| Journal: TWUK | Section: |
| Title: | Issue Date: 21/08/00 |
| Author: | Page Number: 54 |
| Copyright: Other |
Hotel update by Alan Moore
Hotel update by Alan Moore
Flagship Park Hyatt sets the standard for future openings
Unashamed luxury of hotel assures longevity of chain
WHEN the Park Hyatt Chicago opened its doors in June on Water Tower Square in the heart of the city’s famous Magnificent Mile, it set new standards for the hotel group within North America.The luxury five-star hotel has state-of-the-art room technology, a contemporary European design throughout and high service levels aimed unashamedly at the corporate traveller.
It now becomes the flagship model for the expanding Park Hyatt portfolio, which includes seven properties in the US and 10 international hotels.
The Park Hyatt brand was first introduced by Hyatt in the early 1980s. Its cachet is that it caters for the more discerning individual traveller wanting personal service and the elegance of a small European hotel.
However, in Chicago, size means everything and the hotel is part of a 67-storey complex of designer-led retail stores and luxury condominiums constructed for Hyatt. In spite of its huge landmark presence at the top of Michigan Avenue overlooking Lake Michigan, the company is confident it has achieved a new, individual, upscale product on which to build.
The Park takes up the first 18 floors, offering just 203 rooms, and Hyatt feels it has “balanced the traditional look of an elegant boutique hotel with modern flair”.
Ty Helms, vice-president sales for Hyatt Hotels Corporation in Chicago, said: “This new flagship Park Hyatt has the characteristics and standards we want to introduce in future Park brand hotels throughout the world and which can already be seen in Park properties in Hamburg, Tokyo and Sydney.
“We already had a Park Hyatt in Chicago but felt we couldn’t renovate it properly in order to be competitive with the changing five-star market. At Water Tower Square we have the best site in the city, so it was an ideal opportunity to build a new structure from scratch with all the high-end features and amenities now required.”
With an equally luxurious Peninsula hotel being constructed virtually opposite, Helms is confident that Park Hyatt room rates of between $400-$500 a night are justified. Hyatt already has two other hotels in Chicago – a Hyatt Regency and a convention property at McCormack Place.
Aside from the Park portfolio, the group markets a range of Grand Hyatts – for large-scale conventions – and the more familiar Hyatt Regency hotels, for business, conference and leisure travellers.
Room with a view: Park Hyatt, Chicago, overlooks Lake Michigan
factfile
hyatt product
Current Park Hyatt locations: New York, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Carmel in California, Philadelphia, Washington, Toronto, London, Madrid, Hamburg, Baku in Azerbaijan, Johannesburg, Tokyo, Buenos Aires, Sydney, Canberra and Melbourne.