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Review: Manchester Grand Hyatt San Diego, Signature Suite
The Manchester Grand Hyatt San Diego is in a great location sitting right on the Bay within minutes of the Gaslamp quarter which is littered with shops, bars, and restaurants. In the rear of the hotel, you can meander the boardwalk along the water, grab some snacks, or even find a harbor cruise. This was my second time visiting the hotel, and with 2 nights left to use a Diamond Suite Upgrade, it seemed like a great place to revisit, get away from LA, and kick it in a big, 1000+ sqft suite with club access. BYAH!
Look at this lobby. I was ready to Check-in to check out
The hotel is large, in charge, and fitted with a grand lobby. We checked in using the Gold Passport line. My Diamond status was acknowledged, the suite upgrade was confirmed, and the access to club level was also explained. I’d checked online prior to arrival to see if any bigger suites were available, and they were. So when we checked in I inquired about further upgrades…none. I wasn’t expecting a free upgrade, but figured I’d be told cash amounts for each of the larger suites. This wasn’t the case. It was just me, my girlfriend, and our dog so we definitely had PLENTY of space…but if a penthouse was thrown out for $100 or free – we would have bitten 😉
The Deets:
- When: February 2017
- Where: San Diego
- Loyalty: Hyatt Gold Passport
- Rate: $189/night
- Upgrade: Diamond Suite Upgrade
- Benefits: Club level
The hotel is pet friendly and gave us some treats, a ball, and a bowl. Pretty cool I thought!
We were located in the Harbor Tower. Room 810
The Signature suites are a combination of a HUGE living room which they market as a Studio suite and a standard room. In total it’s roughly 1040 sq ft with 2 full baths, a pullout couch, small bar area, and a large hightop table. It is a fantastic use of a Diamond Suite upgrade.
The suite.
The standard guest room is modern although it feels more like a Hyatt Regency than a Grand Hyatt to me.
We had a decent view of the pool
The Grand Club
Located on the 33rd floor of the Harbor Tower the Grand Club is large and bright. The morning food offerings are adequate. Nothing incredible, but you’ll find something to fill our belly. In the evening, there are appetizers, drinks, and an honor bar. The biggest difference between domestic Grand Clubs and those overseas is the lack of a cash bar.
The morning spread:
The evening spread:
The hotel has a lot of great amenities. Spa. 2 pools. Tennis Courts.
The spa and adult pool
Very nice gym
Main pool and Tennis courts:
They even had pet relief, CORNHOLE, and a map.
One of the coolest features of the hotel is its access to the beach shops out back.
This is also where you’d access the promenade. Lots of fun shops, street performers, and spots of eat and drink.
Overall:
I’d definitely put the Grand Hyatt on your list of places to consider. This was my second time at the hotel and, rate depending, I’d stay again. If you get club free or have club upgrade certs I’d go for it otherwise I don’t think it’s worth the money. The suites are ABSOLUTELY huge, and would be great to host a party or share with a few friends or two couples. If you’re considering this hotel along side the Marriott Marquis I’d check out my review of it. Both are solid, waterfront hotels.
Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card
The Chase Sapphire Preferred is a great starter card that earns Premium Ultimate Rewards that can be transferred into over a dozen partners many of which are US based.
Welcome Offer
60k Points after $4k spend in 3 months
Annual Fee
$95
Points Earned
Transferrable Chase Ultimate Rewards
If you carry this card alongside Chase’s cashback cards like the Chase Freedom Flex℠and Chase Freedom Unlimited® or the business versions: Ink Business Cash , Ink Business Unlimited you can combine the points into Preferred account and transfer into hotel and airline partners
Annual fee is quite low at $95 a year + you get a 10% anniversary bonus on points + $50 hotel credit in Chase travel.
- 3x on dining
- including eligible delivery services for takeout
- 3x on select streaming services
- 3x on online grocery purchases
- (excluding Target, Walmart and wholesale clubs)
- 5x on all travel purchased through Chase Ultimate Rewards – Chase Travel Portal
- $50 Annual Credit on hotel stays purchased via Ultimate Rewards/Chase Travel
- The begins immediately for new cardmembers and after your account anniversary for existing cardmembers
- 10% Anniversary Bonus
- Every year you keep the card, your total spend will yield a 10% points bonus. If you spend $10k in a year, you’ll get 1k bonus points
- Chase Sapphire Preferred® continues to redeem at 1.25c in the Chase Travel Portal and the slew of other benefits remain in tact including primary rental car insurance, purchase protections, etc.
- Points are transferrable to 13 Ultimate Rewards partners
- Redeem in the Chase Travel center for 1.25 cents per point
- No foreign transaction fees
- Suite of Travel and Purchase Coverage
- Primary rental car coverage is my favorite
We keep an up to date spreadsheet that lists the best ever offers: You can find that spreadsheet here.
Historically 80k is a very, very good offer and hit in both 2022 and 2023. In 2021, we saw the offer hit an all time high of 100k. Who knows if that will ever come back.
Main Cast:
Cards that earn flexible points and should be used on the bulk of your purchases.
Supporting Cast:
Cards that earn fixed points in the currency of the airline/hotel and can not be transferred at attractive rates. These cards yield benefits that make it worth keeping, but not necessarily worth putting a lot of your everyday spend on.
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