Review: Penthouse Suite at the Manchester Grand Hyatt San Diego

Over a year ago, I stumbled on an amazing rate that Extreme Hotel Deals posted on their site for the Penthouse Suite at the Manchester Grand Hyatt San Diego. Bookable directly through Hyatt, the rate was $219 for any room type that was available. So, I choose the Manchester Grand Hyatt Penthouse Suite. I was happy when the hotel didn’t contact me or anything about the rate, and there were no bumps along the way.

Check In:

Arriving at the porte-cochère, I was a bit disappointed to see the temporary lobby still outside (This was labor day weekend)! On my stay at the hotel the month before in August, I was told that the renovation would be complete and I was excited to see the new lobby. Oh well.

The day of arrival, I used the mobile check in to note our estimated arrival time at 3pm. After doing so, we got a text welcoming us to the hotel and that they would be expecting us at our desired arrival time (standard check in is at 4pm). We checked in to the hotel around 3:30pm and were quickly helped by Ralen at the front desk. He quickly got us checked in and said that our room was going to be amazing!

Was the room amazing? Yes!

Our room was on the 31st floor of the Harbor Tower and it was on the corner of the tower thus providing almost a 270 degree view of the harbor and city. The Grand Hyatt Penthouse Suite is a one bedroom suite with 1,450 square feet of space. I think that pictures don’t really do the room justice!

Entry:

Upon entering the double doors, there was a foyer with a powder room located on the left. The power room had a weird toilet placement as the sink cabinet was too large and infringed on the toilet area making it a bit hard to use. A minor inconvenience.

Living + Dining Area:

Then, the room splits off to the living + dining area on the left and the bedroom on the right.

The living area had a desk, as well as a large sofa that turned into a pullout bed for one. There was also two chairs. A 65 inch TV was in the living area and the large dining table for 6 was right across. The floor to ceiling windows gave the room a lot of natural light and spectacular views of the city. Simply breathtaking.

“Kitchen”:

Next, there is a small “kitchen” like area with a full sized fridge, sink and a microwave. A Nespresso Machine was provided as well as tea bags. Oddly enough, there were no mugs of any kind in the room. Only paper cups. I would have wished the room to be a bit more stocked with some plates and cups. Only two sets of plates were provided as well as two cutlery servings. 

Bedroom:

On the other side of the room, the bedroom itself had a nice king sized bed. I had a rollaway bed set up in the living room and it was very comfortable, much up to Grand Hyatt standards. 

In the bedroom, there are two bathrooms. First, the one on the right has only a standup shower. Next, other larger bathroom on the left has both a jacuzzi tub as well as a shower that is handicap accessible. I loved how both bathrooms had amazing views of the city.

All bathrooms came with June Jacobs toiletries, and each was stocked with Listerine mouthwash and a small toothpaste. 

Unfortunately, the major complaint of the room would have to be the noise. It may have to do with the faulty window not closing completely, but it felt like just poor insulation in general. Whenever a motorcycle would rev its engine, the room would be very loud and train movements can be felt 31 stories up!

All the lights and drapes were controlled electronically which was nice and convenient. The opening of windows was electronically controlled as well, but it was faulty and left one of the windows cracked open.

More Views:

Amenities:

I checked out the main outdoor pool area at night on the 4th floor in between the Harbor + Seaport Towers. The pool closed at 10pm and they shut off all the lights by 10:30pm.

There’s a large fitness center inside the Harbor Tower, and it even had two Peloton bikes (my favorite!). There were plenty of free weights, treadmills and other machines. A really good setup for a hotel gym.

Destination Fee:

Sadly, it seems like every hotel these days are tacking these “resort fees” on! Here, it’s $25 per night and some highlights of which include:

• $10 nightly food & beverage credit (valid only Top of the Hyatt and Grand Lobby Bar)
• One Craft Beer (valid only at Brew30 California Taps)
• High speed premium internet
• 24 hour fitness center access
• Rollaway Bed Rental (which I used on this trip!)

And parking is going to run you $35 for self, or $49 for valet.

Location:

The location is pretty good right in Seaport Village, right on the marina where there are a nice selection of shops and restaurants. Additionally, it is only about a mile from the Gaslamp District (food + nightlife). A cool service that they have in San Diego is FRED, where an electric go kart like vehicle takes you around for free around the city. It works just like Uber where you request a ride and input your pickup and destination. I tried getting a ride at 6pm and it said FRED was full and unavailable, but when I tried again at 8pm I got one! It did take 25 minutes before the FRED came, but it was nice. I’ve heard it’s a hit or miss, but definitely worth a shot for a free ride!

The Verdict:

Overall, it was certainly nice to try out the Manchester Grand Hyatt Penthouse Suite. I had a great experience and I hope another opportunity will come up for me to try it again.

Have you stayed at the Manchester Grand Hyatt San Diego? What were your thoughts?

Happy travels,

Ty

Have any questions? Comment below or email me at takeofftotravel@gmail.com. You can also view all my other posts here! Thanks for stopping by!