Grand Hyatt guest shares experience and travel tip after delayed check-in

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View from the Wing | View from the Wing

By Sky Industry News

Sep 14, 2024

I checked into the Grand Hyatt in Washington, D.C., earlier this week. Or, more accurately, I attempted to check in. There was a long line at the desk but no line for elite check-in. However, there was nobody working elite check-in either.

I shouldn’t have been in a rush to get assistance because I learned that my room wasn’t ready. Check-in time is 4 p.m., and it was already 6 p.m. I was dealing with a trainee who brought over a manager. The manager explained that the guest before me had a late check-out. While late check-outs might extend until 1 p.m., 2 p.m., or even 4 p.m., it was already two hours past the standard check-in time.

I suggested an upgrade to a specialty suite since it was only a one-night stay. The manager responded, “I will credit your account 20,000 points,” and walked away, leaving me with the trainee.

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They took my phone number and promised I would receive a text as soon as my room was ready, which they estimated would be in 20-30 minutes. In my experience, these texts rarely arrive when promised. After waiting for 50 minutes without receiving any notification, I returned to the desk to find out that my room was indeed ready.

The club lounge at this hotel remains closed but is expected to open in November. Meanwhile, they offer breakfast buffet coupons for an unimpressive spread in their basement breakfast restaurant and provide coupons for an appetizer and drink in the main restaurant.

Instead of dining at the hotel restaurant, I opted to order char kway teow from a nearby Malaysian place. This brings me to share one travel tip that has proven invaluable during my travels: always carry plastic utensils.

With less hotel room service available these days, ordering food via DoorDash or Uber Eats often results in meals arriving without utensils. To avoid this inconvenience, I carry plastic forks in my laptop bag at all times—a simple solution that proves useful more often than expected.