DLAtlPdx

The Diamond breakfast here is the buffet at Shula's. Pretty good as far as buffets go. If I remember right you can't order off the menu, which I've been able to do at several other Hyatts.

Boraxo

Stayed here earlier this month. Hyatt is now our corporate hotel of choice in Houston, replacing the Four Seasons On the plus side, our rate includes free wi-fi and free breakfast. The former appears to work well in room, the latter is a coupon that is good at both the restaurant and the lobby convenience store which has a mini-starbucks ^

This is your typical atrium-style Hyatt Regency, a bit nicer than others - maybe due to recent renovation? Checkin was quick and efficient, I was most appreciative to receive an extra-large room at the end of the hall. Unfortunately it was not until 12:30am that I discovered that the wall behind me had some kind of horribly loud ventilation noise. At that point I did not feel like getting dressed so I ended up pulling the mattress onto the floor away from the wall (this was not a problem as the room was extra large). Changed rooms the next afternoon (no hassle) and was much happier in a regular room on the 16th floor. Although noise from the atrium carries, it is not noticeable once you get into the room.

The gym is tolerable - more aerobic machines than most but a rather mediocre weight lineup. Room service food was surprisingly good and delivered quickly. Tons of elevators.

Overall I was quite pleased though I would definitely avoid rooms ending in xx27.

If you need a restaurant recommendation, try The Reef, a short cab ride. Great food and service.

wizzy

I've stayed here twice recently, once for a night and more recently for two nights.

As others have mentioned, typical atrium hotel. At check-in have been recognized as diamond, but had to prompt for breakfast coupons this week. Both rooms have been on 20-something floors, about as far as you can get from the elevators. LCD tv's, but no HD channels (pet peeve of mine). Gym is ok, plenty of cardio stuff but not much weights. All the cardio has built-in tv's, which was nice.

The area around the hotel is a ghost town after 5pm, so you either eat at Shula's in the lobby, walk across the street to Massa's seafood, or catch a cab somewhere. I actually walked around a bit last night to a decent beer bar on Main St. called the Flying Saucer. Apparently it's a Southern chain, but I've never been to one before, and really enjoyed the beer selection.

The diamond breakfast is a good one. It's buffet, but made to order omelets and belgian waffles, in addition to the typical buffet fare.

The hotel is connected to the tunnel system; unfortunately my work location is not. Free local shuttle, based on availability.

I'll be back when I'm in the area.

yyzgigi

If you walk a few blocks down Polk St. there is an outdoor mall complex with lots of restaurants, including McCormick and Schick and House of Blues. Although it is not crowded, it is a pretty safe walk -- I've done it many times.

PFKMan23

Why is that? Are those the rooms that are closest to the elevators or something?

wizzy

When I'm in Houston, I actually work right across the street at 1301 Fannin; had lunch in that complex yesterday. From the little research I did online, most of the place in there got poor reviews, faring better for lunch than dinner. Have you had other experiences?

yyzgigi

Funny... I often work in the same building.

I'm generally not that fussy, so may not be the best judge. I don't mind McCormick and Shmick. Guadalajara is pretty reasonable and the food wasn't bad. Although not exactly authentic Chinese, I thought the food at Yao Restaurant was pretty good, although the laser light show was silly and didn't add any value to my meal. House of Blues is pretty standard, you get what you'd expect.

That's all I've sampled, no place that I would run to, but haven't felt like I had a bad meal or was ripped off at any of the above. Certainly way more options than when I stayed downtown 10 years ago.

seawolf

Just wanted to add that the breakfast coupon is also good for room service (two eggs plus meat).

Self park is avaliable via the valet for $15 a night (unlimited access and up to 4PM) and is the open air lot located at 29.75587N 95.3690W. Entrance is on Milam or Louisana. Assuming an empty lot, you should drive to valet first (enter via Louisana and Polk), pay cashier for a parking tag and then park. Otherwise you'll have to walk from lot to valet and back to lot with the tag. The charge can be billed to the room.

Diamonds get comp Internet via both wifi and wired.

Boraxo

They are farthest from the elevators. Re-read my post to understand the noise issue in these rooms.

seawolf

My Diamond upgrade placed me in the Imperial suite.

tinytina

Apparently I got upgraded to an "Imperial suite" and when I arrived in my room, they showed me two identical regular rooms with the connecting door opened. Did they lie to me or what the hell is this??

tashworth

Had a nice stay last night (Friday) at the HR Houston. Hotel was booked with conferences, and despite asking, no upgrade for this Diamond. I was placed in a quiet location on the 24th floor a few doors away from the atrium. Service has improved since I was here last. Valet fast and friendly; front desk well staffed and accommodating. Shula's restaurant service was very good for breakfast. Room was spacious and clean--two hangups though--quality of TV signal was not great (fuzzy), and the water in the room is $3.25 even for Diamonds.

My thoughts on the comment card were to comp the water for Diamonds, since there is no Regency Club in the hotel. Location is good if you are working downtown; the problem is that Shulas is VERY pricy if you are on a per diem it will eat up your budget, and nearby restaurants are minimal (don't go to the new Italian restaurant Veccecio (sp?) across from Allen Center-1 block from the hotel--bad service, iffy food and they serve Coronas, but no limes at the bar ever). Other than that Hyatt is a very very good place to stay downtown.

nbs2

Since I'm a lowly Plat, the best I can hope for is a "best in category" upgrade. Does anybody have any suggestions on what floor/view is the best in the hotel if I'm opting for a standard room? I'll only be there on what appear to be a slow Fri and Sat night, so I hope I'll be able to swing whatever folks suggest.

Also, suggestions on the best way to deploy the Plat Extras cert there would be nice. I don't have time for much travel in the first half of this year, and would rather it not go to waste on 6/30. I'll be going out for dinner, so I'm curious if the quality of Shula's breakfast makes it worth spending the cash for two adults/one kid to get the extra 500 points or if there are better options in the area.

Crazyhotelguy

Any recent experiences?

bradj

All other reviews are still pretty spot on. Breakfast at Shula's with a good buffet even on weekends. Valet was ~20. I found the lobby bar prices were a bit steep.