Today we are taking a deep dive into the Hyatt Centric Ginza. My room,
the lounges, the location, the food and amenities,
we’re gonna see it all- it’s not what I was expecting. Let’s get into it, Welcome to Tokyo.
If you’d like to know the exact rate that I paid for my stay or my next five videos in queue,
please check out the description below and if you’re new here,
hi there and welcome, my name is Kevin. And you’ve found yourself on a channel that
takes unbiased travel content seriously. I make airline trip reports, high end hotel reviews and
will soon dabble with cruises as well. I always film without the airline or hotels’ knowledge to
be sure I get a true experience and give you nothing more than my honest unbiased opinion.
Here we are on Namiki-dori Street, which is kind of the pinnacle of what Ginza is. There’s a giant
Louis Vuitton behind me, a Rolex shop just in front with streets and sidewalks that are so
clean you could probably eat off of them. Right in the middle of that is the Hyatt Centric Ginza.
The entrance off of the street has a small fashionable lobby which takes
you up a few floors to the proper reception area.
This is a very flowy hotel. As in, literally all of the spaces are connected in some way and
because of that, the area we are in now is quite literally the central hub of this buzzy hotel.
The check in area is dominated by one of those strange, it’s a desk but let’s not call it a
desk desks, but I do actually think it works here. The design and functionality of this entire floor
is really one of the more clever designs I’ve seen in a while, seamlessly blending
high fashion nods, local artwork, Japanese kitsch and down right comfortable spaces.
This Hyatt Centric was the first to open in Asia back in 2017.
For it’s common spaces, designer Yohei Akao- of Super Potato lineage, was tasked with creating
flexible spaces and furniture configurations that adjust to the hotel’s needs of the day nimbly.
I have to admit though, this is not at all what I was expecting from a Hyatt Centric, why? I almost
think it’s too nice. I mean, I think this is what Hyatt Centrics should be, but fact of the matter
is many of them around the globe are little more than glorified Hyatt Places in central locations.
If Ginza was the standard followed globally, I could easily see Hyatt Centric as being one of
my favorite brands. It’s well curated, it clearly has local roots and design touches
and it is fuss free with just the right mix of amenities that I look for in a city center hotel.
One of those amenities being the surprisingly very generous self
service snack and drink bar smack in the middle of the lobby. The beers
and chuhais are available from 5pm to 10pm and the rest throughout the day.
You likely noticed, today’s video had a completely new intro which took me months to piece together.
If you enjoyed it, please let me know in the comments- if you’re still unsure about it, give
it a couple weeks so you can see how it will fit flights, hotels and cruises equally well
and then let me know what you think. There was also a separate candy area
and a small business nook where you could print out your love letters.
So, Hyatt Centric, it’s all about being centrally located. But Tokyo is a massive city,
the world’s largest- there are many “centers” which is why I think it’s smartly the Hyatt
Centric Ginza, not the Hyatt Centric Tokyo. The hotel is just a stone’s throw from the famous
Chuo-dori blvd and is really well connected to the metro system. I was coming from Narita which was
just about an hour on the Narita Express which will drop you just one stop away on the metro.
Time to head to my room, the elevators featuring their recurring map theme.
For my stay, I was given a room on the 9th floor. Note that the 9th floor is the lowest
floor that just begins to give you a peak over the surrounding rooftops, so be sure to book
or request that if it’s important to you. Hyatt Centrics don’t have loads of booking
categories, which I appreciate, and I booked into a standard King Room.
I love this room. Really, I mean really really love this room. Just the other day someone was
asking me what I personally like in hotel rooms and my answer is simply, comfort + functionality
+ something unique. My comfort and functionality boxes were ticked here but the unique central
island hub was truly a first of it’s kind for me which we’ll take a look at in a second.
At the bedside were some beautifully labeled light switches as well as standard and USB outlets.
The bed and bedding are on the minimalist end of the comfort scale,
but still got the job done nicely.
The window chaise was so comfortable and the perfect size and placement and there was also
a thoughtful table and chair. The other
side of the bed was missing the curtain open and close controls, but I’m not complaining
since this is the first hotel in a while for me that put them on my side of the bed.
Now, we have the central island. This is your bathroom, your vanity, your sink,
your mini bar, your desk, it truly is a hub.
The room comes nicely stocked with glass bottled water and a Nespresso machine. The Tokyo Lungo
capsules were a nice touch. There was also a variety of TWG teas and glassware available.
Quite the departure from my last Hyatt Centric in Milan where all the rooms had were
instant coffee and lipton tea. The central mirror has outlet and
lighting controls on one side and then like magic, you find your sink under this lid.
I like the idea of hiding away the sink, but I don’t like this execution.
It makes the mirror angles odd when it’s open. I think a sliding cover of
some sort would have been a lot better. Otherwise,
the area was well stocked and the rest of the amenities were on the built-in shelf behind you.
Considering the size of this room overall,
it has an impressively sized wet room with full sized tub as well as a separate toilet room.
My only complaint in here would be the BeeKind products which are fine,
but considering how premium everything in this hotel feels, just cheapen the feel a bit.
I saw so many reviews of this place complaining that there’s no place
to hang a towel. There is, just need to open those
eyes. My view,
eh, I liked it. I didn’t book a high floor rate so I was just happy to see the sky.
There’s also a screen to kinda sorta block off the bathroom,
but, it’s definitely not full privacy so make sure you like your roommate.
Last up we have the open plan closet area which is more than adequate in space and since
the central hub kind hides it from view from the bedroom, I don’t mind at all that it’s open plan.
And for a Hyatt Centric especially, the fit and finish in here is really top notch.
Better than the brand new Park Hyatt Auckland that I stayed at later in this same trip.
So, who’s staying here? Well the hotel is not shy about tell you specifically they target 80%
foreign tourists and their corporate language says it’s designed for the
discerning millennial-minded traveler- which I’ve seen them define and up to 60
years old and at least with the age range, I’d have to agree. While I was there is was
a majority American crowd but not entirely. Time to check out Namiki 667 the onsite
restaurant and bar.
This is a space that really transforms throughout the day,
from a bright and open modern eatery during the day to a dark, moody and cozy bar after dark-
and I really do love some of the design details.
They also have a sizable terrace space outside for the warmer months.
The menu has two parts. Dinner set menus and the more casual bar menu. In the dining room, only the
set menus are served at night. The other offerings are served at the bar and the area around it.
I’d originally planned to dine in the restaurant but with my hectic entry into Tokyo,
not getting to the hotel until 6pm and then filming the room… I just wanted a quick and
tasty meal- and that is precisely what I got. Really simple but really well done katsu.
One of my favorite details in all of the hotel was this wall behind the bench seating
which only when you get up close will you see are actually all individually rolled Japanese papers.
The next morning we head to the other side of the restaurant for a really nice breakfast buffet.
Filming anonymously- as in, no invitations, no sponsorships,
no freebies and no special treatment- I think is an important part about any unbiased review,
whether for a flight or a hotel stay. If you support honest travel content,
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This is one of the spreads that goes into the ‘not massive, but really well curated’ column.
Nice to see such a true mix of cuisines and all executed really well and hot.
There was also an egg station available.
And they certainly passed the test. So as we take a quick peak at the on
site gym which is just around the corner from reception, I gotta say, for what is by most means
a small package, limited service hotel, this was really impressive. That said,
Tokyo hotel prices have been crazy high the past year, so you’re simply getting what you pay for.
I really do hope you enjoyed this video today, if you did, be sure to give it a thumbs up and
subscribe so you don’t miss any of my upcoming videos including flights on Korean Air,
Philippine Airlines and Firefly as well as hotels from Sydney and Fiji. But first,
I’ll see you next time from The Okura Tokyo. Oh and thanks for watching until the end.