Whenever we review an airport hotel, no matter if the place is good or horrible, there will undoubtedly be a comment about how the Grand Hyatt at SFO is the best airport hotel in the country. Opened in 2019, the 351-room hotel is the only one to have a dedicated stop on the Airtrain. That makes it a great place to stay for a quick overnight and not unreasonable for a night in San Francisco as you’re only 30 minutes from the city on the BART.
Earlier this year, Sharon went to the west coast for a weekend trip. The best travel plans were for her to take an evening flight from MCO-SFO with Alaska Airlines. The 7 PM departure would land in San Francisco at 9:55 Pacific Time (almost 1 AM for us east coasters.) It made sense to book the easiest hotel for overnight until she headed to Walnut Creek for the rest of the trip. I suggested the Grand Hyatt at SFO because I’ve read so many positive reviews and it was on the Airtrain.
For the one-night stay, we paid $230. Before the trip, the hotel offered an extended checkout of 3 PM for $30 extra, which we accepted. We’re not Globalists so this is the closest we’ll get to having status. It was a good move as Sharon didn’t check into the room until 10:30 PM, which felt like 1:30 AM. She loves Hyatt’s beds and was able to sleep until 10 AM, getting her adjusted to Pacific time for the rest of the trip.
Grand Hyatt at SFO
55 S McDonnell Rd
San Francisco, CA 94128
The Grand Hyatt at SFO is undoubtedly the easiest hotel to reach from the airport, as it has its own Airtrain stop. Once exiting the train, follow the signs to the hotel escalator.
From there you’ll find an attractive path to the hotel.
While this was the entrance of the hotel, you check in at the lobby which is a bit further down the hall.
I’ll be honest, this is the first hotel where the front desk staff waved when we took a picture of them at work. 🙂
Sharon was assigned a room on the 8th floor.
The hallway was colorful, which is more than can be said for many airport hotels.
Entering the room, there was a large king-size bed, which was way more than Sharon needed.
More importantly, there was a desk and chair, which was helpful in getting work done until the 3PM checkout.
The bathroom was huge, with two sinks and a marble countertop.
The downside was that the controls were at the back of the shower.
The next morning, Sharon realized she didn’t receive the best view. What should she expect as a new World of Hyatt member? (I’m the one with the credit card and status.)
For most of the day, she stayed around the hotel. There is a coffee shop space that was empty during her visit.
There was also a restaurant space.
Finally, there was additional seating past the lobby.
It’s necessary to say that Sharon stayed here in the 1st half of 2022 and California was still rolling back many of its COVID guidelines. Even if the hotel opened up public spaces, many residents were still hesitant to act as if everything was back to normal.
From the pictures, I think the public spaces look fantastic.
When I asked, Sharon said that the majority of the people staying at the hotel seemed to be airline employees on overnights.
While the Grand Hyatt at SFO looks like a great place to stay at the airport, I’m not sure it’s better than the Hyatt Regency Orlando Airport, which is located in the terminal of MCO.
When talking about airport hotels, it’s also hard for any hotel to overtake the TWA Hotel at JFK as the best airport hotel.
Of course, we’ll have to re-evaluate our opinions after spending overnight at Singapore Changi Airport.
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8 comments
Insightful. If the hotel has a club lounge, that would really add value.
Since you mention it, any thoughts on a Changi hotel? My wife and a friend are doing a girls trip in January and I need to put them up somewhere convenient for transit. I was thinking of the holiday inn but any reasonable alternative would work.
I am looking at the Crowne Plaza. We’re spending about a day on a layover and while we’d be able to go into the city, we just want to check out the airport and The Jewel.
There is a club lounge at the Grand Hyatt SFO, with amazing views of the airside. Also not to mention the huge ground floor gym.
We had a good stay at the Munich Airport Hilton this year- the new wing is really lovely and even Gold elite status got us a room in the new wing and free lounge access- high quality light snacks and drinks all day and then a few items out as a dinner buffet- as well as a free breakfast buffet.
Grand Hyatt DFW.
Couldn’t agree more! Grand Hyatt DFW is in the airport at the D gates entrance, boasts awesome runway views and treats Globalists like Kings.
DTW and DFW both have airside airport hotels. The Grand Hyatt SFO actually has food good enough that it’s worth eating there even if you’re not staying (I have when we needed to be in that part of the city), which in my opinion is what sets it apart from other hotels. It also has beautiful art throughout the building.
For impressive architecture, the TWA hotel wins hands down, but the SFO Grand Hyatt and the ORD Hilton win honorable mentions. The ORD Hilton has bad food and disappointing rooms, and the TWA Hotel feels like a Disney attraction. Of the lot, I’d put the SFO Grand Hyatt at the top of the list as best all-around on-airport hotel.
Outside the US, I think the Crowne Plaza at Changi, the Sofitel at Heathrow, the Fairmont at YVR and what used to be the Kempinski at MUC would all be at or near the top of the list for on-airport hotels.
We had a wonderful meal at Hemispheres in the MCO Hyatt Regency. The hotel has its own entrance and I’d eat there again even if we werent staying at the airport. Unfortunately the airport isn’t near anywhere so it’d be an event to travel there.