Park Hyatt London Review

I’ve warned you all that we are creatures of habit. Whenever we do something great, Tom immediately wants to figure out if we can do it again. In this case, it was spending Memorial Day weekend in London (to pick up wine). We booked this trip super early, so we used American Airlines miles to fly free at fantastically good rates.

Since we stayed at the Great Scotland Yard last year, we opted to try the Park Hyatt London for this trip. Beyond wanting to try the hotel, we chose the PH London for two reasons: 1) I had a category 1-7 certificate that would expire, and 2) I could use a Suite Night Award at the time of booking to confirm a river view suite for our additional nights. While it’s not the most traditional location for exploring London, we figured that it would work for us since we’ve been to London a few times. Honestly, all things being equal, I would book the Park Hyatt over The Churchill because of the spa and pool (and the soaking tubs). We walked so much, and it was great.

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Tips for Booking the Park Hyatt London

As with the Park Hyatt Paris and the Park Hyatt Milan (and most other high-end Hyatts), you can get the most bang for your buck by booking through a luxury travel agent (like me!). The Park Hyatt London participates in the Hyatt Prive program, which means you can often save on your room rate or get a 3rd/4th night free deal. Additionally, the property offers the following additional benefits:

Getting to the London Park Hyatt

In almost every case (and certainly after this trip), I’m more likely to take the Heathrow Express into London than a cab. While this isn’t the most glamorous arrival experience, London traffic is truly terrible. Given that we were traveling heavy on this trip, we opted to grab a cab from Paddington Station to the Park Hyatt. That journey, in the late afternoon, still took almost an hour. It took about 30 minutes to get to Paddington when we were heading home.

I would expect private transport from LHR to the Park Hyatt London River Thames to run about 1.5 hours. We’ve used private transportation for a couple of trips to London. It’s always a comfortable experience, but traffic is traffic.

If we had been traveling lighter (read: no extra wine storage), I would have just opted to take the bus from Paddington Station. While not always quicker, the designated bus lanes can sometimes make for a smoother journey. Vauxhall is an easy walk from the hotel and it’s pretty flat for transporting luggage.

Park Hyatt London Rooms

We stayed in two rooms over the course of our stay in London. Though I was not super excited to change rooms, it ended up being fairly seamless. Both rooms were fantastic. They are huge for London, and they have every upscale detail that you’re looking for in a luxury hotel. We loved that they offered a variety of wine glasses in both rooms. The mini bar had enough room to store some of the provisions we purchased for our picnics.

The design of the Park Hyatt London is completely different than the Park Hyatt Paris. The rooms are far more modern and streamlined. Certain design elements feel more like the Park Hyatt Milan, but still completely different. (Ultimately, I realized that the London property reminds me of a Mandarin Oriental.) You could be happy in both of these rooms – if you want to be.

The blackout shades are a game changer, especially during the summer when London days are LONG and the nights are short. (I do think that the corner king room had a slightly better view of traditional London than the suite on a higher floor.) It was very quiet; we rarely saw other guests. Housekeeping and turndown service were perfect – almost invisible. We never had to ask them to come back or wait.

Room 906 – Corner King Room

Because our stay was booked on a couple separate reservations, we did have to change rooms throughout our stay. Our first room was in a corner king river view room with 180 degree views of the Thames River. While I am sure that the design of this room will be controversial to some, I thought it was really well designed.

You enter through a hallway, walk through the bathroom, and enter the bedroom. (There is a very separate W/C.) The closet is accessible from both the bedroom and the bathroom. Our bathroom had a marble soaking tub and separate walk-in shower. Water pressure and hot water were both good. Bath amenities are Blaise Mautin, similar to the Park Hyatt Paris, but the scent was developed specifically for the London property.

This king room felt more like a junior suite to me. We had a small sitting area, including a table and two chairs, and a chaise lounge, all with river views. The mini bar and tea service was housed in an armoire, which I prefer (rather than having everything sitting out). The clean lines of the room and the high ceilings made it feel extra spacious. While the design was not overly memorable or branded, it definitely had a more defined character than The Churchill.

Our king bed, as expected, was incredibly comfortable with soft linens. Where this hotel shines, much like the Park Hyatt Paris, is its exceptional blackout curtain system. It’s entirely electric and offers varying levels of shade. When everything is closed, it’s dark and quiet, which is the best way to sleep. London summer days are long. It can be hard to get on a “normal” sleep schedule. The blackout curtains help tremendously. I also loved being able to control the amount of sunlight in the morning. (Generally, I wake up earlier than Tom – so we were able to have the best of both worlds with a little bit of natural light.) I would love to get something like this installed at home. There were plenty of outlets around the room – just don’t forget your UK plug converters (different than US/EU plugs).

Our corner room offered slightly better views than the suite. It also had all the same upgraded amenities as the deluxe suite. The difference really comes down to the amount of space that you want or require. We found both rooms to be very comfortable.

Room 1407 – Deluxe Suite with River Thames View

Originally, when I booked the Park Hyatt London, I confirmed out suite night award for a river view suite. When we added nights, they weren’t able to confirm the upgrade, so we moved rooms during our stay. I’m really glad that we had the suite for the second half of our stay. When I walked into the suite, I finally realized that the design reminded me of the Mandarin Oriental, and that’s why I loved it so much.

Our deluxe suite had 2 separate rooms and 1.5 bathrooms. We had a small table and a large sitting area overlooking the Thames. In both rooms, we loved how bright and airy it was. The room wasn’t cluttered and it was easy to close off things that might make it feel cluttered. We ended up having a picnic in our room on more than one evening because we found some great wines that we wanted to enjoy. (Hullo 1998 Fanti Brunello di Montalcino!) The couch was very comfortable. I really appreciated that there were separate controls for the AC between the living area and the bedroom.

In the bathroom, I loved the clawfoot tub and it was nice to have dual sinks. (I would add some bath salts or bubble bath for this bathtub with a view though!) The closet was huge with plenty of storage, and there was a second armoire in the living room. There is a pocket door that separates the bathroom from the bedroom, and it makes it very easy to keep the bedroom cool and dark in the evenings. Similarly, the bedroom offered a solid door between the living area, making it easy to keep the bedroom extra quiet.

Overall, I think the biggest difference between the two rooms (aside from space) is the suite had some elevated finishes that made the room feel extra special. It had so much more character than most hotel rooms I’ve had in London, too.

Park Hyatt London Spa

Okay, I’m not saying that I booked the Park Hyatt because it has a pool and spa, but I’m not saying I didn’t think about that. This is the first London hotel with a spa that I’ve stayed in. I think the Kensington Close had a pool, but it is no longer… so there is no point in talking about that. (I doubt that there are that many hotels with a pool in London… and definitely not one this big!)

Located on the first floor, the Park Hyatt London spa is just as bright and airy as the rest of the hotel. The pool is HUGE. And, there are separate sauna areas for men and women. The sauna was HOT. Usually Tom and I can do 3 sessions in a sauna before wearing ourselves out. It was 1-and-done for us at the Park Hyatt, and it was fantastic.

The pool is open from 7:00am-9:00pm with a few hours set aside specifically for family swimming. I think that is always a nice touch for everyone. We enjoyed going down to the pool in the morning for a swim before starting our day and we ended most of our days with a swim. The fitness room is open 24 hours a day. (Hyatt has a partnership with Peleton, which I think is cool… though I rarely bring my Peleton shoes.)

Treatments at the Park Hyatt London

Since our visit to London coincided with the end of school, I decided to book a spa treatment to reward myself. Perhaps un-ironically, I booked The Healer Burnout Treatment. I was definitely split between that and the Brain Mind Body detox and the Fatigue Fighter though. Honestly, can I book them all back-to-back for a hard reset?

Anyway… the treatment was very nice, and I received 20% for booking a treatment that was longer than 90 minutes. It reminded me a bit of the Citrine spa treatment at the St Regis Florence, but it included infrared blanket therapy. It was very relaxing and I found myself falling asleep during the massage. I considered adding another treatment afterwards, but it didn’t work with our schedule.

Breakfast at The Nine Elms Kitchen

When we checked in, the front desk staff explained that we could have breakfast at the Nine Elms Kitchen on the first floor – or we could order room service for a small delivery charge (5£). I really appreciated this transparency. The ability to order room service as part of the breakfast amenity is something that changed post-2020, but it’s never clear whether its included. Ultimately, we decided to go down to the restaurant for breakfast so we could see the full range. Breakfast at the Park Hyatt London might be the best of any Park Hyatt we’ve stayed at yet. We don’t typically eat breakfast, but we did try it out one morning.

There is an extensive continental breakfast buffet that includes pastries, Asian delicacies, charcuterie, fruits and vegetables, and more. You can also order a hot item, made to order, which I appreciate. They had many traditional English breakfast items, Asian dim sum breakfast, and American favorites (waffles and French toast). There is truly something for everyone. We ordered eggs and a variety of meats. Everything was outstanding and perfectly prepared. I really liked all of the charcuterie options, though I was disappointed they only offered pasteurized cheeses, lol.

Overall, if you’re a breakfast person, you’ll probably really enjoy the breakfast at the Park Hyatt London. (It was far superior to breakfast at The Churchill and even the Great Scotland Yard, as far as freshness goes.)

Final Thoughts on the Park Hyatt London

The Park Hyatt London is an approachable luxury hotel at a fair price point in a very expensive city. While a lot of people criticize the location, we didn’t mind it. It’s connected via the tube and by bus. To that end, I think it pushed us to explore different areas of London. Since this wasn’t our first trip to London, we didn’t mind the location. The hotel is adjacent to the Little Portugal neighborhood and there are a lot of interesting restaurants within a 15 minute walk. There is also a Tesco and a Sainsbury. It is a quiet, residential neighborhood, not a tourist hub in London.

One afternoon, I took the underground to Belgravia, Sloane Square, and Knightsbridge to shop… and Tom went to Mons Cheesemongers to pick up some French cheese for dinner. (Mons is fantastic!) We both arrived back at the hotel around the same time, and then we walked over to Pimlico to pick up some charcuterie. We loved Delizie d’Italia! They were so kind and the food was delicious. (They also have a selection of hot foods that you can eat in or take away.

When we go back, I would be very interested in booking a wine tasting at TAMISe. London has access to some fantastic wines, and I would love to see what they would share. We did a Rhone Valley wine tasting at Berry Bros & Rudd, and it was incredibly informative. I’d love to do more wine tastings in London, and I know several of the luxury hotels offer them – along with extensive and interesting wine lists!

Overall, I think the Park Hyatt is perfect for the traveler who doesn’t mind public transportation (or walking miles and miles), wants a spa or pool. and is looking for an elevated stay.