Now open: Hyatt Place Ann Arbor, perfect for families and football fans alike
This past Saturday, I went to a friend's wedding in Clarklake, MI, and then was able to spend the night at the new Hyatt Place in Ann Arbor. Clarklake was about an hour and a half drive from my house, but is only 45 minutes from Ann Arbor, so I was definitely grateful to have a hotel room for the night.
Hyatt Place opened on October 3rd in Ann Arbor, and it's located on State St. near Briarwood Mall and I-94. I'm very familiar with Ann Arbor as I'm a UM alum, so I was excited to try out the new hotel and also have the chance to hang out in downtown Ann Arbor the next day.
The first thing you'll notice as you walk into the hotel is that the lobby is very open. The area pictured above is technically its Gallery, where you can grab a bite 24/7, but you can sit and hang out there even if you're not eating, too. There are also a ton of reading nooks, which I loved.
The hotel offers free breakfast every day, which was a welcome treat, and they even had almond milk, which I was happy about. It's a very casual set-up (grab-and-go) and very welcoming—it makes you feel like you're at a friend's house for breakfast.
The facilities
Hyatt Place has both a pool area and exercise room. Though I didn't take a dip on this visit, I was able to swing by both areas to check them out.
Although the pool area isn't large, it looked like a nice place to take a swim. The exercise room has everything from treadmills to exercise balls, as well.
The rooms
I was highly impressed by my room at Hyatt Place. We opted for a room with one king bed, which also came with a sofabed, and the room was HUGE—the website says 299-389 square feet, but I'd be willing to bet that it was more like 400-500 square feet.
What's unique about this Hyatt Place is that all of its beds are king beds—so even if you reserve a room with two beds, BOTH of them are kings. That's highly unusual, and also a great treat if you have roommates or kids with you on your trip.
I loved all the Ann Arbor and Michigan-specific touches in the rooms and also in the lobby, too. We had large wall art in our room that was Michigan-specific, and the throw pillow had a cherry on it, which could be a nod to Traverse City.
The bathroom is quite large as well, and although it is shower-only (no bathtub), the shower is quite spacious.
The TV in the room is a 42" flatscreen, though it seemed larger, and is mounted on a swivel stand, which is nice—you can turn it to face more towards the bed, or towards the couch, depending on where you are sitting.
I already mentioned the daily free breakfast, which had a nice assortment of food and drink to choose from—it appears that the entrees are different each day, too, as we had waffles and sausage that Sunday morning, and I noticed that friends who had stayed over the night before had eggs and bacon that Saturday AM.
The hotel's Gallery Menu is available 24/7, and can be found near the bar area of the hotel. The Hyatt generously provided us with a $25 meal credit, so we were able to have lunch there that Sunday.
I'll be honest: while our food was tasty, this was the only area in which we experienced a slight hiccup—the kitchen had run out of BBQ sauce (and we had ordered pulled pork sliders) so we had to order something else. They told us this after almost 45 minutes of waiting for our meals, and then we waited another 20-30 minutes or so for both entrees to come out. Our waiter did offer to comp our meal because of this, which I declined since I had a gift certificate from the hotel to use.
I'm going to go ahead and attribute this to the newness of the hotel and the kitchen, and it wouldn't dissuade me from eating there again, though downtown Ann Arbor has some great options as well.
We ended up getting the Korean tacos, which were tasty although more like Southwest tacos, and the Fajita Flatbread, which was delicious, and served on naan bread.
If you're looking for a more "grab-and-go" option, there's a 24/7 Gallery Market, which is a small nook located behind the front desk. The market carries items such as snack and sandwiches, and it also has a bakery case. You can pick up any essentials like healthcare products here too, that you may have forgotten to pack.
The bar itself has more than alcoholic beverages, too—you can also order specialty drinks made with Starbucks, including an espresso roast.
Overall impressions
I really, really liked this hotel, and would definitely stay here again. I can see it appealing to all niches, as well: if you're a football fan, the hotel is only a 5-minute drive from the Big House, and if you're looking for a family getaway, a room with two king beds would be perfect.
It also would be a great hotel to stay at for a staycation or date night—I stayed with my boyfriend, and we were able to go to downtown Ann Arbor the next day. If we didn't have prior plans on Saturday night, though, I would have checked in early and then explored Ann Arbor a bit beforehand.
I also really loved all the local touches throughout, from the lobby to the rooms. Even though we checked in a little bit late on Saturday night (around 11pm), too, the staff was very welcoming and friendly, and that friendliness continued throughout the next day too.
If you end up staying at Hyatt Place, here are some of my favorite local eats and hangouts to check out in downtown Ann Arbor:
- For casual eats: Blimpy Burger, Frita Batidos, Hunter House, Cafe Felix
- For snacks: Bubble Island (bubble tea and mochi), Blank Slate Creamery, Insomnia Cookies
- For date night/fancier eats: Pacific Rim, Gratzi, Aventura (tapas), Black Pearl (try the martinis), Shalimar, Mani Osteria, Isalita
- For late-night eats: New York Pizza Depot, Fleetwood Diner
- For bar-hopping: The Last Word (speakeasy atmosphere!), Beer Grotto, Ashley's, Dominick's or Bill's Beer Garden (both weather-permitting), Babs' Underground Lounge
- For breakfast: Washtenaw Dairy (fresh cinnamon donuts), Angelo's, Afternoon Delight, Frank's Restaurant (tiny hole in the wall diner)
Hyatt Place is located at 3223 S. State St., Ann Arbor, MI 48108, and can be reached at (734) 995-1234, or at its website.
