Hyatt Place Topeka

Please avoid staying at HYATT PLACE TOPEKA in Topeka, KS. I’m reporting that it’s operating even though it should be closed because its heating boilers aren’t properly hooked up or inspected to city code. Police and city staff have reportedly been there several times. The general manager and acting ownership have kept it open, and workers were told not to speak up, or to call management immediately if the city arrived so management could shut off the water before being caught. There are also reports of bed bugs that went unaddressed for weeks. Employees have been treated unfairly and feel forced to leave over safety hazards. Linen was washed only in cold water, which I consider unsafe and disgusting. There’s mold in the meeting room walls and ceiling. I also say not to eat the food because it’s expired, and the manager apparently considers it acceptable if it’s bagged even after its discard date. Don’t stay unless you’re okay with an unsafe hotel environment.

As regular Hyatt guests, we were really disappointed. The window was filthy, and there were boogers on the wall. Pretty gross. Then, around 10 in the morning on checkout day, an employee knocked and opened our door right away without waiting for me to answer. They only wanted to ask when we planned to leave, even though we already knew the checkout time from check-in. It made me angry, especially thinking one of us might not have been decent at the time. Why is barging into a guest’s room to ask that considered normal practice? This place shouldn’t represent the Hyatt brand. It felt more like a motel 6.

Breakfast needs work: the scrambled eggs had an odd, unpleasant taste, and the coffee was cold. Fixing those two things would make a real difference. Our stay was still very pleasant. The room was spotless, roomy, and well kept, and the bed was extremely comfortable. The bathroom, though, was quite small and felt uncomfortable. That was a minor drawback and didn’t keep us from enjoying the stay.

The location works for me, but I won’t stay here again unless something major changes. The lobby restrooms were also in poor shape: two of the three toilets were out of order Friday evening and were still that way when I left Sunday. My Friday check-in was a mess. I arrived at 7:30 p.m. after booking about two weeks earlier, but was told my room wasn’t ready because of late checkouts. They took my card for the required $50 incidental hold and asked me to wait in the lobby. By 9 p.m. it was standing room only, with other guests waiting angrily and one tired child asleep on a couch. The employee handling everyone stayed professional, but the manager refused to come down after he called for her. When I was finally called up, the same employee said he couldn’t see the first hold and asked for my card again. I just wanted to sleep, so I swiped it. The hold was duplicated, and both charges were still on my card when I posted this. I got to my room at 9:30. It was clean, and I was exhausted enough to go straight to bed. The shower was hot, thankfully, but the water pressure was so poor that rinsing shampoo took about ten extra minutes. I left before the 7 a.m. breakfast on both mornings. After a long day on Saturday, I returned at 8 p.m. to find my sixth-floor key disabled. The desk reprogrammed it, but the TV then showed a weak or missing signal message. Only two local channels came in clearly. The employee knew about the issue and said he was working with the provider. After the wait for a room and the lack of cable or satellite, I wondered whether vendors and staff were being paid. On my final day, I had late checkout, came back around noon to collect my things, and found my key disabled again.