told that it was my first visit and I shouldn't expect a good upgrade.