The Park Hyatt Washington D.C. was the first hotel on a trip built around the All Blacks-Springboks match in Baltimore. Rather than flying into the U.S. and heading straight to Baltimore, we’d decided to spend the first two nights in D.C.
Two things pushed the Park Hyatt toward the top of the list for the first night. I still had a $300 Fine Hotels + Resorts credit available on an American Express Platinum Card, and we wanted to try Blue Duck Tavern, the restaurant inside the hotel. The prepaid FHR rate was $405.94. After the $300 statement credit, my out-of-pocket cost for the room would be $105.94, with the usual FHR benefits attached to the stay.
That was enough to make the Park Hyatt an attractive first night in D.C.
Booking Through Fine Hotels + Resorts
The $405.94 room was prepaid through American Express Fine Hotels + Resorts, triggering the $300 hotel credit on the Platinum Card. The reservation also came with breakfast for two, a $100 property credit, room upgrade when available, noon check-in when available and guaranteed 4pm checkout.
We arrived after the normal check-in time, so early check-in wasn’t relevant, and we didn’t need the guaranteed 4pm checkout the following day. Breakfast and the $100 property credit were more useful: we were going to eat at Blue Duck Tavern anyway.
Arriving at the Park Hyatt
The Park Hyatt also sits at an unusual hotel-heavy intersection. The Fairmont and Westin occupy two of the other corners on either side of the Park Hyatt, putting substantial hotels on three of the four.
Before the stay, the Park Hyatt front desk had invited us to text with our arrival plans. We sent our expected arrival time and asked whether we should reserve a table for dinner at Blue Duck Tavern, but never received a reply.
At check-in, staff told us they had received the message and had replied; their response apparently hadn’t made it back to our international number. They suggested WhatsApp usually works better, though we had tried that too without connecting. Nothing consequential went wrong, but it’s a useful wrinkle for an international guest to be aware of.
The experience once we arrived was excellent. Check-in was warm and efficient, my wife’s World of Hyatt number was already attached to the FHR reservation, and staff handed us two bottles of water to take upstairs. Another two were waiting in the room.
Reception at the Park Hyatt Washington D.C.
Our Room
We had booked a standard king room, and this was the room we were given; there was no FHR upgrade. Still, the room was larger than I had expected for a standard city room at a hotel of this level. The room was divided into several distinct areas. The bed occupied one part of the room, but there was also a proper sitting area facing it by the windows, with a chaise, armchair and round table. Mirrored panels around the entrance and storage area made the division more pronounced.
Our room at the Park Hyatt Washington D.C.
It worked particularly well as a room for two people. There was somewhere to sit other than the bed, enough surface area to spread things out, and plenty of separation.
The sitting area beside the windows.
A small coffee station was built into the cabinetry near the entrance. The Nespresso machine came with four regular capsules and two decaf, and its water reservoir had already been filled.
The in-room coffee station.
None of that is particularly notable on its own. But in aggregate it was a well-set-up room, with nothing additional that needed figuring out after arriving.
The Bathroom
The bathroom was a good size, with a long vanity and plenty of counter space.
The bathroom vanity.
The dark-tiled walk-in shower had both rainfall and handheld shower heads, along with wall-mounted toiletries and a small wooden bench.
The walk-in shower.
The bathroom was large enough for two people to use without having to negotiate around each other, and the shower itself was roomy.
Blue Duck Tavern Was Part of the Plan
We hadn’t chosen the Park Hyatt and then decided to eat at its restaurant because there was a $100 credit to use. Blue Duck Tavern was part of the reason we’d chosen the hotel in the first place.
Blue Duck Tavern at the Park Hyatt Washington D.C.
Blue Duck Tavern's open kitchen and dining room.
We ordered duck, trout and a garlic spinach side, along with a bottle of sparkling wine. They were all very good, and the duck in particular was the most tender duck I’ve ever tried. Including tax and tip, the bill came to $254.50. The $100 FHR property credit reduced our actual dinner cost to $154.50.
Duck, trout and spinach at Blue Duck Tavern.
At the end of the meal, the restaurant also brought out four complimentary macarons. It was a small touch, but another part of a dinner that was very well handled.
Four macarons brought out at the end of dinner.
Breakfast Was More Flexible Than Expected
We returned to Blue Duck for breakfast the following morning. Breakfast was à la carte rather than a buffet. At check-in we had been told that it was covered up to $80 for the two of us.
Blue Duck Tavern breakfast menu.
We selected the smoked salmon and BDT Benedict, along with coffee for two.
Smoked salmon, BDT Benedict, a bagel and coffee for breakfast.
Our final check exceeded $80 after tax and tip. It’s possible the quoted allowance was intended to describe the food spend before tax and gratuity rather than the absolute final check, but I didn’t establish that at the time.
What I can say is what happened at checkout. There was no breakfast overage on our bill. I specifically pointed out that we’d gone beyond the quoted amount rather than assuming the charge had disappeared intentionally, and the hotel confirmed that there was no additional balance due. Whether that was a waiver of a small overage or a cap based on a pre-tax and tip amount, I’m not sure.
One stay isn’t enough to establish how the Park Hyatt handles every FHR breakfast. But on this stay, exceeding the quoted $80 after tax and tip didn’t result in an additional charge.
What We Actually Paid
Across the room, dinner and breakfast, the numbers came together like this:
Item | Recorded cost | FHR benefit used | Cash paid |
|---|---|---|---|
Park Hyatt room | $405.94 | $300.00 | $105.94 |
Blue Duck dinner + recorded breakfast benefit | $334.50 | $180.00 | $154.50 |
Total | $740.44 | $480.00 | $260.44 |
The second line needs a little explanation. The $334.50 is how I recorded the hotel dining component in my trip accounting: the $254.50 Blue Duck dinner plus the $80 FHR breakfast benefit. The dinner generated the $154.50 cash payment after its $100 credit, while breakfast generated no additional payment. So in total, $260.44 actually left our pocket for the Park Hyatt room and Blue Duck dinner, with breakfast for two included.
Some value came back in points. The prepaid FHR booking and room charges earned 2184 American Express Membership Rewards points (5x on the pre-credit amount, 1x on dining overages) and the stay earned 1655 World of Hyatt points. Using current Frequent Miler valuations of 1.5 cents per point for both currencies, those points represent ~$58 of value. Allowing for that $58 of points value brings the effective net cost to ~$202.
One caveat: I wouldn’t translate this as “we got a Park Hyatt room, dinner and breakfast for $202”. The $300 FHR credit comes from holding an expensive credit card, and left to our own devices we wouldn’t often choose to spend $80 on breakfast. But for comparing this booking with the alternatives available to us, it’s a useful final net-cost number.
Bottom Line
The Park Hyatt Washington D.C. was a very good first night in D.C. Check-in was excellent, the room was spacious for a city stay, and Blue Duck Tavern was somewhere we wanted to eat regardless of the hotel credit. Breakfast was also handled more generously than the $80 guidance had led us to expect.
At $405.94, I might not have chosen the Park Hyatt purely because it was a good hotel. The $300 FHR statement credit helped make the case, while Blue Duck gave us a reason to choose this Park Hyatt rather than just finding somewhere to use the credit. For this particular night in D.C., the combination worked very well.
Moxy DC Downtown Review [to come]