SHS vs. HyattPlace
 

I admit we don't stay in these brands very often, but in the last month we traveled with one of the kids teams, staying in a Springhill Suites and a Hyatt Place. Hyatt Place wins hands down.

Very similar room layout. Hyatt puts a large L-shaped couch in the living area with a larger than double pull-out. The TV is a 42" plasma on a 10 ish inch deep built in. It swivels toward the bed area or the sitting area. The bathroom and closet area are switched. Lots of counter space (granite) in the dressing/sink area. I love Marriott, but if I have a choice and it is only between these two brands, Hyatt Place wins (unless $15 more).

The lobby was still under construction. Breakfast, nothing new or different. Little sitting areas in the public areas. Decor is kind of "clean line modern" - very comfortable.

The one we stayed at had been an amerisuites, which I would have never picked.

Marriott wins front desk professionalism. The HyattPlace personal were still learning, but did ok. The group coordinator left each kid a bag filled with a variety of snack items, the correct number of bags in each room.

Springfield Suites has some real work to do to compete with this brand.

I havenot stayed at a Hyatt Place so can not compare. I will say that the I really like the SpringHill Suites and have stayed at a couple of them in the Dallas and Tampa areas.

They are a huge step up from a Courtyard and are usually priced the same or slghtly less. The breakfast is pretty solid and included in the price and the internet is always free. The rooms are big enough for my needs and the staffs have always been great.

I now avoid CYs and head to SHS when they are available. May need t give Hyatt Place a shot at some point though

I have only been to one SHS and several CYs in the past 3 years. Based on my experience, I would prefer the newest CYs over an old SHS, which still trumps an old CY.

I like both properties (SHS & HP). If the price difference is only $10-15, I'd lean toward Hyatt Place. They're definitely a significant improvement from the AmeriSuites predecessor. The rooms are superior to SHS (except no microwave at HP) and the 42" HD flat panel TV is quite nice for watching a movie or sports event. But keep the following in mind since your stay was not at a fully converted HP:

Once fully converted, HP pricing goes up significantly making the difference more than $15. Additionally, the new HP breakfast is continental (very nice presentation) with Starbucks coffee. Hot breakfast entrees can be ordered for a price. They also offer some limited food selections after breakfast, but I haven't sampled any of those.

HP is definitely going after a younger, more upscale audience. The lobbies remind me of a Starbucks. But they tend to get congested as the dining/lounging area overlaps with the front desk area -- it can be a little chaotic.

It all depends on what is most important to you.

I was in the SHS in Council Bluffs IA this past week and I swear it was identical to the HP's i've been at.. again kudos to the front desk as well, they were great.

the differences I saw in this property (which was very new) was that coffee is not kept out 24/7 which for me is a big thing, the lobby was almost identical except the bar was not stocked for purchase. The rooms didn't have the L couch but they did have the traditional chair and couch which I actually prefer (I don't like the L Couch) but the HDTV was half the size of the ones in the HP

edited to add.. no charge for waffles

I thought HP was going to position itself up in the Residence Inn category, if not a smidge higher? I wouldn't expect 'em to be pricing head-to-head with SHS. Isn't Hyatt keeping alive another brand for that? (Seems like Hyatt has a bunch of long-stay brands, a couple of which I don't really understand the difference between.)

Anyway, the way HP is being described - at least in the initial materials I've seen - I'd guess they're setting it up to be a $200/nt. kind of place. When I think Res Inn, I think $160-170. When I think SHS, I think $130-150. (Obviously this is a rough generalization based on an average suburban location where these types of properties tend to cluster.)

Does HP actually supply HD programming to the plasmas? I stayed in a FS Marriott a couple weeks ago that had a nice 37" LCD in the room...but the hotel only had SD programming. Kind of a waste...

Hyatt Summerfield Suites is closer to Residence Inn. They have a full refrigerator, range and microwave. Includes hot breakfast.

As to HD content, a few HP properties were slow to get HD content during the transition. Most of them now have HD PPV movies (separate category listing) and many of the satellite/cable channels are HD. Generally, if the station/network offers HD, it should be HD at HP.

I only stayed at one SHS several years ago, but based on that experience I would equate SHS as a long-term stay version of Fairfield Inn and definitely a step down from a Courtyard, with Residence Inn being roughly equivalent to Courtyard, but of course for longer stays. Personally, I avoid both SHS and Fairfield Inn, they are below my minimum acceptable quality of accomodations.

The old Amerisuites were probably one step up from the SHS in general (varying by specific properties of course) and the new Hyatt Place's are a big step up from SHS.

I agree that the new HP's are much nice than the SHS, especially in the room department. I also think the 5K GP points per night cost of some of the converted HP's is not that bad of a deal.

Hadn't noticed that. You are correct given the rates that many HPs are charging. A decent value and use of GP points. I'm going to make a note of that for the future.