Hyatt House Denver Airport review (seems they weren’t even kidding about the ‘house’ thing)
Despite having absolutely no idea what a “Hyatt House” was, I didn’t hesitate for an instant when booking the reservation. The location seemed perfect, and the price was right, so why not? It looked more than ideal for a simple overnight stay with easy access to the Denver International Airport (DEN).
For those of you with no interest in reading the entire review, just know this: My suspicions were correct. It was very clean, very convenient, and quiet. Also, you’ll be missing out on one hell of a nerdy (and fun!) review if you don’t keep scrolling…
A full review of my 1 night stay at the Hyatt House Hotel at the Denver Airport
Curiosity got the best of me a few days after making the reservation, and I found myself doing some research to figure out what the “House” sub-brand was all about. Long story short, this is Hyatt’s line of extended-stay properties that have a bit of a social / communal flair sprinkled in.
To put it in better context, it’s basically the opposite of their more upscale properties (such as the Grand Hyatt at the Incheon Airport in Seoul).
Location
The Hyatt house at the Denver International Airport is located just off airport property (18741 E 71st Ave.). At the time of this writing, it’s the closest hotel to DEN (although there is a hotel directly connected to the airport). It’ll take approximately 10 minutes to reach via the free shuttle bus which runs once every 30 minutes.
The lobby (and checking in)
The very first thing I thought of when walking through the front door on my way to the reception desk was “cheap”. Not cheap like “Motel-8 cheap.” but more like “IKEA cheap.” You know…stylish but kinda half-assed. It wasn’t a bad feeling though, and the staff was more than friendly and went out of their way to greet me and to make sure I had everything I needed to be comfortable.
Except when I found out that I had to pay $17 to park my rental car overnight. That part sucked.
Getting to my room
This isn’t a very large property. The walk from the reception desk to the elevator takes all of 30 seconds. 40 seconds if you pause to take a look at the self serve market adjacent to the reception desk (full of snacks, drinks, and basic essentials).
The room (it was more of an apartment really)
That feeling of ‘cheap’ lingered with me all the way to the door of my room, thanks in large part to the dull and dreary corridors slathered in typical budget-hotel finishes.
Thankfully, I was pretty much blown away as soon as I stepped into the room. Scratch that. This wasn’t a room. It wasn’t even a suite. It was a full-blown apartment with a full-size kitchen with a separated bedroom and bath. Very much unexpected, and very nice!
It’s worth noting that this kitchen is fully stocked with silverware and dishes. And paper towels, and dish soap, and salt and pepper shakers. And a coffee machine! Basically, this is gobs better than the kitchen in my room at the Home 2 Suites in Grand Blanc, MI not too long ago (which I thought was pretty awesome at the time).
The bedroom
The bedroom is really small, but you know what? It doesn’t matter when the kitchen is so big. This room featured a bed (looked to be queen size) with one night stand, dresser drawers, two lamps, and a flatscreen TV on the wall. And a mirror. And a telephone. Four pillows too!
The bathroom
I didn’t get my tape measure out, but the bathroom looked to be almost as big as the bedroom. Best of all, it was brightly lit with plenty of room for any kind of frolicking you may feel inclined to do when you’re all alone in a bathroom of this size.
The view
Because this hotel is located so far away from the city (and the mountains) you’re not going to see much other than urban sprawl. FWIW, I first stayed in this property 10 years ago, and the area around this property has been built up a lot since then.
Pros and cons
While certainly not the nicest airport hotel I’ve ever stayed at, the Hyatt House at the Denver Airport was certainly one of the most comfortable. Perhaps the most comfortable considering it was basically an apartment. I felt right at home here, thanks in large part to the full size kitchen and large squishy couch in the main room.
Hyatt Houses very nicely-designed properties (very similar to the Aloft chain of hotels), and feature open spaces and lounges focused on promoting social gatherings. I’m about as introverted as it gets, so none of these “social” features are very interesting to me . However, I can certainly understand how intriguing it would be to road warriors who crave social interaction when traveling.
Pros:
- Very convenient location if you need easy access to the airport. At the time of this writing, it’s the closest non-attached Hotel to the Denver Airport.
- What’s not to like about a hotel room that feels like an apartment?
- The full-size kitchen makes this an excellent place to stay for an extended period of time.
Cons:
- $17 for parking? Seriously?
- The walls are a bit thin, so RIP to your precious beauty sleep if you get stuck next to noisy neighbors.
- It’s not very close to the mountains (or Denver) so don’t go booking this place as the base camp for your big ski trip.
