Hotel Revival Baltimore, Joie de Vivre (Hyatt). Bottom Line Review

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The Hotel Revival Baltimore is part of Hyatt’s Joie de Vivre brand. We were rebooked there for one night as the Hyatt Regency Baltimore we were staying at got taken over by the NFL for the recent Ravens vs Cowboys game in order to keep the players in a bubble.

It was a hotel we’d been considering before booking the Hyatt Regency, so I’m glad we got a chance to stay there. It’s a nice hotel in a great neighborhood and could be excellent value using points seeing as it’s a category 2 Hyatt property.

Hotel Revival Baltimore Joie de Vivre Hyatt
Hotel Revival Baltimore

We didn’t get a true taste of the hotel for COVID-related reasons. They have a rooftop bar up top and a karaoke bar below, but I think both were closed during our stay. They were also doing some renovations on lower floors (including where the fitness room is located) which made sense seeing as occupancy is much lower than normal.

Despite that, we enjoyed our one night stay and the Hotel Revival would be a serious consideration if we visit Baltimore again in the future.

Hotel Revival Baltimore Bottom Line Review

If you’d rather redeem Hyatt points for a stay in an artsy neighborhood with great food options than in the Inner Harbor, the Hotel Revival is the place for you.

  • Points Price: Category 2, 8K points per night
  • Cash Price: If we’d booked the upgraded suite we received with cash, it would’ve cost $222.64.
  • Points Value: Potentially great value. We’d originally considered a longer paid stay as rates were sub-$100, but if room rates were more expensive then 8k points per night could be decent value.
  • Room: Very good. My Globalist status meant we got an upgrade to a Junior Suite Deluxe 1 King Bed at check-in which is the second-highest room type. There’s no separate bedroom and living room, but the room size was satisfactory and nicely designed. Our Hyatt stays tend to be at Hyatt Places, so it was lovely staying somewhere a little more fancy but which wasn’t pretentious. We were placed on the 10th floor to help ensure we didn’t hear construction on lower floors.
  • Parking: The hotel normally offers valet parking for $38 per night with full in/out privileges. Valet parking was suspended due to COVID, but you can self-park in their enclosed garage a couple of blocks away. I’m assuming the cost is the same for self parking, but it was waived due to my Globalist status.
  • Pet Policy: It’s a pet-friendly hotel and they don’t charge a pet fee – one of the only Hyatt properties I’ve come across that doesn’t charge a fee.
  • Service: Pretty good overall. The Hyatt Regency had neglected to inform the Hotel Revival we were being moved there for the night (we were originally being moved to the Sheraton next door before the Hotel Revival was offered), so it took about 10 minutes to get checked in. The front desk agent was friendly though and immediately recognized my Globalist status after a quick phone call to the Hyatt Regency and gave us an upgraded room. The benefit of not having a reservation already in place is that she had to create a standard reservation for me which I earned points on despite the Hyatt Regency presumably covering the stay, plus it meant Joie de Vivre was added to my list of Brand Explorer brands I’ve stayed at, getting me closer to another free category 1-4 certificate.
  • Turndown service: None that we were offered. It might be offered during normal times, but it’s possibly been suspended due to the pandemic.
  • Breakfast: COVID meant no cooked breakfast, but they had continental breakfast boxes they brought to our room.
  • Hyatt Elite Benefits: My Globalist status meant we got the following:
    • Suite upgrade: This was automatically provided when checking in and we were upgraded to the second-highest suite type of suite.
    • Free breakfast: This was provided for the two of us, albeit a COVID-friendly continental breakfast rather than their standard breakfast offering.
    • Free parking: We had to park our car ourselves as valet parking was suspended, but it was free.
    • 4PM late check-out: We could have taken advantage of this, but we had plans that afternoon and so moved back to the Hyatt Regency at midday.
  • COVID Notes: Masks were required and staff wore them, as did we. The hotel was very quiet during our stay and we didn’t see any other guests, so I’ve no idea how well the mask policy would’ve been enforced.
  • Would I stay again? I’d certainly consider it, especially seeing as my Globalist status meant we received free parking. Pretty much all hotels I’d looked at in downtown Baltimore charged $30-$40 per night for parking, so being able to get that waived with status is more enticing than a slightly cheaper rate elsewhere but where you have to pay for parking. 8k points per night is decent value too, especially if redeeming at the time of publishing this post as you get a 15% points rebate, or 25% for Hyatt cardholders.

Photos & Captions Follow:

Hotel Revival Baltimore - Junior Suite Deluxe 1 King Bed
Junior Suite Deluxe 1 King Bed. There was a couch off to the right just out of shot.
Monument Square at night
The Hotel Revival Baltimore is at the top of a hill, so our room on the 10th floor gave us this great view over the city. Monument Square is right outside and the hotel is in the Mount Vernon neighborhood which was a nice place to walk around.
Hotel Revival Baltimore - Walk-in Shower
A minor quibble – the lack of a full shower door meant the floor got wet just outside of the walk-in shower. The sink was also outside of the bathroom, so it meant using that in the dark at night after my wife had gone to bed.
Tea & coffee making options
I’d left my electric kettle at the Hyatt Regency seeing as we were only staying one night, so I was pleased to see an electric kettle with proper tea rather than a coffee maker.
a large living room with couches and tables
There are several large seating areas in the lobby which seemed like a great place to hang out with others during non-COVID times.
a dog sitting on a couch
Words of wisdom from our pup
a salad in a styrofoam container
I fell in love with som tum when we lived in Thailand. We got dinner from Thai Mekong that night and it was some of the best som tum I’ve had back in the US, along with being a generously sized portion for only $6.50. The restaurant is a short walk from the hotel and is on Grubhub, so it’s a great option for the $10 dining benefit on the Amex Gold card.
Hotel Revival Baltimore front desk
The service was friendly and the hotel was stylish without being pretentious.
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rich

Football players have never been in a bubble. The NBA did that and so did the NHL but not the NFL nor MLB. While not in a bubble they probably needed the whole hotel and wanted to do their best to isolate the players.

I’m a Maryland native but have spent little time in Baltimore except for Orioles games back in the 90s. Interesting hotel. Thanks.

AlexL

The view from your room is great!

Paul

I love that hotel. I stayed in 2018 (before it joined the Hyatt family) and again in 2020. I was frankly expecting the charm to have diminished after its assimilation into Hyatt, but actulay, I enjoyed it better! The kettle and coffee was what put it over the top for me. But there were many small touches, like knick knacks on the desk shelving in the room, as well as the presence of non mass produced art, which made me fall in love with the place.
I can’t wait to go back.
But shhhhh, don’t tell anyone… I don’t want it to be too crowded when I return.

Luke Vader

Thank you for the review and pics, they are very timely as Hotel Revival Baltimore has been on my radar for the past two months. Was planning to do a staycation over Thanksgiving weekend, but decided to cancel/postpone until late May, by which time the rooftop bar and karaoke rooms will hopefully be open

FYI, World of Hyatt credit card members who [register before Jan 5 and] stay there by March 31 can get a $75 statement credit on $250 spend. Just search “visa $75 hyatt statement credit” and the link will come up.

ktenorman

Counter culture is legit and in-room pour-over is awesome for a hotel of this price range. Solid review.

Theresa

Thanks so much for the review. I like the homey look of the hotel. And being a tea drinker, love the electric kettle because water heated up in a coffee maker always has the coffee residue taste. Great view from your room. I used to live in that neighborhood. Brings back memories.