l etoile

I'm not a fan of this property and would definitely not recommend it for women staying alone.

I was there a month or so ago and had numerous problems with it, but the one that concerned me the most is that there is no a/c (granted, it doesn't get that warm in Monterey, but there are certainly some days when it does). The sign in the room tells you to open the sliding glass door if you are too warm in the room. I had a first-floor room on the golf course. I find needing to open the door on to the golf-course to get fresh air or cooled off a security concern. I'm surprised they didn't at least put a/c on the bottom floor.

Additionally, the maids here are extremely noisy. They speak very loudly, bang on the doors loudly and have their radios turned up high. Do not expect to sleep in.

The breakfast buffet is nice, but I had a manager come and give me a last-call 10-minutes before they were to clean up. I got up immediately and everything was already put away. The host then offered to comp my breakfast, but, being a diamond it already was included.

Lastly, yes, my amenity (cheese plate and drink) was marked to arrive ASAP, but took three phone calls and 1.5 hours to be delivered.

I won't stay there again.

thesilb

l'etoile, sorry to hear about that. We can't comment about the "women staying alone" issue, but in terms of the other issues, it sounds like your stay was very different from ours.

The maids were quiet and courteous when we were there. I passed a few of them, and there were no radios to be seen or heard. They did not bang any doors in our building and they were definitely working that morning.

In terms of a/c, I have lived in the Bay Area for 30+ years and never had AC in SF, the East Bay or Marin. I see you live here too - perhaps slightly inland at Alamo its more common, but I think on the coast (we live in coastal Marin) its very rare and I wouldn't really expect it in Monterey. Perhaps anyone who is very concerned about this and must have their window open should just be sure to request a room on floors 2 through 4 (i.e., there are 75% of rooms in the hotel where there would be no security concern at all with leaving your slider open). This seems like an easy fix.

I have to reiterate that we really enjoyed this property and would not hesitate to recommend it. ^

l etoile

You're right, of course, that even the top hotels in the area don't generally have a/c in Monterey and as temps in the summer usually peak at 70F, it's not much of a concern. (Although there are a lot of reviews of various hotels in the area with complaints about rooms being hot.) It is not entirely unusual for Monterey to see a 100F day, as such I think a/c on even just the lower floors would have made a lot of sense for safety. I did ask for a higher room and was told there were none available. (They seemed to have everyone consolidated into just a few buildings.) Anyway ...it's just not something I would chance and I'm surprised they took the risk given that those lower floors rooms would be accessible to anyone if the slider was open.

I'm glad your stay went well.

GUWonder

The hotel has a couple of free washers and dryers "underneath" over by the pool area. I have made good use of them often and almost always seem to find free laundry detergent near the machines.

lswcih

I'm currrently staying at the Hyatt Regency Monterey using a FFN. Was given a room in Building 7 with a golf course view. The Regency Club (located in Building 5) was opened, but I never saw a staff person in the room. Once the evening offerings were consumed (at around 6:30 PM) nothing was restocked. Was in a non-smoking room, but could smell the scent of tobacco in the bed comforter. The golf course view was great...but the room was one which had the connecting door to the adjoining room. I could hear the neighbor talking late into the night.

Steph58

I have nothing but good things to say about my recent stay. I haven't been there in years--since the rooms have been refurbished. Much better now! I purposely chose a summer weeknight, as I was hoping the place wouldn't be crowded and over-run like it is on weekends. Fantastic stay--upgraded to a Monterey suite in building 8, 2nd floor, no problem checking in at noon and extended check-out next day till 1:30. Heard not a peep from any neighbors (the resort was at the most half-occupied). The shower was huge, 2 bathrooms, living room, bedroom with frosted glass doors, refrigerator, safe, bottled water (for our $17 resort fee), good wireless connection. It would have been perfect it there'd been a balcony, but that's okay we sat by the pool. A bit of a walk back & forth to RC in building 5 but with all the food we were entitled to, I rationalized the walking was a good thing.

Front desk staff were very pleasant and helpful--quite the opposite from when I was there years ago. RC was staffed every time I visited. Loved the coffee machine that lets you choose 12(?) possible concoctions. Refrigerator always stocked with soft drinks, juice and water. Breaksfast was good, your typical continental items (but fresh bing cherries were a surprise). I was impressed when the RC attendant replenished everything at 9:15 considering it ends at 9:30. Evening snacks were a bit of a disappointment--don't plan on skipping dinner. Seems Hyatt wants to keep us healthy with fresh vegetables (no dip), a few crackers, a little block of cheese and some salami & very thinly sliced ham. It was presented nicely, though. Desserts--a very yummy skillet banana pudding with crumb topping, cookies & 1/2" squares of lemon bars & brownies.

I would imagine if there were crowds on weekends the size of the RC wouldn't work (only 2 small eating tables, plus sofas & chairs with coffee tables). But there are tables outside with a view of the pool & activities, which work quite well in good weather.

You need your room key to get into the pool, then use the room key to get your towels. Ping pong tables, on-the-ground chess game, backgammon, a firepit for making s'mores at night, spa, tennis courts, laundry room, beautiful landscaping--this Hyatt is a true resort now. Ate at the restaurant TusCA; lunch & dinner were very good and, again, a light touch (medium-sized portions, light on the salad dressing and no heavy sauces). If you book via Open Table, TusCA is one of their 1000 points restaurants. Knuckles Sports Bar is still there but not open until 4 p.m. on weekdays.

I will say having a golf course view (versus a view of the front of cars in the parking lot) really makes for a better experience here. It was pretty warm during our stay & we were okay with no A/C--just opened our second-floor windows & used the ceiling fans. If you run on the hot side, this could be a problem during the summer. I've always liked the beautiful surroundings of this resort (not including the old rooms of the past) and the Monterey area. So I am very happy to have one nice Hyatt resort in northern California now for a quick getaway (Highlands Inn is not even in the splurge price range for me).

The Bargain Hunter

I just finished up a 5-night stay here. As a woman traveling solo, it was helpful to read of security concerns, which led me to ask for an upper-level floor. I am Platinum and was "upgraded" to a 2nd floor golf course view room in Building 8 (I wanted the patio, so didn't take 3rd floor). I received a newspaper on my first morning, but nothing after that. Other than that, no real recognition of GP status. This was a HUGE contrast to my husband, who was staying at HR Minneapolis the same week on his very first GP stay as part of the fast track promo. He was treated like a rock star (RC upgrade, registration clerk decided to give him welcome amenity AND 1000 pts, incredible evening snacks at RC). But I'll cover his stay in another post.

Anyway, the not-so-good things about HR Monterey: wireless access was a pain in the neck. Had to contact T-Mobile twice in the first day and eventually realized the only way to go was to not shut down the laptop once I got a connection, because it took 10-15 minutes to connect each time. I saw the T-Mobile truck out there later in the week. Bad setup! Also, I would agree that site security is not great for women traveling alone. Anyone can access hotel corridors, and if you arrive at night, you will certainly have a walk from either your car or the registration building through a dark parking lot. Would it be too much to ask Hyatt to have a bowl of fresh fruit available during the day? They catered our meeting's morning continental breakfast and we never had fruit or yogurt available. What a difference that would make. Finally, the chairs at the work desk are really uncomfortable. Yes, they look sleek and trendy, but are literally a pain in the butt.

The good: Nice rooms and cleanliness. Friendly housekeeping staff. TusCA restaurant (on site) was a most welcomed surprise. Great food at very reasonable prices, I thought. I ate two lunches and a dinner there. The dinner was a $25 pre fixe menu which included bread, soup or salad, entree (I ordered the crab risotto--at least 1/4 pound of real crab meat--delicious) and choice of three desserts. The roasted mushroom salad (one of my lunch selections) was amazing. I paid less for meals at this resort restaurant than I've paid at pool-side "snack shacks" at Hawaii resorts. My one meal at Knuckles was good too (fish tacos with a big, fresh salad), and the relaxed atmosphere was fun. Wish it were open for lunch on weekdays. Very nice health club!

As others have mentioned, there is not a lot within walking distance of the resort. I did find a sushi restaurant called "Oh Sushi" located in the nearby Travelodge, of all places, that was a great surprise. Since I didn't have a car, I took the 10-minute walk to the Travelodge. Had an amazing "box" lunch with salmon teriyaki and various sushi preparations. Don't let the location turn you away. This is a good place with better-than-expected atmosphere and food.

I also had time to rent a bicycle from the racquet club one day. Racquet club hours seems to be variable, but I got the bike for $20 for 4 hours, and went 10 miles up the coast to the north on the bike path and through Fort Ord State Beach Park, then rode back south to Lover's Point where I had a great shrimp salad at Latitudes. Nice way to spend the day.

Last time I checked, this resort is a Cat 3, which is probably a decent way to spend points. For a romantic get-away, the Highland Inn in Carmel is probably a better location, but it's also more expensive (Cat 5).

TBH

SanDiego1K

What does the $16.50 resort fee provide at this property?

RichardInSF

The same as at all other places that charge a resort fee: nothing that shouldn't be included in the base rate to begin with.

jumpdogjump

They accept DELISH certs and DEL5k reserv's, but they've not been included in more recent "resort" promotions. they are also not listed under www.hyattresorts.com - calling the hotel revealed no answers, although they still charge the aforementioned resort fee. They are now called on their homepage Hyatt Regency Hotel and Spa, whereas I believe they used to be "Hyatt Regency Monterey Resort & Spa on Del Monte Golf Course"

Can anyone shed any light on this?

jumpdogjump

Reprinted (with permission) from a PM I received this afternoon:

"Dear jumpdogjump,

...In regards to your inquiry about the Hyatt Regency Monterey it is considered a resort destination. All of our hotels have the option to opt out of promotions due to current market situations...Thank you for your continued support.

Sincerely,
Hyatt Gold Passport Concierge"

So we can only hope they "opt in" in the future. Thanks Karen!

SanDiego1K

I stayed at the Monterey Hyatt thanks to the generous DEL5K promo offering me more in food credit than I was paying for the room. Couple that with the 5K bonus plus G2 property bonus plus 1/2 credit toward FFN and I succumbed to the generous economics of the stay.

I liked the main building, but I disliked very much the many separate buildings with the rooms and the executive lounge. First, the good: the main building was lovely. Check in was to the left, and there was an extensive seating area/lounge around a large fireplace with a bar beyond. There was a concert piano in the corner. Apparently there is live music most nights. Beyond is their restaurant, reported on earlier. On the whole, food was quite good. I particularly enjoyed a refreshing desert of tangerine granita with mascarpone cream.

The Regency Club was in building 4, a fair hike from the main building. We went into it for evening appetizers and weren't particularly impressed. There were only a few tables, a TV, and a small room with a computer free for use. The appetizers were all cold, sliced meats, some cheese, and various vegetables. Our room was in building 11. We had a ground level suite (had used an upgrade cert) facing the parking lot. It was raining, at times quite hard. The hotel had no canopies over the entry sidewalk to the parking area. This made all the separate buildings more problematic. The buildings range from 1 to 19, so one could be located at a considerably more remote location than ours.

I would stay here again for one night given the special deal that we had. Otherwise, I would not. It's a shame that this was built as so many small buildings strung along one side of the golf course. There is no way that the hotel can overcome this architectural decision.

BrettMCA

How did you enter both the G2 and the DEL5K codes in the "offer code" field when making a reservation and have both apply to the same reservation? As far as I can tell, you can only have one or the other???

rdchen

See the sticky - Tutorial on Getting Your Hyatt Points

wilma

Stayed at Monterey Hyatt on Sat night (jan 2). At check-in the friendly young man suggested that we head to the RC early because they were often running out of food. There didn't appear to be anyone overseeing the RC and indeed people were carrying platters of cheese & snacks out of the RC! Same thing happened in the morning and there were many people entering the RC through the unlocked poolside door and I would guess many of them were not entitled to have RC access. The whole place appeared to be seriously understaffed, the hot tub was a disgusting lukewarm, brown soupy mess. They drained it Sunday morning after several complaints. We were given a Monterey suite overlooking the pool, but the living room portion of the suite hadn't been cleaned and neither of the bathrooms had hanging towels, we found a couple of towels under one of the sinks. We asked the maid for some more towels and she said they had run out! The carpet in both rooms was stained and quite disgusting. There is something seriously wrong with the ventilation & airflow in Bldg 3. It was about 30 degrees warmer in the room than outside, so even though it was about 60 outside it was unbearable in the room. You have to keep the fans going even in the middle of the night.
We used the $150 Del5K credit in TusCa, the food was really great but the service was truly awful. Several times during dinner we had to get up and go search for the waiter who was hanging out in the bar chatting with his co-workers. We were his only table so it was really inexcusable. They nicely gave us a 3:00 checkout but the maids came in our room while we were off biking and moved our stuff out of the way and cleaned the room & left all their supplies in the room for our return, and then knocked on the door repeatedly when we returned asking us when we were leaving. Yes, it was a great deal paying $102 for the room, getting double stay credit, $150 food credit, and various bonuses but this "resort" has some serious service issues.