Sometimes it’s difficult to be excited by the concept of an inner-city hotel stay in London. It’s been the bread and butter of my existence for most of the last 15 years and I have basically seen them all. Or so I thought.
From the moment that Mara, the guest relations manager, greeted me at the check-in desk of the Hyatt Regency in Blackfriars, I felt the experience was going to be slightly different. The enormous lobby space made for a bright refreshing welcome from the growing-cold London evening.
The beautiful lobby entry space, full of white marble, golden highlights and sleek lines, feels more balearic resort than London bolthole.
The City Lounge behind me – part coffee shop, part bar, part hangout space – felt fresh and welcoming, with a decor of comfy teal seats against smart grey walls and
So many of the hotel lobbies that you might see in London city centre feel professional and relaxed without being too appealing in either aspect. But the welcome area at the Hyatt Regency Blackfriars London feels almost like a high-end co-working space.
I could easily imagine meetings between global CEOs and millionaire moguls, or groups of affluent tourists gathering before a visit to the Tate Modern.
Mara handed me the key to room 404 and fortunately it wasn’t a case of ‘Room not found’. My Deluxe King room featured a huge window with a view across Blackfriars Bridge and to the eponymous station, and a plateful of cute chocolates.
The pet-friendly rooms themselves are bright, airy and functionally designed; and nothing out of what you would expect from the well-established Hyatt Regency brand. Both the bed and TV were enormous — king-size and 65″ respectively.
Phone charging points on the bedroom console are always a joy (they are not as ubiquitous as they should be in some properties) and I must say the light switch system was the easiest I’ve ever experienced. I swear once I had to click five buttons just to achieve darkness.
This all made for a restful evening after a chaotic week of work — something that even the most Red Bull-fuelled businessperson would appreciate. Perhaps the most impressive feature of the entire room was the bathroom in sleek green and white lines – almost hammam-like in its sophisticated vibe.
Breakfast the next morning was fabulous: I walked in to be greeted by the staff of the Chinese Cricket Club – as the name would suggest, usually an evening restaurant serving Chinese fare such as crispy tofu.
But as it was morning, I strutted past endless bowls of fruits, cereals, juices, and the requisite eggs, bacon, mushrooms and sausages, as well as more traditionally continental inclusions like croissants. At the end of the room, a virgin Bloody Mary station rounded things off beautifully.
After myriad calories had entered my body, I felt primed to use the comfortably equipped gym down in the hotel basement. There was a Peloton-branded exercise bike, treadmills and rowing machines, a decent selection of free weights and a handful of weightlifting machines.
After just a whirlwind 16-hour stopover in the hotel, I left happy in the knowledge that the high-end Hyatt Regency brand is as reliable as ever – chic, functional and exquisitely positioned. This particular property is housed within the Grade II-listed former grounds of King Henry VIII’s Bridewell Palace.
It’s so close to a tube stop that I stepped out of the hotel, walked to Farringdon station which was just 15 minutes away anyway – and suddenly realised that I could have simply crossed the road to the much-closer Blackfriars station.
Unfortunately I did not get the chance to try the evening food at the Chinese Cricket Club or visit the NYnLON bistro – it was closed on the Monday night in question but I wouldn’t have had chance because it had been such a busy weekend anyway.
Perhaps the most intriguing F&B facility is Leaf and Cane, the on-site bar, which hosts live sports screenings and karaoke nights – in my humble opinion, a variation in audience to the usual type of customer at a five-star hotel. That said, I would be very interested to visit and watch some football there very soon – but that probably says more about me than about the guests of the Hyatt Regency Blackfriars London.
I look forward to returning.
