Hotel Review: The Luxurious Grand Hyatt Bogota and the Grand Executive Suite

view of hotel from across the street

INTRODUCTION

A visit to Bogota, Colombia, and a stay at the Grand Hyatt Bogota, has always been on my travel list. Last month, that trip came to fruition. I had originally planned to go back to the Hyatt Regency Aruba, but the planning for that trip had fallen apart for various reasons which I won’t go into here.

WE CHOSE THE GRAND HYATT BOGOTA

Grand Hyatt Bogota was a perfect idea. After all, (1) I had two category 1-4 World of Hyatt free night certificates that were expiring soon, (2) I could book additional nights for 12K – 15K World of Hyatt points per night, and (3) I could apply a suite upgrade certificate for those additional nights. Plus, I had some American Airlines travel credits that were going to expire soon.

The Grand Hyatt Bogota is widely regarded as a large, modern luxury hotel with a beautiful indoor pool and a great Grand Club lounge. There is also meeting space there (Little Caesars pizza – yes, the ones known for their pizza pizza ads – had a conference at the hotel when we were there!).

TRAVEL TO BOGOTA AND IMMIGRATION AT EL DORADO AIRPORT

The trip did not begin too swimmingly – the US government shutdown was still ongoing when our trip began so we had some cancellations and long waits. Plus, the lines at immigration and customs upon arrival at Bogota El Dorado Airport were rather frightful.

Long lines entering El Dorado Bogota Airport

We finally made it through customs, and we were happy that we’d arranged an airport pickup in advance of the trip through the hotel.

Bogota El Dorado Airport

GRAND HYATT BOGOTA – CHECK IN AND THE LOBBY

Simply stated, the Grand Hyatt Bogota is exquisite. This is the lobby area.

The staff couldn’t be any nicer. We were greeted by the hotel General Manager, Gerald Ursulet, who was extremely gracious and looked out for us during our entire stay. Everyone we met, on every level was friendly and helpful.

As an aside, the hotel hosts many famous guests, especially since it is located close to a popular concert and event arena. For the first few days of our stay, Mark Anthony and his concert team were staying at the hotel. Later, a popular Colombian singer, Beéle, and his team were there. Back to the review….

THE THIRTEENTH FLOOR

Our suite was on the 13th floor, the same floor as the Grand Club.

THE GRAND EXECUTIVE SUITE

We were upgraded to a Grand Executive Suite, a premium suite.

The suite is beautiful, with a dining room, a living room and a bedroom. There was a lovely welcome note from Mr. Ursulet and some fruits and cookies for us on the table. The suite was well lit and bright – something I really appreciate (and often find lacking in many hotel rooms). There were plenty of electrical outlets throughout the suite (but surprisingly no USB ports, except a few in the JBL speaker on the nightstand in the bedroom). In addition to the main bathroom, there was a second, smaller bathroom.

THE WATER COOLER

Instead of single use plastic water bottles, there was a glass bottle in each room that could be refilled at a water cooler on each floor.

THE GRAND CLUB

As mentioned previously, our room was conveniently on the same floor as the Grand Club. The schedule is listed below. In addition, for breakfast, guests can choose to eat either in the Grand Club or the Restaurant.

Here are some photos of the Grand Club for the evening cocktail hours. The staff couldn’t be nicer. The food was replenished quickly, and drinks were served promptly. There was both wine and spirits.

Breakfast in the Grand Club:

BREAKFAST IN THE HOTEL RESTAURANT

As mentioned previously, you could choose to have breakfast in the hotel restaurant. It was buffet style with a lot of choices, both hot and cold. You could also order eggs and omelettes.

THE HOTEL FITNESS CENTER

I really liked the hotel fitness center. It was large and clean. The equipment was state of the art and in kept in good working condition. Plus, I really like a gym with a view rather than one pushed into a basement corner. This gym had a wonderful view! And the carpet was very cool too.

I have two suggestions for the fitness center. First, it would be great if they had a rowing machine. Second, the weights started at five pounds and up. Some of us aren’t that strong or prefer to do a lot of repeats, so some 2 or 3 or 4 pound weights would be appreciated.

THE HOTEL POOL AND SPA

This is the walkway to the hotel pool! Pretty impressive, right? There are Men’s and Women’s locker rooms which each contain a sauna and steam room. These are not co-ed. The pool and the hydro spa areas are co-ed.

The pool is gorgeous!!

This is the sauna in the women’s room.

This is the whirlpool (be careful, it’s steep) and the hydrotherapy areas.

CONCLUSION

I note that the area around the hotel is very safe, and there are a few shopping malls in walking distance. However, the hotel itself is not in very close proximity to downtown Bogota. Although Ubers are plentiful and fairly inexpensive, traffic can be grueling especially during rush hour or during inclement weather. Bogota does not presently have a subway system, but one is presently being build and slated to be operational in 2028. That should help the congestion.

To conclude, I thought that the hotel was phenomenal and as a category 3 World of Hyatt hotel, it is a bargain. There is a lot of business development in the immediate area of the hotel, which makes the hotel well-acclimated for both business and personal stays.

Although I loved the hotel, Dave was a little bit more guarded in his view – I think he was expecting more of a resort and he was concerned about traveling to Colombia because of it’s proximity to places like Venezuela. In actuality, I don’t think we ever felt any cause for alarm.

Anyway, I think that if we were to return, we might split our time between the Grand Hyatt and a downtown hotel, so we could experience both sides of Bogota.  That might be an ideal combination.

Feel free to ask any questions or comment with your own experience here or in Bogota generally.

RELATED POSTS

Bogota Airport: The Dorado Lounge by American Express Inside the El Dorado Lounge

coming soon – A video tour of the Executive Grand Suite at Grand Hyatt Bogota

coming soon – Our four days in Bogota, including a tour and visits to favorite Bogota museums