Andaz Ottawa ByWard Market, by Hyatt — Hotel in Ottawa

To Everyone at Andaz Ottawa Downtown,

I’m writing with immense gratitude in my heart for the incredible experience my aunt and I had during our recent stay at your hotel. This was no ordinary visit—it was part of a once-in-a-lifetime end-of-life bucket list road trip I planned to honour my aunt’s final wishes. Thanks to all of you, her stay at Andaz became something extraordinary. You gave her an experience filled with elegance, kindness, and joy that she will carry in her heart forever—and so will I.

From the moment we arrived, every detail of our time at Andaz reflected genuine care, pride, and a deep understanding of what hospitality truly means. Each of you played a unique role in making this journey unforgettable.

Cindy – General Manager

Cindy, there truly are no words big enough to express our gratitude for everything you did. Your spirit, compassion, and leadership shine in every corner of Andaz, but most of all, in how you treat your guests—not as customers, but as people, as family. You went above and beyond in a way we never expected, and we will never forget it. The time you took to personally bring my aunt to the rooftop to soak in the sweeping views of Parliament Hill was something deeply special. It wasn’t just about the view—it was about your warmth, your presence, and the way you made her feel: seen, valued, and cherished in a moment that was about celebrating her life. You gave her the high life—literally and figuratively—and she told me later that it was the highlight of her entire life. You didn’t just host us—you made this dream come to life. You created a memory that transcends the usual definition of a hotel stay. I will be forever thankful for your generosity, your empathy, and your leadership. The kindness you showed my aunt is something I will carry with me forever. You are the very soul of Andaz.

Ryan – Concierge Desk Ryan, thank you for your sweetness, your kindness, and your thoughtful approach. You helped us navigate our time with ease and made everything feel personalized and smooth. My aunt commented more than once about how gracious you were—thank you for making us feel so welcome.

Nathan & Andrew – Valet Team Thank you both for your cheerful energy, friendly service, and professionalism. Each time we arrived or departed, you greeted us with smiles and warmth, and it added so much to our comfort. We felt looked after in every sense, and that’s thanks to you.

Lidia – Housekeeping Lidia, thank you for your quiet, diligent care. Our room was spotless, cozy, and comforting—exactly what we needed after long days of travel and emotion. You made our stay feel peaceful, which is a gift in itself. Thank you for your part in that.

Veronica – Feast + Revel Veronica, thank you for your beautiful service at the restaurant. You were warm, attentive, and brought joy to the meal.

To Everyone at Andaz From every person we encountered at check-in, to those behind the scenes, to the team who helped make this happen—thank you. You created something deeply meaningful for my aunt and me, during a moment in her life when it mattered the most. Your hotel didn’t just offer us a place to stay—it became part of a beautiful and emotional chapter we’ll never forget.

As a lasting tribute, my aunt purchased a piece of artwork where she is writing the names of every person and place who helped bring her bucket list road trip to life. Each of your names will be written on that piece. Andaz, and all of you, will live on in this memory—a symbol of love, kindness, and shared humanity.

Thank you for making the most special trip of her life possible. You gave us more than hospitality—you gave us hope, laughter, and a feeling of true care. For that, I will be forever grateful.

With all our love and sincere...

TLDR; Given wrong information by concierge multiple times, poor poor parking, TV was not up to par, room had a nice view, and given COVID, breakfast was good. Overall, not a good representation of a 4star hotel.

We booked as Visa Infinite members.

We pulled into a parking lot that was overflowing and parked along some cement blocks because there were no parking spots. When we went into the concierge, we were told there was parking 3 blocks down where we have to pay for parking. My wife is 8 months pregnant, so it is quite evident, and to come back 3 blocks with all our luggage made absolutely no sense to me. Several websites say valet parking is available, which was never offered to us. We were told if we had any questions, to text the number on the hotel card.

I also asked for a room upgrade from 2 queens to 1 king and was declined. We were given a room with a view of parliament which was nice, and if no rooms are available, then I cannot put that on the hotel.

We were told we had a $100 CAD food/beverage credit as part of VISA infinite to use for the rooftop bar. We were told that it closes at 2AM and it was on the top floor. (It should have been USD not CAD).

As evening comes, we got to the rooftop bar around 9:30 PM - we were asked if we had a reservation, and when we did not, we were told it was too busy, so we had to turn around and leave. Even though the website kept taking us to OpenTable, there was no spot to book reservations.

So I texted the help number on the hotel card to help book reservations. It has been 3 days and I still have not received a response.

Next day, we went down for breakfast (complementary for Visa Infinite members) which was nice. It was supposed to consist of a sandwich, pastry, beverage, fruit (only apples), and yogurt (which we did not receive).

We ended up booking reservations for the rooftop bar for 9:30 PM so we could enjoy it before it became too late. Since we were told it was open till 2AM, imagine my surprise when I was told at 10:30 that it was last call... apparently they closed at 11PM. What a shame.

Read my review on the Copper for details.

2nd day's breakfast was fantastic, we got everything we were supposed to, it was nice and hot, and the 2 girls at the breakfast station were very nice and friendly.

The room was nice, clean, and had a beautiful wall of windows overlooking Parliament Hill. The washroom was spotless and everything worked as it should have. The sheets felt odd, almost plastic like. The TV came with no channel guide, and had the guide button disabled on the remote, so we could not see anything about the programming, which was frustrating.

The easiest, and happiest part of the hotel for me was checkout. It felt exciting to give my room key back, clear the tab, and leave.

Overall, the staff were very nice, friendly, and polite. However they misinformed us, failed to take certain information into consideration, and did not represent the hotel at a 4 star level.

I would look elsewhere for a luxurious stay especially at the...

This was first and last stay here. I had high hopes but this hotel which bills itself as a luxury site is really nothing special and in fact seems to lack concern about patrons. I was on work travel so perhaps that’s why my issues were not really resolved nor did hotel staff do anything to acknowledge the problems. Perhaps there is more concern for vacationers than workers?

Upon arrival I was greeted with a glass of wine which I enjoyed and sort of had me feeling optimistic for the rest of my stay. I was able to park in the adjacent unsecured lot for $35 but it’s not reserved so had i departed I’d I would’ve lost my spot.

Upon entering the room it was ice cold and I checked the thermostat to discover the room temperature was 14 though it was set to 22! Surprise the heating was broken. During my 3 day stay Andaz dispatched 3 engineers to try and fix the issue. Lovely men who I enjoyed talking to but who really wants to deal with this? Ultimately the solution was to give me a space heater which did heat but also dried out the room and cycled off and on at night (see pics)….ah luxury! Normally a hotel of this stature would’ve tried to make things right…maybe a complimentary drink or snack…not here. Get back to your dungeon peasant! The engineer said I could ask to move after the final failed attempt but having hauled all my gear and luggage in, I wasn’t keen on packing up again and then having to deal with front desk etc.

Another fun thing that happened was the rotten plate of fruit and cookies that greeted me upon arrival (see picture and yes the green fuzzy things were strawberries) When I walked in I was stoked to see it there along with a welcome note. I soon realized that the note was for “Karen” and had been written by the sales manager 5 days earlier to welcome her on her first stay. So that happened! I guess I didn’t rank high enough to get a welcome amenity in the room. This also had me questioning whether my room was cleaned, it certainly wasn’t inspected before my arrival or else the heat would be working and rotten fruit removed. Front desk apologized when I brought these back down and confirmed they were for someone else…thanks.

Even eat check out I felt like my business wasn’t valued. I had to prompt the staff to provide my feedback as they simply handed me my invoice but didn’t ask how my stay was…I’m assuming they knew it sucked and didn’t want to here from me. I did reach out to the hotel and so far have not received any explanation for such a horrible experience. I guess they are busy assembling fruit plates?

My advice…look elsewhere. There are many hotels here and I’ve had good experience with both Westin...