I have stayed at the Manchester over a dozen times the last decade (dating back to its single tower days) and have experienced a recurring pattern: I will love ceratin aspects of the stay while other aspects leave me wondering why I always choose to return. My stay last week was no different.
I arrived at 3:00p in the afternoon after dealing with heavy Friday traffic all the way from Mission Veijo to downtown San Diego. There were five agents on duty and no line. I was warmly greeted by a middle-aged man and thanked for being a Hyatt Platinum after providing my last name. A corner room was provided, but I had reserved a room with two beds–corner rooms generally only have a single bed. I was reassigned a room on the 25th floor of the Harbor Tower and received a personalized letter highlighting the Platinum amenities at the hotel–free internet and free access to the fitness center (fitness center access is actually offered for free to all Hyatt Passport members).
Magnificent lobby
The room was disappointing. Although the beds looked comfortable (and were), the room was drably furnished and small. The prints on the wall were faded. The bathroom was even worse, with stained tile floors and wallpaper that was about 20 years out of fashion.
On the other hand, the fitness center is modern and top-notch. I always schedule in time for a workout when staying at the Manchester and proceeded immediately down to the fourth floor to get in a workout prior to dinner. The gym was fairly crowded, but there was no wait to use the machines I wanted. I apologize for the lack of gym pictures. I snapped a few with my iPhone, but accidentally lost them the next day when upgrading my software to 4.0. The comprehensive fitness center features a wide variety of free weights and resistance machines as well as many treadmills, bikes, and elliptical machines for cardiovascular work.
Pool at dusk
After my workout the plan was to have dinner at Grant Grill, inside the downtown U.S. Grant hotel, using a restaurants.com gift certificate I had obtained from United. On the way out the door, though, I wandered by Lael’s, the hotel restaurant. On Friday evening Lael’s offers a “surf and turf” buffet featuring a prime rib station, made to order pasta, a variety of fish and seafood, delectable soups and salads, and a wide-range of desserts. We decided to postpone our meal at Grant Grill and enjoyed a sumptuous meal at the hotel. At $25.99, it was a steal and much tastier than a Vegas buffet.
Lael’s Restaurant
Contentedly filled after a leisurely meal, we took a stroll through the economically-depressed Seaport Village, adjacent to the hotel. I have fond childhood memories of ice cream cones, toys, and magic tricks at Seaport Village, but sadly the tourist trap seems to be a shadow of what it once was.
Back in the hotel room, now a little after 8:00p, we decided to take it easy for the rest of the evening and veg out for a while. But there was a problem: no remote control. Who steals a LodgeNet remote? After carefully combing the room, I called downstairs to request a new remote. I was promised a new one would be promptly delivered and resorted to walking up to the tube and using the buttons affixed to the TV in the meantime. How very 1950s…
Two hours went by and still no remote. 30 more minutes passed and still no knock on the door. Everyone was tired, so I dialed guest services and crisply stated, “We’ve been waiting more than 2.5 hours for a remote control, but please don’t deliver it now; we’re going to bed.” The girl on the other end, taken aback, responded only with “ok.”
Views from the room at night of the city and pool below
The following morning I called guest services again about the remote and an additional set of towels. This time, both items were promptly delivered. But there was a problem with the bath towel. Apparently, the bellhop shined his shoes with it before delivering it to us.
The tradition in my family is to go next door to the Marriott for breakfast at L.C.’s. They’ve always had an impressive buffet, featuring extras like three varieties of the Naked Juice and homemade müseli that set it apart from other breakfast buffets. It was my first breakfast there since New Year’s Day in 2009 and I am sad to report that there has been a cutback in the scope and quality of the buffet (including my Naked Juice) and a rather hefty price increase. The food wasn’t bad, but we won’t be returning.
We had an evening dinner party in Los Angeles to get to, so we packed up and departed after breakfast. I intended to complain about the dirty towel and lack of remote control when checking out, but there was a huge line downstairs so I used one of the self-service kiosks instead.
I like the Manchester Grand Hyatt. The pool, fitness center, and Lael’s are all perks. But, the room is mediocre and the hotel always seems like it is crowded—though with multiple convention halls and two 25+ floor towers, that is to be expected. I would never let something like the lack of a TV remote control ruin my stay, but it was disappointing that Hyatt dropped the ball.
Let me add one more positive aspect about the hotel: the location is ideal. You can easily walk to the ball park, Gaslamp Quarter, and Horton Plaza. If you want to go further and leave your car behind, the trolley stops right outside the hotel and can take you just about anywhere you want in the San Diego area, including the border, Old Town, and Fashion Valley.
BTW, I liked these ads displayed throughout the hotel for the 40th floor bar in the Harbor Tower. Very classy.
Dear Matthew,
Thank you for reviewing our property. I am thrilled that you enjoyed your stay with us overall and were able to take advantage of some of our amenities offered on property. I want to apologize for the missing remote and dirty towel that was delivered to your room. I have addressed this issue with our Housekeeping Managers to ensure similar incidents will not happen moving forward. In addition, you’ll be happy to hear we are in the planning stages for a complete room renovation.
Again, we appreciate the feedback as it helps us to constantly improve our operations and service. We hope to see you back again soon.
P.S. – Thank you for the nice compliments on our marketing materials for Top of the Hyatt.
Best Regards,
Kristin Spitz
Electronic Sales & Marketing Manager
Manchester Grand Hyatt San Diego
This review is accurate. The property, facilities and location of the M.G.H. are exceptional. But the rooms woefully outdated in comparison to other leading hotels in the gaslamp quarter area. I only stay here when my company arranges it. If I travel privately, I always choose the Omni.
@Kristen: Thanks for you comments. I appreciate you reading my review and addressing my two issues with Housekeeping. I look forward to returning again to the Manchester.
@David: I don’t know if I would go so far as to say “woefully outdated”, but I will concede that the rooms in the new Hilton and OMNI are much more modern.
The OMNI is a nice hotel, especially if you want to go to a Padres game, but the rooms are small and the fitness center is not as comprehensive as the Manchester.
I have stayed at this property since my family is in San Diego and I’ve been searching for a good Hyatt in the area.
The grand club has great views of the Coronado Bridge and the bay. The food spread is slightly above average for a domestic Hyatt.
Like the other Hyatts I’ve stayed at in San Diego, this property is a waste of a diamond suite upgrade. I haven’t tried the new Park Hyatt yet but their suite offering looks nice online, and the typical diamond upgrade room (without a suite upgrade) would be considered a “suite” at some domestic Hyatts.
I didn’t particularly appreciate the extensive collection of photos of prominent conservative politicians on the first floor, and would have felt similarly had they been from the other party. IMHO not the right venue for this type of photo collection.
IIRC the turn down service included a free bottled water – a nice touch.
Great review Matthew, and I’m glad the hotel staff read it and seem to take it seriously. Hopefully the additional insight I’ve added will be of some value to others.
@HunterSFO: Thanks for your comments. I upgraded to the club level once a couple visits ago and agree that the view is nice from the lounge and the spread is good. I wish I would have taken pictures during that visit…
That new Park Hyatt in Carlsbad looks very nice. I am thinking about using one of my “Welcome Back” free nights to try it out.
After reading Lucky’s recent review of the Park Hyatt in Seoul, I really want to try out some Park Hyatt’s. I have stayed at one Park Hyatt (no longer a Park Hyatt)–the Hyatt at the Bellevue in PHL–and I wasn’t all that impressed with the service. Of course, I only have Plat status.
@Matthev – Regarding compensation at Hyatt for your Manchester Grand stay – I generally call the Hyatt Diamond line and pick “customer service” instead of “reservations.” You’ll get a “consumer affairs agent” who will take down the details of your complaint and follow up with the property. Shortly after that they call you back and try to explain what happened and what steps they are taking to make sure it doesn’t happen again. I almost always get offered Hyatt points equivalent to what it would cost to book an award night in the property in question’s category. The other route is to go through your Personal line agent. I have so few complaints though that I haven’t had any problems since I was assigned to her.
@HunterSFO: Great advice. I’ll let this stay slide since it’s been over a month, but next time will follow your recommendation.
I am currently sitting in room at the Manchester. I called twice, many hours before arriving to ensure my room would available. Corner King, club level. When I arrived, “Basel” at the front gave me a long elaborated story of a recent upgraded reservation system and how I was listed as sharing my room with someone. He gave me a differnt club room. When I go to m room, it was not a king, not a corner. I called front desk, they switch me to corner king. I ask to confirm the new room would be what I initially reserved. I was assured it was. Wait in line at front desk again, explain again to front desk person. They just defend Basel’s actions. I get to new room, not club level, not what I initially reserved. This is not my first dealing with a hotel doing this. I called twice, once to hotel and once to the 1-888 number to make sure this would not happen. It did.
@Justin: Sorry to hear about your poor experience. Maybe you can ask for Ms. Spitz (see first comment above) to look into your issue.