Our first stop in Wisconsin on our 50 state road trip was Milwaukee. When researching our hotel options, the Hyatt Place Milwaukee Airport seemed like our best option.
The first reason is because it’s a bargain when using World of Hyatt points – more on that in the ‘Cost’ section later in the review. The second reason was that Shae was flying in to Milwaukee airport to meet back up with me and our dog Truffles (she’d flown back to Virginia for the graduation of some students she used to teach). The hotel is also only a 15 minute drive from downtown, so it wouldn’t take long to get into the city.
Here’s a full review of our six night stay at the Hyatt Place Milwaukee Airport.
Check-In
The front desk agents when checking in were very friendly and fawned over Truffles, so she lapped up all the attention.
Our room keys were ready and waiting as I’d checked in online earlier that day, so the check-in process only took a minute or so.
Bedroom
We’d been assigned room 124 which was a room with one king bed. It was in a convenient location given we had a dog as it was very close to a rear exit.
When entering the room, the main living area was off to the left. That had the corner sleeper sofa that you’ll find at all Hyatt Place properties, along with a foot rest.
To the side of the corner sofa was a mini fridge and cupboard. On top of those was a countertop holding a coffee maker, a couple of mugs, tea and coffee and a metal bottle opener.
Many Hyatt Place properties have a sink in this section, so it was a little disappointing not to have that in this room.
In the corner when entering the room was a desk and office chair. Between the living area and bedroom area was the TV.
As mentioned earlier, we’d booked a room with a king bed which was very comfortable (as were the pillows). There weren’t a huge number of outlets either side of the bed, although there was one available outlet on each side to charge our phones at night.
When looking at the room from the entrance, it’s shaped like an E. The middle section of the E contained a chest of drawers, with a countertop on which we placed a suitcase. Seeing as there’s a mirror above it, that area could also be used for getting ready, doing makeup, etc.
To the right of these was a closet which contained a luggage rack, iron and ironing board, as well as bedding for the sofa bed.
One fairly frustrating aspect of the room was that the air conditioning unit had repeated problems. It would simply stop working, so you’d have to reset it. Sometimes it would be fine for the rest of the day, other times it would only run for a couple of minutes before needing to be reset.
The hotel was aware of this and it sounds like it’s an issue which affected more than just our room.
Bathroom
The entrance to the bathroom was opposite the bed. To the right of the bathroom was the sink and vanity with some additional shelves on either side.
The toiletries were the standard Barney Kenet MD toiletries you get at all Hyatt Places.
Next to the toilet was a bathtub with shower. It was a very nice shower with powerful water pressure – much better than many other hotel showers.
Breakfast
Breakfast was included as part of our stay and it was the same type of breakfast that you’ll get at all Hyatt Place properties in the US.
n.b. They’re bringing in some changes on November 1, 2018, so only World of Hyatt members who book directly at Hyatt Place properties (i.e. not via Expedia, hotels.com, etc.) will get free breakfast.
When entering the breakfast area, there’s silverware on the right, along with a chiller holding fruit juices and milk.
The hot options are changed most days. The day I took these photos there were scrambled eggs, bacon and pancakes. Other days there were sausage and gravy with biscuits, sausages, waffles, ancient grains and kale, breakfast potatoes and more, although scrambled eggs were available every morning.
There was also hot oatmeal available every day, along with several different types of cereal.
A separate chilled area had yogurts, hard boiled eggs, fruit and cottage cheese, along with small containers of butter and cream cheese.
In addition to the bowl of cut up fruit, there was a bowl of fresh fruit. Next to that were several types of preserves, as well as a bowl containing pre-cut bagel slices.
There were a few other bread options next to a toaster.
If you don’t want fruit juice at breakfast, there’s a coffee and tea station. Unlike several other hotel brands that offer it 24/7, coffee and tea is only available at breakfast.
Service during breakfast at the Hyatt Place Milwaukee Airport was excellent in a couple of ways. One morning I was making a cup of tea, but the hot water container was almost empty and started spluttering before it filled my cup. Without me asking, one of the people working the front desk came straight over, took my cup and filled it with hot water from behind the front desk (they have a bar and coffee making facilities behind there).
When having breakfast at Hyatt Places, there’s a large container where you place your used plates, cups, silverware, etc. when you’ve finished eating. On most mornings though, members of staff proactively came over and cleared everything away as soon as you’d finished so you wouldn’t have to do it yourself. This was unexpected but appreciated.
Amenities
The Hyatt Place Milwaukee Airport has a few amenities for you to take advantage of during your stay. There’s a swimming pool which seemed to be kept at a reasonable temperature (I dipped my hand in, but didn’t go swimming).
The hotel also has a fitness center with a few pieces of equipment and weights.
We’ve stayed at a few Hyatt Places so far on our 5 year, 50 state road trip, but none of them had laundry facilities for guests. Something nice about this property was that it had guest laundry available, with two washers and two dryers.
The washers cost $1.50 per load, while the dryers were $1 per load. If you need laundry detergent, that’s available for free from the front desk.
If you’re staying at the hotel and need to get to the airport, they offer free shuttle service 24/7.
The hotel also has a small business center in case you need to use a computer during your stay.
Wi-Fi
The Wi-Fi at this hotel wasn’t great. It was OK for browsing, but anything with lots of images or watching videos was much slower. It wasn’t anywhere near as bad as the Wi-Fi at the Candlewood Suites South Bend Airport, but was still frustratingly slow at times.
Pet-Friendliness
The Hyatt Place Milwaukee Airport is a pet-friendly hotel. The pet fee was $75 for our stay as we were staying six nights. For stays of 7-30 nights, the pet fee is $175.
There are a few grassy areas outside to walk your dog. Alternatively, take a right out of the hotel and walk down the road – you’ll pass a Fedex depot with a large grassy area, while continuing along the road will take you to more of a neighborhood area.
Service
I mentioned earlier about how good the service was at breakfast. That was the case during our entire stay – housekeeping staff were friendly and the front desk staff were always friendly and helpful.
Location
The Hyatt Place Milwaukee Airport is only a couple of minutes from the airport, so it’s in a perfect location if you’ll be flying out of General Mitchell International Airport.
The hotel’s also only 10 minutes away from The Basilicia of St Josaphat and 15 minutes from downtown, the Historic Third Ward, Veteran’s Park and Lakefront Brewery.
Cost
We paid for our stay using World of Hyatt points; it’s a category 1 property, so it only cost 5,000 points per night.
By comparison, the nightly rate during our stay would’ve been $100.80 including tax. That means we got 2.01cpp (cents per point) of value which is pretty good for World of Hyatt points.
As an added bonus, we also earned 1,000 American Airlines miles thanks to this promotion.
Final Thoughts
Other than the Wi-Fi and air conditioning unit issues, we had a great stay at the Hyatt Place Milwaukee Airport. The room was comfortable, the breakfast was good (as it always is at Hyatt Place properties) and the service was excellent.
It was great value seeing as it only cost us 5,000 points per night and was close enough to the city for when we wanted to visit downtown.
Truffles Approval Rating
Truffles gives the Hyatt Place Milwaukee Airport four paws out of four – pawfect! They had a reasonable pet fee for a six night stay, we were in a room near an exit which made it easier to take her out and several staff members gave her the attention which she craves.
Our Rating
Room = 4.5 / 5
Hotel Amenities = 4.3 / 5
Food = 4.4 / 5
Location = 4.5 / 5
Service = 4.8 / 5
Overall Value = 4.7 / 5
Total = 4.53 / 5
Address
Hyatt Place Milwaukee Airport, 200 W Grange Ave, Milwaukee, WI 53207
[…] I’d do differently is try to book an affordable hotel or Airbnb downtown. We stayed at the Hyatt Place Milwaukee Airport because it was such good value when using points, but Milwaukee seemed like a city that you can […]