Review: the Park Hyatt London River Thames hotel

This is our review of the new Park Hyatt London River Thames hotel.

Regular readers will remember that we were invited to a media event in the Presidential Suite to celebrate the opening of the hotel, followed by a tour. We wrote about this here and some photos from that day are reused here.

We mentioned that we would follow up with a full review, and 3 weeks later I spent a night at Park Hyatt London River Thames. My stay was complimentary but HfP paid for all of its other expenses (a return tube ticket in this case!).

Just to remind you of the location, the hotel is on the south side of the River Thames, located very close to Vauxhall Bridge in the newly regenerated district of Nine Elms. The hotel site was the base of the largest Rolls Royce and Bentley service centre in the late 1950s.

Battersea Power Station with its many shops and restaurants is a 15-minute walk along the river. I arrived by tube via Vauxhall on the Victoria line and departed from Nine Elms station on the new Northern line extension. Both stations are only a few minutes from the hotel.

That said, taxis seem the easiest option for getting around given that a bridge over the River Thames is on your doorstep.

The Park Hyatt London River Thames website is here.

The basics

The hotel occupies the first 18 floors of a two-tower development, and is the middle block in the top photo above.

There are 203 rooms and suites on the lower 18 floors with the higher floors occupied by 103 Park Hyatt-branded residences which share the facilities.

There are also 334 apartments in the adjacent tower on the right. These are connected to the hotel via a glass bridge above the entrance, although they do not appear to be serviced by the hotel.

One of the luxuries when building from scratch in an area undergoing massive redevelopment is the abundance of space and light you can achieve. Here is the reception area with the newly recruited staff eager to welcome guests.

What strikes you right away is how well designed everything is, both in practical and pure aesthetic terms. The interior design is by renowned Japanese firm Super Potato (the hotel has Asian owners).

The combination of materials, both modern and traditional, is beautiful. It is understated luxury whilst also being very homely and inviting.

This is an art installation by Charlie Whinney who specialises in steam-bending wood designs and whose work can be admired throughout the hotel.

My Park Suite River View Deluxe room

For my stay I was given a Park Suite Deluxe with a river view on the 17th floor, which is almost as high as you can get. The hotel is so new that the corridor to my suite still gave off a fresh paint smell.

You enter the suite into a very large reception room. A guest bed was prepared as I went with my daughter in tow (half term necessity!). The design is very crisp with clean lines and pops of orange complementing the lighter tones of the walls and furniture.

As a welcome gift I had a bowl of fresh fruit and a bottle of red wine waiting for me on the table.

The large floor to ceiling window pointed towards the City which was still visible on this very murky autumn day.

The bathroom is styled in black and white with white marble and dark wood.

The amenities came from Molton Brown, which is a little odd for a Park Hyatt. On Rob’s pre-opening tour he was told that the hotel was working on exclusive high-end bathroom products – I assume they are not ready yet!

The shower was enormous and included a bench to sit on. The bathtub is opposite. The towel holder was striking with its dark wood.

The suite has two Japanese toilets (not pictured), one next to the entrance and one leading off the bathroom.

A generous walk-in wardrobe provides plenty of storage with William Morris wallpaper as a backdrop.

The real selling point, of course is the view. I took the photo below after dinner when the weather had cleared giving way to far reaching views.

This sort of outlook is obviously very rare for a London hotel, except for the Shangri-La in The Shard, and is a real contrast to a low rise 5-star London hotel in Mayfair.

King Corner Room with River View

I got to see various other room categories during my stay and during the launch event.

If I had to choose a room for myself I would forgo my large suite and go for a King Corner Room with river view.

The layout is a bit quirky as you enter via a small ante-room with a wardrobe and then walk through the bathroom to the large bedroom tucked in a corner of the tower.

One end of the bedroom has a chaise longue with a view on the Thames and a cabinet for the minibar, coffee machine, table and chairs etc. It is a smaller and more intimate space than my suite.

The other end features the bed next to floor to ceiling windows with views to the south towards Crystal Palace.

Other rooms

To find out more about rooms at the other ends of the spectrum – the Presidential Suite and a standard twin room – take a look at my article from the launch event.

The Nine Elms Bar and Lounge

Let’s take a look at the food and drink options at Park Hyatt London River Thames.

The bar and lounge area is just opposite the entrance and one of the first areas you see when coming in. I was told the inspiration came from the flower market next door, and the colorful accents are gorgeous.

Despite the large size the room feels very warm and cosy, especially in the evening.

The Nine Elms Kitchen and Terrace

The Nine Elms Kitchen offers all-day dining with an open kitchen in the middle.

In summer the star of the show will be this large terrace which is set back from the road. It is roughly south-facing to catch the sun and I am keen to see what furniture will be chosen for this unique space.

So far Nine Elms Kitchen is the only restaurant in the hotel. A cantonese restaurant, currently without a name, will open later this year and is planned to be a ‘destination dining’ experience.

For other dining options you need to walk towards Battersea Power Station or take a short taxi drive to Westminster / Chelsea.

Breakfast

It is still early days and the continental buffet, served in Nine Elms Kitchen, was modest in line with occupancy. The quality was very high, however, and offered a variety of pastries and sweet and savoury choices.

Here you can see various cheeses and ham, salami etc with the cereal selection and various yoghurts behind it.

In contrast, the a-la-carte breakfast is extensive with signature items like steamed dim sum, congee and healthy walnut pancakes with berries and vanilla chantilly.

I chose avocado on toast from the Breakfast Favorites selection which also included eggs royale and a full vegan breakfast selection.

Dinner

As Nine Elms Kitchen is currently the only dining option in the hotel, it offers a relatively large menu of small and large dishes incorporating cuisines from all over the world. You are bound to find something to appeal.

There are English classics like The Ploughman’s (£20) or Oven Baked Somerset Camembert (£18) to share.

As a starter I chose chicken satay with peanut drip and green papaya salad (£10, a relative bargain in the world of five star London hotels) which was delicious.

For my main I went Italian with Tagliatelle and Welsh lamb ragù and shredded burrata (£25).

My favourite was the dessert – mango panna cotta with fresh mango / passion fruit and a beautiful opaline butterfly on top (£12). The presentation and taste were fantastic.

The gym, pool and spa

This is where the hotel really comes into its own, and will be a key factor in persuading people to pick the Park Hyatt over a West End hotel.

It has one of the most stunning hotel gyms I have ever seen, and with floor to ceiling windows I am sure you won’t even notice that you are exercising.

The spa is on the first floor and is also flooded in light. The pool is of very generous proportions and unusually wide – easily the biggest I have seen in a London hotel, and one of very few (in fact I struggle to think of another apart from The Berkeley’s rooftop pool) with natural light.

My stay included a spa treatment and I went for a Back to Brilliance massage which was gorgeous. This is part of the entrance to the spa where you can have a consultation or wait for your treatment:

Below is the relaxation area which can be used before and after a treatment. I did enjoy sitting in my armchair with my feet up whilst observing the hussle and bustle outside and appreciating my calm retreat.

This is the treatment room where my massage took place. The room is relatively large and with all wood paneling feels very warm. Large windows provide natural light. The blinds can come down fully or partly according to preference during the treatment.

The products were from wellness brand The Tides.

I didn’t try the meditation pods but they looked rather …. intriguing.

Conclusion

Park Hyatt London River Thames is beautifully designed and full of generously sized rooms and public spaces. It is using the tagline ‘London in a new light’ which hits the nail on the head.

It is close enough by taxi to key destinations whilst being set apart, although admittedly there is little on your doorstep apart from Battersea Power Station. The interiors are absolutely stunning and it will suit people who want to mix business / shopping / sightseeing with some quality downtime.

The staff were highly motivated and eager to please, going well beyond the norm to make my stay comfortable. I hope the hotel succeeds in finding a niche in a very competitive London luxury market.

How to book

Rates are very competitive if you are looking for a London luxury hotel over the next couple of months – you can pay as little as £449 and on some nights it is cheaper than Hyatt’s Great Scotland Yard and Hyatt Regency The Churchill. With respect to those two hotels, they are not comparable.

Reward nights start as low at 30,000 World of Hyatt points per night.

If you are planning a cash stay, our hotel booking partner Emyr Thomas can get you Hyatt Prive benefits which include a guaranteed upgrade (locked in within 24 hours of booking), free breakfast and $100 of food and beverage credit. You would pay the standard Best Flexible Rate and pay at check-out as usual. You can contact Emyr via the form here.

Many thanks to Mark and Niamh from Karla Otto London for arranging my stay.

The Park Hyatt London River Thames website is here.

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