My mental model of Maui is that the better restaurants are mostly clustered in the towns closer to the airport like Kihei or Wailea. There are plenty of big resorts in Lahaina, like the Marriott and the Westin and the Hyatt Regency, but that the food offerings were middling at best. And even the better Maui restaurants offered fantastic views but food that wouldn’t be as impressive if you weren’t in a beautiful location on holiday and certainly wouldn’t impress at the price point in other cities. I discovered Aloha Mixed Plate on a visit to Maui in 2009. Mind you, it isn’t the world greatest food or service though the food is good. What it does offer is reasonably authentic local food, in an open air setting on the water (though somewhat obscured by…
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Review: Hyatt Regency Maui
Yesterday I wrote about how I wound up staying here, and why my Deluxe Ocean Suite was free. I was originally booked at the Andaz, an the opening date for the hotel was changed so my reservation got split — one night at the Hyatt Regency, two nights at the Andaz. The Director of Rooms promised me a suite upgrade as an apology Then the opening date for the Andaz changed again, so I had to get moved twice. So they comped a stay at the Regency instead — and since that’s clearly a downgrade, and I was to be in a suite at the Andaz, they gave me a suite at the Hyatt Regency Maui as well. And since Hyatt Gold Passport Diamond members aren’t even charged the resort fee there, I was going…
The New Hyatt Place Would Be the Best Hotel at LAX If Only I Could Be Confident in Their Airport Shuttle
Basic principles. You want the airport hotel connected to the terminal if there is one. Otherwise you want the one that’s newest or at least most recently renovated, since airport hotels disproportionately accommodate one night stays and wear faster. Beyond that a decent on-site restaurant is nice, especially when the property doesn’t have nearby walking options, and price is going to influence choice — the Grand Hyatt DFW is an exceptional hotel but it’s often so much more expensive than other Dallas airport hotels that it becomes tough to choose. Historically I’ve picked the Sheraton LAX for a Los Angeles airport overnight. It’s certainly showing wear but the rooms are decent, the restaurant is pretty good, and there’s a Starbucks in the lobby. There’s a (mediocre) club club and a nice pool area. But the…
The Andaz 5th Avenue — and How Hotels Choose What Room Types to Use for Upgrades
Another blogger emailed me for my thoughts about upgrades at the Grand Hyatt Tampa, a property I’ll be visiting in September for the first time for Frequent Traveler University. He was frustrated because the hotel confirms upgrades (using Diamond confirmed upgrade certificates or points) to a room type that is better than the base-level suite. There weren’t any of these rooms available during his stay. There were lesser suites, he would have been happy with one, but they weren’t initially made available to him. He pushed and apparently an exception was made. Nonetheless he felt that the hotel was being less generous than they should be, not allowing confirmed upgrades into their base suite (which are more plentiful than the room category they do assign). I thought this was an interesting take, and one which…
Review: Grand Hyatt Singapore (Upgrade to a Duplex Suite) and Hotel Pickup #FAIL
Last year I stayed at the Grand Hyatt Singapore and really enjoyed it. If you want to be on Orchard Road it’s a great option. Singapore is a very tough hotel town, lots of good hotels but only a few that are close to great — and even the good ones can be pricey. So the ability to leverage elite benefits or points can be a strong benefit. I booked a discounted paid rate and confirmed my upgrade in advance. Hyatt allows Diamonds to confirm upgrades to suites at time of booking (subject to availability) 4 times per year for up to 7 nights each time. And they allow all members to use just 6000 points to confirm an upgrade of up to 4 nights if paying the ‘Hyatt Daily Rate’. The standard upgrade here…
An Introduction to Singapore Hawker Centers – How They Work, and Which One is Best for You?
Singapore is one of the world’s best food cities, both at the high and low end of the spectrum Hawker centers are one of the primary reasons that Singapore — far from just being ‘a stopover’ — is one of my favorite cities in the world. What are Hawker Centers? Hawker centers are basically food courts which host a variety of providers, each of which usually specializes in one or just a few dishes. Because there are many providers, many of whom make the same or similar things, competition is intense. The best, then, become very good. The dishes are usually cheap. Singapore is known for the hawker center, and the government owns the facilities — originally they were a move towards centralizing the food stalls and ensuring hygiene. More recently they’re supported to preserve…
San Diego is a Great Town for Sushi.. and Dessert
The Gaslamp district of San Diego is great, lots of things to do, it can be fun. But though there are tons of restaurants, the point of those restaurants is something to do (and of course, like the Checkers commercials say, ‘Ya Gotta Eat!’). On the one hand it means there’s competition – but it’s mostly competition for fun and a scene. So if you want to eat well, you need to choose carefully. I much enjoyed Taka for sushi. Online reviews were good, and it turned out to be better than expected though not at all inexpensive (you’ll pay extra for something to be good in the Gaslamp area, I think, the rents are relatively high). There’s a menu of specials and their list of sushi and sashimi I decided to add their live…
The Best View from Any Airline Lounge, Anywhere: Review of the Premier Lounge – Denpesar, Bali
The best planespotting is probably from the fence off the beach at the end of the runway at Princess Juliana International Airport, Saint Martin. Close behind would be sitting down at the outside tables at the In ‘n Out Burger at the edge of LAX. The best view from any terminal has to be the airport in Bora Bora. Like many of the airports in the Maldives you approach by boat. But instead of sailing to the island which houses an airport, the Bora Bora airport is simply its own small island (motu). And the waters are indeed stunning. But here I’m interested in the very best view from an actual airline lounge. And I’d venture to say that honor may go to the Premier Lounge at the Denpasar Bali airport. It won’t be around…
Review of the Andaz San Diego: Stylish, Needs Improvement
I checked into the hotel at nearly midnight. There were a couple of guests hovering around the front desk and there was a bit of a party scene as well. One thing I’ve noticed about San Diego’s Gaslamp region is that it is a going out town — the women get dressed up to party, and the guys with them look like they rolled out of bed in what they’re wearing out (shorts, flip flops). They wouldn’t get into clubs anywhere else. I’ve tried to figure out the economics of it — is there a surplus of women relative to men, so they have to impress but the guys do not? — but I lack the data to develop a coherent theory. The Andaz San Diego has a traditional front desk rather than roving check-in…
Review: Hyatt Regency San Francisco Airport (SFO)
I’ve stayed at the Hyatt Regency San Francisco Airport four times this year, and have liked it less and less each time. But while some people have their preferences for Bay Area airport lodging, there’s not actually any hotel option that I’d put down in the ‘really good’ category so I rationalize that I’ve picked up reasonably priced stay credits and progress towards a few Hyatt Gold Passport promotions along the way — all without sacrificing comfort relative to other options by the airport. It’s a big, busy hotel that always seems to have a conference or convention going on in the lobby when I’m there. The basic exterior facing rooms are perfectly fine, and I’ve gotten a good night sleep after a long haul flight here. My best stay was my first one back…
