Grand Hyatt Macau: A Casino Hotel That Felt Like Home
Or what I wish home was like! The final stop on my Bangkok–Pattaya–Hong Kong trip this summer was Macau. I’d briefly visited this historic Portuguese settlement before and really taken to the unusual mix of old Europe, new Vegas, and Chinese influences. And now I’d been hearing wonderful things about the Grand Hyatt Macau, so I was as eager to stay there as I was to come back.
After disembarking from the Hong Kong Ferry and breezing through immigration, we walked out into a madness of giant hotel buses and cabs. A cab to the hotel would be cheap – less than $30 MOP, but I had read there was also a free shuttle bus. If we could only find it.
We finally did, and 20 minutes later (since we were the last stop) we were checking in. They were really busy but we only had a short wait, only to discover we needed to go up to the Club Floor to actually check in. Someone escorted us over to the appropriate elevator and then up to the beautiful lounge that occupies the top floor of one of the towers.
The hotel was sold out when I was booking, but I was able to use my Gold Passport Guaranteed Availability to get a room at the Hyatt Daily Rate. There went my hopes of an amazing suite upgrade for Diamonds (also something I’d heard about) and I was a little worried what the daily rate would be! Gotta love how affordable everything in Macau is – it wasn’t cheap at $245 for the night, but it was, funnily enough, a King suite and it wasn’t the $600 New York-esque prices I’d feared.
The morning we arrived I’d emailed the hotel to see if we could get a room with double beds, somehow having forgotten that I had booked into a suite. I had not received the email yet, but the club concierge was explaining that for an extra $200 HKD we could get a room with two beds. We decided to go for it just to ensure the best possible sleep before our long flights home the next day.
While we were there, we had her also purchase our tickets for the ferry to the airport the next morning to make sure we could sail at our ideal time. I could really get into this whole full service thing! We were offered a variety of beverages while we waited to be checked in.
And since we’d arrived before 3PM, they offered to have our luggage sent to our room when it was ready and make a reservation for us to have lunch somewhere while we waited.
We decided to head to Fernando’s for some authentic Portuguese food (the concierge seemed impressed we knew about it) and in due course returned to the club lounge to claim our keys. Having forgotten I’d originally booked into a suite, I was super excited to discover that we not only had double beds, but a suite as well! (nothing like low expectations).
The living room was fantastic! Lots of seating, lots of light.
A great elevated dining table and coffee/tea making facilities. All in the classic Hyatt minimalism that always (vainly) inspires me to change my own apartment.
The bedroom was spacious enough. I was a little dismayed about the clear glass wall between the shower and the bedroom, but it turned out there was a curtain you could pull down.
The rooms had a great view of the other Vegas hotels, including the Venetian. It also had a great view of the pool, which ultimately changed our plans for the day.
The previous day we’d walked all over Hong Kong and were starting to lag a little bit. It had been an amazing 10 days of travel, full of great massage, but no matter how nice it is, travel (and changing hotels almost every night) starts to take its toll. So we decided to scrap revisiting the historic downtown ( you shouldn’t! It’s really worth seeing) and just enjoy the lovely weather and pool surroundings.
It was so balmy and perfect, that I even regretted having made one last spa appointment (I couldn’t resist 30% off a 5* casino hotel spa treatment that was already at lower Asia prices.) And I was in love with the lounge chairs that were IN the pool.
Then it was time for us to head to the beautiful lounge for complimentary drinks and appetizers. I LOVED this lounge. I love the color choices, I loved the décor, I loved the aesthetic. I know I’m gushing too much but it was just the perfect blend of fancy, simple, and extremely welcoming.
But perhaps the welcoming feeling was the great service from attendants who refilled our wine constantly and encouraged us to the visit the buffet. Because the appetizers = 3 chefs preparing authentic local cuisine as well as a myriad of food options.
The only downside to the whole stay was that because the hotel was sold out we weren’t in the same tower as the club lounge, so it was actually a trek. We were on a high floor, so we’d catch the elevator to the lobby, walk across the immense space to the club tower and then take the elevator up to the top floor. Not a huge deal, but if you’d forgotten anything in the room…
The next morning we returned for an equally appealing breakfast, though only 2 chefs that morning. I amused them when requesting the local noodle dish by asserting I wanted some spiciness.
Definitely a wonderful hotel, particularly at those prices. I might have to try out EVA’s business class (since they serve Dom and fly into Macau) just so I can come back to the hotel!
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Sometimes when you comment, it goes to a blank page and looks like it doesn’t post. It actually does, I promise!
Thanks for sharing this. May I ask what the name of this hotel/casino?
The Grand Hyatt Macau! Will update the title of the post to reflect that.
I like the decor as well. The minimalism is great. Something about that style always makes me feel like I don’t have to clean up so much before having company.
Keri, you actually say view of other “Vegas hotels, including the Venetian”. I was confused. Do you mean “Macau hotels, including the …”