Grand Hyatt Martinez, CannesGrand Hyatt Martinez became part of the Hyatt portfolio in 2013 at the same time as the equally iconic Palais de la Mediterranée, Hyatt Regency Nice. We are not francophiles, but recently bit the bullet and booked a couple of Easyjet flights to the French Riviera in order to review both hotels for D2T. For many Hyatt fans, the question will be 'which hotel should I choose?' This isn't an easy question to answer - we much preferred the town of Nice, but for diamond members, the Grand Hyatt in Cannes seems to provide better value (they are the same price if booking on cash+points - 12500 points plus around 125 euro) and was more glamourous. We parked our rented convertible next to the Marina and strolled over to the hotel for check-in. Directly on the sea-front, the location can't be bettered, and the private beach at the front definitely lends an air of exclusivity.
Check-in was surprisingly slow for no obvious reason. After being offered the 1000 bonus points or welcome amenity (which we chose as we were entertaining and wine and fruit would come in handy), we were escorted by a member of staff to our assigned room. DiningThe first thing to note here is the generous evening amenity for diamond members of Hyatt Gold Passport. As the hotel is categorised as a Grand Hyatt, but does not have a Grand Club, the hotel offers an open bar to Diamond members. All drinks from a special menu are complimentary, served along with nuts, olives and a few canapés (foie gras and smoked salmon on toast the two nights we were in house). The drinks menu was extremely generous, including Taittinger champagne and premium spirits. Whilst it would have been lovely to have a change of canapés on the second night we were there, this was a generous benefit that we really appreciated.
On the first evening, we ate in the hotel's casual dining restaurant, Le Relais. This was good value at €48 ($53) per person, including a glass or champagne. All dishes marked with a symbol on the online menu are included in this offer, so there is plenty of choice. The Niçoise salad was excellent, other dishes as expected for a 5* hotel, but no more. Breakfast was the typical hotel buffet with plenty of breads and patisserie, as you would expect in France. Having enjoyed a fresh fruit salad with berries, melon and mango at dinner, we were disappointed by the paucity of fresh fruit available in the morning. Although the eggs were cooked nicely on Saturday morning, the chef changed on Sunday morning and the quality reduced a lot - omelettes were more like scrambled eggs and too oily. On the other hand, the breads and fruit compotes were delicious. |
Junior SuiteWe were delighted to be upgraded to a junior suite with private terrace, complete with a partial sea-view. Entry was through a foyer with dressing area and the generously proportioned bathroom was to the left, complete with whirlpool bath, powerful shower (with side nozzles) and twin sinks. The toiletries provided were of high quality and plentiful - we loved the scent and the style of the bottles. The bedroom was also spacious with desk, lounge table and seating for four.
The highlight of the room was the terrace. This was much bigger than we expected, furnished with a dining table, sun loungers and chairs - we enjoyed dinner out here one night with family and it was a perfect place to entertain. Whilst the room was clean, there was a strange smell (damp perhaps?) and the drain covers in the bathroom were loose creating a trip hazard. In general, fittings felt tired and the refurb planned for late 2016 is perhaps a little overdue. Leisure FacilitiesThe Martinez offers a private beach, swimming pool, gym, spa and seasonal kid's club. The prices at the spa are eye-watering, so we didn't try a treatment. The spa is also managed by a third party, hence no photographs of treatment rooms. We did view the gym and changing facilities, which were ok but no more. The changing rooms were small and did not feel as luxurious as we had expected. The gym was compact but offered Technogym equipment and there was a large sun terrace outside with plenty of loungers but no bodies - a great place to go if you aren't lucky enough to have a room with private balcony.
We were surprised to be underwhelmed by the pool. Perhaps having being spoilt by the Hyatt pools in Singapore and Bangkok, where the leisure facilities are on the 5th floor, thus away from public view, the pool at the Martinez is on the ground floor just outside the restaurant and quite close to the road. During our stay, it was near empty, so could be a pleasant place to enjoy the sun, but we had expected a more exclusive area. It is a freeform pool and not suitable for serious swimmers, it's more of a place to chill and pose. The beach along the Golfe de la Napoule is a narrow strip of golden sand. It shelves quite steeply so there is not much more room at low tide than high tide. Nonetheless the colour of the water is heavenly and there is a demarcated safe swim zone. I was surprised therefore to be warned by one of the hotel's beach attendants not to swim here as the water is so dirty he was sure I would get sick. I took his advice. |
Overall Impression
Well the first thing to say is that we booked our next visit within a few days of the first. Overall, for HGP Diamond members GH Cannes offers very good value for money. A refit is planned for 2016 and it is clearly needed although we had no major gripes about the state of our room, it was just a little tired. Le Relais is a good inexpensive eaterie and there is also a Michelin starred restaurant, which we plan to sample on our next visit. Leisure facilities are limited for a Grand Hyatt but there is of course a private beach. Service during our stay was excellent apart from the slowness of check-in. Getting here from Nice Airport should take no more than 30 minutes and you choose between the train, helicopter, bus, taxi or limo service according to your budget. A great place to spend 'le weekend.'
The Côte d'Azur remains an extremely cool destination and the bay is quite beautiful. Cannes and Nice are a few miles apart and in between is the legendary Juan les Pins where the glitterati sometimes hang out at the annual jazz festival. An hour by car to the east is Monte Carlo. Needless to say there are numerous marinas filled with gin palaces registered to tax havens such as The Cayman Islands, we spotted about ten registered to George Town in a few minutes. The shopping at Cannes is therefore very high-end with every significant design house represented. It is possible to hire a classic sports car for the day to join the posers on the strip at surprisingly reasonable prices. Cannes has numerous small restaurants catering for all tastes and incomes.
The Côte d'Azur remains an extremely cool destination and the bay is quite beautiful. Cannes and Nice are a few miles apart and in between is the legendary Juan les Pins where the glitterati sometimes hang out at the annual jazz festival. An hour by car to the east is Monte Carlo. Needless to say there are numerous marinas filled with gin palaces registered to tax havens such as The Cayman Islands, we spotted about ten registered to George Town in a few minutes. The shopping at Cannes is therefore very high-end with every significant design house represented. It is possible to hire a classic sports car for the day to join the posers on the strip at surprisingly reasonable prices. Cannes has numerous small restaurants catering for all tastes and incomes.