This Hyatt Centric Times Square New York Review is from our recent stay, between stays at the Andaz 5th Avenue. Hyatt Centric is Hyatt's full service lifestyle hotel brand, which is supposed to be located in prime locations. As a current New Yorker, I hate the Times Square area, with its crowds and traffic congestion, but can understand the convenience factor for those visiting NYC to go to Broadway shows.
While Hyatt Centric isn't luxury, some properties, including the Hyatt Centric Times Square, do participate in the Hyatt Prive program, although a minimum stay of at least 2 nights is required to receive the Hyatt Prive benefits:
- Upgrade at time of booking unless there will be high expected occupancy
- Welcome amenity
- Complimentary daily breakfast for two adults (this includes one main dish, a cold drink and a hot drink per person)
- One $50 hotel credit once during the stay.
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Hyatt Centric Times Square 1 Bedroom Times Square View Suite
The Hyatt Centric's 1 Bedroom Times Square View Suites are on the small side for suites, at only 500 square feet, but have good views, since they're located on the 44th floor or higher and have southeast views overlooking 45th Street and Times Square. Our suite was on the 49th floor.
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The living room includes a sofa bed that Housekeeping made up as a bed for our son, during turndown service. There's also a work desk facing the window, and a large flat screen TV.
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I was more impressed with the bottle of Cabernet Sauvignon Hyatt Prive welcome amenity here than at the Andaz 5th Avenue, where on one occasion the amenity was only a bunch of grapes, and on another occasion there was no welcome amenity (and when I commented on it, we were brought a silly “tips on NYC etiquette” book that we had no use for, as NYC residents–clear by the address on our reservation).
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There's was even a peek-a-boo view of the Hudson River from the corner of the bedroom, although to be sure, most of it is blocked by buildings.
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The bathroom, as to be expected for Hyatt Centric, was more utilitarian than luxurious, with just a single sink and a toilet right next to it. The bathroom did, however, have both a bathtub and a separate glass enclosed rain shower, which we appreciated.
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Bath products were BeeKind, with honey and organic red clover extracts.
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Here's our Hyatt Centric Times Square New York YouTube Video Review:
Hyatt Centric Times Square Breakfast at T45
The T45 restaurant off the lobby serves breakfast from 6am, good for early birds. As Hyatt Prive guests, we enjoyed complimentary breakfast for two daily, which consisted of an entree, a cold drink and a hot drink. Here's the menu:
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On both days we had orange juice and a latte.
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My husband liked his French Toast with berries.
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The California omelet with jack cheese and guacamole was also quite good. Naturally, dishes aren't at the level of the Andaz or a fancier place, but for the Hyatt Centric brand, they were perfectly fine.
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None of us are gluten free, but I was curious about the gluten free pancakes made with almond flour, so I tried them. I definitely would have preferred the bananas to have been cooked inside the pancakes instead of placed raw on top, but the pancakes themselves had a pleasing heartiness to them from the almond flour; they were also quite dense however, and not fluffy at all. They were vastly improved with some chocolate sauce I had from Grom (known mostly for gelato, but also home to a mean hot chocolate in winter).
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Bar 54 Rooftop Lounge and Terrace
Those who aren't in rooms with a good view can head up to Bar 54 for a view of the city lights in the evening (Bar 54 is open from 4pm on) or even for a peek during the morning. At ~10am (check with the front desk for availability and exact time) it's possibly to briefly go up to take in the views from the Bar 54 outdoor terrace, even though the bar isn't open.
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The Verdict
We don't normally stay in Hyatt Centric hotels. But we had a surprisingly good stay, apart from the uncomfortably firm bed, which is typical for Hyatt. The bottle of Cabernet Sauvignon was certainly a better welcome amenity than the no welcome amenity on one of our Andaz 5th Avenue stays, not to mention the bunch of grapes welcome amenity on the other stay. The 1 Bedroom Suite with Times Square View, while small, had a peek-a-boo view of the Hudson River in the distance, and conveniently had a sofa bed for our son and full separation between the living room and bedroom. I liked that there were a couple of power outlets on each side of the bed, convenient for charging our devices.
Breakfast of course was not as good as at the Andaz 5th Avenue, but the omelets and french toast were decent, and the gluten free pancakes made with almond flour were tasty, if quite dense. And our one room service dinner of salmon, after the initial wrong order was brought, was much better than expected.
If you've stayed recently at the Hyatt Centric Times Square, what was your experience?
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