Hyatt Regency, San Francisco

...it came up with the Hyatt at a reasonable price. Hyatt's are usually four or five star luxury establishments, so I thought that $89 for the room was a good deal. I also happened to have a voucher for an upgrade to an executive room. So we booked.

The shuttles to the hotels are easy to find, and there is a staff member on duty who will tell you when the next shuttle to your hotel is due. We waited about 10 minutes. The bus goes to three ...
...Hyatt is a modern hotel, with 793 guest rooms on nine floors arranged around an internal atrium. Check-in time is 3 pm, while checkout is noon

The hotel has three restaurants, the Swiftwater Deli for breakfast, which serves Starbucks coffee, Knuckles Historical Sports Bar, which serves burgers, salads, sandwiches and snacks, and the Swiftwater Cafe, which offers Californian cuisine in a more formal setting.

The lobby ... more

When we fly into San Francisco, we usually arrive late afternoon or early evening. As we have a four-hour drive ahead of us to reach our final destination (and our body clocks are telling us it's the wee hours of the morning) we always get a hotel near the airport. Our main aim is to collapse into bed and recover from the flight.

Price is the main deciding factor, and we have stayed at several hotels over the years. I tend to search the internet for good deals, and this time it came up with the Hyatt at a reasonable price. Hyatt's are usually four or five star luxury establishments, so I thought that $89 for the room was a good deal. I also happened to have a voucher for an upgrade to an executive room. So we booked.

The shuttles to the hotels are easy to find, and there is a staff member on duty who will tell you when the next shuttle to your hotel is due. We waited about 10 minutes. The bus goes to three hotels, arriving at the Hyatt last.

The Hyatt is a modern hotel, with 793 guest rooms on nine floors arranged around an internal atrium. Check-in time is 3 pm, while checkout is noon

The hotel has three restaurants, the Swiftwater Deli for breakfast, which serves Starbucks coffee, Knuckles Historical Sports Bar, which serves burgers, salads, sandwiches and snacks, and the Swiftwater Cafe, which offers Californian cuisine in a more formal setting.

The lobby is very luxurious, with lots of brass and wood. The reception desk is a little way from the main entrance. There was no queue.

I presented my voucher for the upgrade. What I didn't realise was that on the weekend (it was a Saturday night) most of the features on the executive floor, including the free breakfast, weren't available. The lady at the check in said not to worry, I could keep my voucher for next time, and she would put us in an executive room anyway.

The executive rooms are on their own floor, accessed by using your room key in the lift. This means that it is very quiet, as there fewer people and usually no children. Quiet that is, unless you are given a room overlooking the atrium, as we were. There is music and noise from the bars until the early hours. It didn't matter to us as we were too tired to notice, but if you stay here, ask for a room overlooking the bay.

The executive floor has a gym (there is also an outdoor heated pool) and a lounge (which was closed) where free drinks and hors d'oeuvres are available in the evening and a free buffet breakfast in the morning, but only on weekdays.

The rooms are luxurious, with a huge bed (far wider than it was long), a sofa and easy chair, and a desk/dresser. There is tea or coffee in the room, and it is available on the landing.

High-Speed Wireless Internet access is available in all rooms for $9.95 per night.

There is an AM/FM alarm clock radio and a TV with cable movie channels. You can also access video messages and check out on the TV.

All rooms have a two-line speaker phones with voice mail and a computer data port.

Each room has an iron and ironing board.

The bed was comfortable, with loads of pillows. Each room of course has it's own climate control, so you can adjust the temperature to your preference.

However, the bathroom was a disappointment. It was quite small compared to the size of the room, with a small and shallow bath. It was though kitted out with all the necessary amenities, including shower gel, hand lotion, a hair dryer etc. The towels were large and fluffy.

The room, including the bathroom, was meticulously clean.

We only stayed one night, and were away quite early the next morning, so we didn't have the chance to use most of the amenities, such as the bar and the pool, but they looked inviting.

Certainly I wouldn't pay the normal rates to stay here, but if you can find a good deal, treat yourself to a bit of luxury as you fly in or out of San Francisco.

 

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