Andaz Savannah - A Concept by Hyatt ★★★★

A Balcony Over the Only Square That Behaves Like a Piazza

Savannah’s squares are gardens, shaded, planted and largely silent. Ellis Square is the exception. Rebuilt over an underground car park after decades as a parking structure, it is open, paved and busy, with a fountain children run through in summer and City Market a block to the west. The Andaz takes the whole west side of it, and the rooms with balconies look straight down onto that activity. Choosing this hotel is largely a decision about which Savannah you want outside the window: the hushed one under the live oaks, or the one where something is always happening.

Why It Works

The Andaz is a Hyatt at the lifestyle end of the group, and it uses that position well. The public rooms are contemporary and low key, the service is informal without being casual, and the building carries none of the period furniture that defines most of the competition. That matters more than it sounds in a city where almost every hotel leans on the same set of references. There are 151 rooms, so it is large enough to have a proper restaurant, a pool terrace and a bar with live music, and small enough that the staff recognise you.

Why This Location

Barnard Street at Ellis Square puts you in the northern half of the Historic District, the working half. City Market is a block west, River Street is two blocks north and downhill, and the squares of Bull Street begin a short walk east. Forsyth Park is a longer stroll south, about twenty minutes through the grid, which is a pleasant way to spend the end of an afternoon. Practically, this is the address to choose if you intend to eat and drink downtown rather than take taxis, and the position pays off most after dark.

Fast Facts

• Price: Premium

• Vibe: Contemporary, unfussy, sociable

• Rooms: 151, including suites and loft style rooms with kitchens, many with balconies over the square

• Best For: Travellers who want downtown on foot, families, guests arriving with a dog

• Our Favorite Thing About the Hotel: The pool terrace after dark, with cabanas, a firepit and s’mores, which is not a combination anyone expects to find in the Historic District

• Dining: 22 Square Restaurant and Bar for modern Southern cooking from breakfast to late, with cocktails built on fresh juice and house syrups, and live music on Saturday evenings

• Amenities: Outdoor pool terrace, fitness centre, balconies, dogs welcome, family rooms

• Attractions: Ellis Square at the door, City Market a block west, River Street two blocks north, Forsyth Park about twenty minutes south

The Rooms, and Which Ones to Ask For

The rooms divide into three broad groups. The standard rooms are generous and plain in a good way. The balcony rooms are the reason to book here and should be requested by name, since not every category has one. The loft suites carry a kitchen and suit a stay of a week or a family that would rather not eat out three times a day. Interior facing rooms are quieter, which is the trade against the view, and worth taking if the balcony is not the point of the trip.

22 Square, and the Pool Terrace

22 Square runs from breakfast through to late night, which in a city that eats early is more useful than it sounds. The kitchen leans modern Southern and buys locally, the bar makes its own syrups and tonics, and on Saturday evenings there is live music in the room. The pool terrace is the property’s second act: cabanas, cocktails and a firepit with s’mores once the heat drops. Together they mean you can have a full evening without leaving, which is not something the historic inns can offer.

Before You Book

Ellis Square is lively, and the balconies that make this hotel also let the noise in on a Friday night. Ask for a high floor or an interior room if you are a light sleeper, and a low balcony if you are not. Parking downtown is a paid arrangement and worth sorting in advance. Dogs are welcome and so are children, which makes this one of the more flexible luxury options in the Historic District.