Kissel Uptown Oakland - The Unbound Collection by Hyatt — Hotel in Oakland

PARKING Valet parking is quite expensive ($52/day) but there is flexibility on pricing for extended stays.

CHECKIN Traditional payment methods accepted, no tap/electronic. Check-in speed was blazingly fast once the room became available. No additional fees for early check-in but our original booking still wasn't ready through 3pm. YMMV.

SERVICE Excellent customer service!!! Aaron was professional, personable, & very knowledgable about the location's history. Hospitality is well-understood here and is consistent + timely even over the phone. A clear step above the service I've experienced at neighboring hotels in this area (Sonesta & Marriott to name a few).

ROOM (suite) The room was GLORIOUS & well-appointed. It could easily pass for a luxurious apartment living space. The stock and attention to detail is nothing short of amazing: blackout roman shades, bubble-design chandelier, suede sofa, hardwood flooring, and tons of picturesque design features. Functionally, it's just as strong and equipped with: Smart AC system & outlets, antibacterial phone, large steel work desk, outdoor seating, a HUGE armoire, and full-size mirrors. The courtyard and patio space was also really serene! The lounge chairs are perfectly positioned for stargazing or aimlessly watching planes takeoff. Minus a few cosmetic details (water damage; a stained sette) & nitpicks (cigarette butt on patio) the execution was perfect!

BED The bedding was solid: premium sheets, cozy duvet, and soft feather-down pillows, but I recommend requesting additional foam down pillows if you prefer a denser profile. The mattress wasn't as supportive as I would've liked but it still provided a good nights sleep. The headboard is very functional, equipped with gold reading lights + motion sensitive night lights in the base.

BATH Bathroom fixtures are incredible... Opulent walk-in rainfall shower, sleek washroom sinks, sliding doors with chic wallpaper themes, 30" deep standalone spa tub with hand shower, and the icing on the cake...: Cottonelle professional series TP [best hotel brand] for your rump. The towels are on the smaller side, but they get the job done. There is also a very comfy bathrobe hidden away in the armoire. Essential Elements bath products are provided for your convenience and they smell quite good.

TV Luxe entertainment setup with 2 LG HD LCD TV's. One in the common area (65"!) and the other in the bedroom, both mounted with stationary configurations. Despite the lack of motion with the mounts, there are plenty of adjustable seating options in the unit, so it works out. Chromecast integration is available along with basic programming.

Wi-Fi The (unencrypted) wifi throughput was underwhelming and ultimately led to cutting our staycation/workcation short. QoS was good (no disconnects) but the wifi performance just fell extremely short: Nerd Stats: 11-18 Mbps down 16-19 Mbps up 0% packet loss 18-80 ms latency 3-45 ms jitter

FOOD & DRINK Not DoorDash/UberEats friendly but the on-site restaurant provides room service & has a fairly deep menu. Entrées range $20-45 and the menu is labelled quite well for food allergy accommodations. I really enjoyed the Sea Bass entree & Roasted Pear ice cream. The room-service is a bit disorganized for a connected restaurant: the to-go containers weren't labelled (important for food allergies) or packaged properly with colder items on the bottom. The repurposed minibar fridge is very clever but not functional enough for our leftovers or drinks.

NOISE Noise isolation between rooms is strong but sound leaks in pretty severely via the front door. The housekeeping carts & hallway conversation can be quite distracting and loud in that respect. Externally, there are some noisy aspects of this city that just can't be avoided: unhomed population, garbage collection, & motor-revving thru traffic.

VERDICT Customer Service & accommodations that go above and beyond. The wifi could use an overhaul but it's a solid stay if you're here for leisure. I highly recommend checking this place...

The Kissel is beautiful with great amenities in an awesome location! For the building and amenities, I would give a solid 4 star rating.

However, the Kissel falls very short in the area of expertise. I did not find the hospitality to be satisfactory. Bethany at the front desk was awesome and helpful and very friendly when I checked in. Although the notes she made to our reservation regarding our late check out did not seem to go through in the system, there appeared to be a lot of confusion with the staff the following day.

When we called in the morning, we were told that 12:30 is the absolute latest check out, even with the late check out fee, which negates what we were previously told. We had planned our day around a 3 pm late checkout we volunteered to pay $60 for, but made it back to hotel at noon sharp to accommodate the sudden change.

When we arrived back to the hotel, our cards were deactivated. To ask for clarity on company check out policy, I asked Patrice at the front desk (who was very reluctant to share her name and very short and matter of fact answering my questions by the way) and was unhappy with her responses.

Patrice cut me off during my question to share that she felt as though I was provided accurate information, which I was originally, before calling this morning when I was told something entirely different. Looking past unhelpful Patrice and her eye rolls and deep sighs during our conversation, the rest of the staff was fine.

They comped my meal after I found insects crawling in my bowl which was kind of them.

I am not sure if it was a rough week for the day staff or what, but I had planned on reconciling the downturn in energy following the confusion and staff not being on the same page. I think of the Kissel has everyone on the same page, provides some conflict resolution training to their staff and rinse their berries a little better, it would be a fabulous place to stay. I'll stick to...

Great new property in Oakland. Enjoyed my stay.

If traveling by BART, it’s walkable but probably 8-10 minute walk from 19th St station (closest). FYI, if you’re lugging a lot or arriving/leaving during dark hours. No self parking and valet is insanely expensive, consistent with everywhere else in the Bay.

Was hoping to get an upgrade as a Globalist but no such luck (didn’t ask, however). I checked in on the 3rd full day of the hotel grand opening & staff seemed to still be learning a bit so I didn’t press it. All staff was super friendly and helpful.

Base room was a bit small, and since I wasn’t upgraded, my view was “interior” that looked over towards other room windows and down to a tiny courtyard area. It was nicely outfitted though & the bed was comfortable.

Lobby itself was gorgeous. Lobby bar has some nice breakfast options. I had a breakfast sandwich one of my mornings there which was VERY good. Covered as part of Globalist benefit. They told me everything was covered for my breakfast but didn’t specify if that Globalist breakfast benefit had a cap at that property or not. I was hoping to visit the rooftop bar on my last day, but they said it was closed on Mondays and Tuesdays. One helpful thing would be if they would have dining hours posted somewhere. Couldn’t find it anywhere on website, posted in the lobby, and no literature in the room for either lobby bar or the rooftop bar and when they serve the various meal periods vs just bar service. Could be in the pipeline and just hasn’t been distributed yet due to being so new. All the staff was super helpful to answer questions when I had them though.

Only a few minor kinks, to be expected as a brand new property, but overall a nice and needed addition to Oakland. Look forward to returning and checking out their rooftop bar/lounge on one of...