Now that we have a baby, a lot of our standards with regards to the hotel itself haven’t changed much (at least I’d like to think so). I’d say the requirement for surrounding elements outside the hotel has changed more, for example: is there a supermarket nearby, walking distance to shopping, easy access to transportation, how close is a laundromat?
I took into account some research from other baby blogs prior to booking, and we decided on 2 hotels: Grand Hyatt Tokyo, and the Westin Tokyo (covered in part 3). These were based mostly on a combination of location and price (thanks to a combo of points and platinum AMEX card hotel benefits).
This is our review for our first hotel: Grand Hyatt Tokyo
Grand Hyatt Tokyo:
Baby-friendly Rating: 7/10
Length of stay: 5 nights
Pros:
- Hotel Service – the hotel staff were all really friendly and remembered Daren’s name
- Room – the bed! OMG the bed!
- Easy access to shopping/restaurants – connected to the Roppongi Hills shopping complex
- 5 min walk to Roppongi subway station
- Lots of adjoining outdoor areas – open walkways, robot park
- Really awesome lap pool, spa, gym area
Cons:
- Shopping choices in Roppongi Hills are more high-end, not necessarily baby-friendly
- Business district – lots of rush hour commuters vs families, gets pretty empty outside of working hours
- The really awesome lap pool, spa, gym area is only for adults
reception area of the Grand Hyatt Tokyo
The Grand Hyatt Tokyo hotel is located in the Roppongi Hills district of Tokyo. Arriving by limousine bus from Narita is probably the easiest way to get here, and the option that we chose. It is about an 1hour 15min ride from the airport, with one stop at the Intercontinental hotel before arriving.
walkway to the lobby at the Grand Hyatt Tokyo
The hotel really feels modern and welcoming at the same time. The hotel staff is quick to greet you and make you feel relaxed. Once we stepped into our room, we knew we had chosen the right hotel.
Our well appointed room
where can we get one of these beds for ourselves??!
The first thing we noticed about the hotel room was the size of the bed! I’m not sure what size it was, but it was definitely larger than a king. Super king? Over the top king?
Our bathroom with separate tv monitor!
tea set in the room entryway
Anyways, aside from the superbly awesome bed, the rest of the room was equally just as great. The hotel definitely had a modern feel to it, and they did an excellent job of flowing it seamlessly from the lobby to the guest room.
Hotel lounge/breakfast buffet
The hotel club lounge had a pretty great selection of breakfast items and drinks.
The breakfast buffet in the main restaurant was one of the best we’ve had
A well fed mom and baby is a happy mom and baby!
Pretty epic breakfast spread
Our room was upgraded to allow us access to the club lounge so we were able to take advantage of free breakfast and drinks every day! The lounge also had free alcoholic drinks and appetizers in the evenings so it worked out really well for us. Having free access to food and drinks is always a plus for me! 🙂 I would definitely pay extra to have the club lounge access again.
Aside from the club lounge, the main restaurant breakfast buffet was also spectacular. Probably one of the best selection of breakfast items I’ve ever seen. They even had a carving station with a whole ham leg! Oh, and there was a pastry that I don’t quite know what it was but I prob ate 3 or 4 in one sitting each morning. Something between a croissant, buttery bread, and chocolatey goodness (maybe a nutella brioche??!) Killer stuff.
It’s beginning to look a lot like christmas…
mom trying on the angel wings
posing next to the flowers
mom and Daren!
The hotel had festive decorations in preparation for the upcoming Christmas holiday season, so Mom and baby decided to take advantage! Say Chee-zu!
Top floor terrace, lounge area
Xmas tree on the terrace
Daren just loungin’
the Oak door restaurant on the top level of the hotel
The hotel restaurants inside the Grand Hyatt also all looked amazing, however the prices were a bit more than we wanted to spend. The top floor of the hotel had a few different high-priced eating options, as well as an extremely well-kept courtyard area with a christmas tree and outdoor seating. There was also a handy walkway that connected the hotel to the shopping complex next door – which was nice because the restaurants in the next door shopping complex were a little more reasonably priced 🙂
Roppongi Hills shopping complex
Daren exploring the empty mall
Lego play area
The Roppongi Hills shopping complex is a 5-story mall conveniently located right next to the hotel with multiple walkways that connect directly. There is a starbucks and mcdonalds on the first floor of the mall for quick snacks and the morning caffeine fix. For babies, there is a lego play area on the 4th floor, and a couple of other baby stores scattered around (although not many). Otherwise, the mall is comprised of pretty expensive random shops that we would probably never consider otherwise.
Daren helping mom decide on a menu item
The Japanese lunch set!
Lunch with Uncle Dave and family in Roppongi Hills
Running around the mall
Hello Uncle Dave!
The entire 5th floor of the shopping complex is entirely made up of restaurants that were mostly suitable for families. We found there were lots of different types of food to choose from: Japanese, Italian and American just to name a few. We met my uncle David and his wife for lunch here and the food was phenomenal!
Robot Park/Outdoor areas
slides!
fun times with dad!
whatcha doin’ mom?
robot totem pole
Within a few minutes walking distance away from the hotel is robot park. The children’s park has multiple brightly colored slides and robot themed play structures. The park was bustling with kids in the early morning, so Daren got to play with a few of the local children in the area.
walking to robot park
just goofing around…
follow me!
Along the outside of the hotel all the way towards robot park are well marked outdoor walkways with some stores and cafes along the way. The area is really entirely a stroller-friendly area with easy access to everything.
Egg-cellent!
an egg-cellent find!
Choose an egg, I mean seat!
baby-friendly with drawing kits for kids!
Eggs benedict 2 ways, a green smoothie, and fresh squeezed orange juice
cheese!
This cute restaurant turned out to be one of our favorite breakfast spots during the entire trip! Organic eggs, fresh squeezed juices, fluffy pancakes, and all within walking distance! Score!
Overall, the Grand Hyatt Tokyo is a beautiful hotel in a decent location with easy access to shops and a subway station. Thanks for the good times! On to our next hotel: The Westin Tokyo!
Tokyo Baby pt 3 – Westin Tokyo review | bunny and bunny
[…] The Westin Tokyo was our second hotel during our 11 day stay in Tokyo. The hotel itself couldn’t be any more different than the Grand Hyatt Tokyo (covered in part 2). […]