747

Just saw on the Hyatt Reservation page the new Hyatt House San Juan (Near the Convention Center) is accepting arrivals starting October 4. 2014.

Looks like some low opening rates.

Hyatt has never done well in Puerto Rico. Maybe things will change.

jdawg

Drove past it this weekend, from the exterior it looks like they're pretty close to done, the Hyatt House signage is up.

It's diagonal to the Sheraton and a 5-10 walk from the convention center, nearby the Pan-american Pier if you're taking a cruise departing San Juan. Not the greatest location if you're visiting SJU, but if you're there for a conference or departing a cruise ship, I guess it could work.

CoolInIndy

I stayed at this property on the weekend of the 4th of Oct.

They had just opened up the Wed before and as such it wasn't very busy. I was greeted by a very friendly front desk person, quickly checked in and upgraded to a one bedroom suite with a bay view on the 5th floor. The view by the way is just awesome.

The common areas are very modern and there are multiple areas that can be used fairly independently. There is a pool table along with a flat screen on the wall which made it feel more like a sports bar that a hotel lobby and that was perfect for some football and pool Sunday afternoon. The pool albeit a little small is very nice. The coolest thing was this barbecue area where you can actually just buy your ingredients and have a party!

The room itself was very nice. The kitchenette had a convection oven and a full stove top as well as very well stocked with wine glasses/cocktail glasses etc (we did way more of drinking and really didn't cook).

All in a all a great property and this is going to be my go to place next time I am back in San Juan and plan on not staying at a resort!

nineworldseries

How pedestrian-friendly are the two bridges going into Old San Juan from this location? Would it be possible to walk from here to Condado, for instance, or even into OSJ?

Radiant Flyer

I just completed a 4 night stay here, attended the SanSe San Sebastian Street Festival in Old San Juan, crazy, wild weekend, .

HOTEL REVIEW:
I'm not a huge fan of Hyatt House or Hyatt Place so my expectations in regards to my stay here were low. I was pleasantly surprised as this seems more like an up-scale Hyatt House. Rooms are nicely decorated with local art, nicely equip modern kitchen, and the bathroom more on the luxurious side, identical to one you would find at a Hyatt Regency or Grand Hyatt. Staff was excellent, friendly, and eager to help. The only downside, the pool is too small.

NEARBY ATTRACTIONS:
If you like to walk this is a great location as many of the attractions are walkable, Old San Juan was a 35 - 40 minute walk, Condado 25 - 35 minutes and La Placita Market ( Plaza del Mercado Santurce) 30 - 35 minute walk. Near the hotel there is an absolutely beautiful walkway/running trail that runs along the Condado Lagoon. A walk along this trail around sunset is a must, stunning views of San Juan and great for people watching. At the east end of the trail there is Laguna del Condado Jamie Benitez Park which offers paddle boating, kayaking, sculling, there is also an outdoor gym where people are lifting weights and taking part in group exercise classes.


FOOD AND SHOPPING:
As for food and shopping there is nothing next to the hotel, but just a short walk up the hill to Miramar District, on Avenida de Ponce de leon there is a nice selection of restaurants, shops, a movie theater, and for groceries Pueblo Market or La Hacienda a gourmet grocery store . If you just need groceries or a bottle of wine do not go all the way to Walgreens!!! The hotel will directs you to Walgreens which is more than twice a far as Pueblo or La Hacienda.
FYI: Across from Walgreens there is a Walmart.

CROSSING THE BUSY INTERCHANGE:
As for crossing the busy interchange next to the hotel, there is a cross walk past the sizzler, then walk north - east to the next intersection, you want to cross to the side where the Hilton is located. There are also a few restaurants over there, Rosa Mexicano and soon a Fogo de Chao and shops!!!

BE SUN SMART:
The Hyatt House is sort of located out of the way but located in a great area if you enjoy to walk... None of the walks I took were boring, BUT don't forget your sunscreen or umbrella!!! The sun is STRONG.

Currently a beautiful walkway along the ocean from Old San Juan to the Hilton in under constuction, this should be awesome once it completed. ^^^

A Hyatt Place is under construction across the street, I'm thrilled that Hyatt now has a presence in San Juan, such a fascinating, colorful, beautiful city.

sam_goh

Stayed here last night for something close to the airport for a redeye flight out. Property is still relatively new but some things could use work (e.g. scrubbing grout). Was upgraded as a Diamond to a "view" room which gave us a view of the other San Juan Airport as well as the cruise ships coming in. There were no towels in the room, when maid outside was asked for some, she said we had to wait on "laundry". Later that night, we had to go down to the front desk to ask for some as none were ever delivered.

The Hyatt Place going in across the street seems to be progressing with signs saying a 2016 opening. Hotel was pretty busy - $179 a night for the cheapest room. I have to say taxes and fees *suck* because final bill ended up being in the $230's :/ This seems to be the case in all the properties we stayed at in PR.

jrizzl

just finished a stay here over the weekend.

we booked a P+C rate and got a bay view king br suite which was very clean and comfortable. nice wall mounted LG tv's and the bathroom was nice with a walk-in shower and small vanity/bench for the ladies to do their hair & makeup in the morning.

the shower pressure was good but the problem was the water never got hot or even "warm." it stayed lukewarm even after running the water for several minutes with the handle turned all the way to the left. i felt bad afterwards cause a card in the room described puerto rico's "historic drought" but i really really dislike showers without hot water. not sure if it's persistent or just a 1-time thing but it was a 530am shower.

had to check out early so didn't get to try breakfast but HH always seems to have good options. there are pool and foosball tables in the lobby area which were nice to have as an option to unwind with the fitness center & pool right next to it.

didn't see it mentioned here (or on the website) but parking is $14/night, not waived for diamonds. there is some street parking right outside in front of the hyatt place that's being built but not being familiar with the area/city, we didn't want to take a chance with our rental car. taxes are also very high in PR for hotel stays (~25%)

the FD never asked about our points/amenity preference so we'll have to follow up with HGP on that.

overall, an above average but not great stay.

Journey4Happy

So, my understanding is that if you pay 100% with points, you don't pay taxes or resort fees, am I right?

I've booked a stay for 4 adults, and while the rate went up, the points required, of course, did not. My question is: will they try to charge me if I bring 2 more adults in? They are actually locals, so don't need a place, but I thought of inviting them (but won't if it'll cost me $25+/person)

J4H

platbrownguy

Stayed here for 2 nights, primarily to have a place where I could cook healthy meals after 8 days of resort & heavy local food. Location was great: easy 5 min drive to Old San Juan (parked in the Don Fela garage), 5 min drive to Supermax grocery store.

I booked the House and Tapas rate for $139++/night, which included $50 to Barullo at the nearby Aloft, nice spot. It was a rare instance in which the package rate was actually cheaper than the member rate, AAA rate, etc, even before factoring in the $50 gift card.

The rate was supposed to include an upgrade to a Studio with kitchen but at check in I was told they were full despite a bunch of studio + 1BRs showing available online. I haggled for a while before the manager agreed to give me a studio that was magically available all of the sudden. (I think she finally realized that the rate included the upgrade, not an "as available" upgrade). Otherwise we would have had a "den" room with no kitchen, and I would have likely stayed elsewhere.

Room 412 was nice and spacious with a view of the small airport and the bay. Note that the fridge is only half size, but bigger than a mini fridge so it was fine for us. Dishes were in great condition. Air conditioning got to 66 quickly. The shower worked well but the hot and cold were swapped, meaning you just want to turn it on a little to get hot... turn it all the way and it'll run cold (the volume of water is the same either way).

Apart from the haggling at check in, the stay was fine. Parking was comped for globalists even though they didn't have to (the free parking promo had ended). Pool table and foosball were a nice touch, though only open 10 to 6. Same with outdoor pool, which we did use one afternoon, it was a good temperature. $5 Medallas are stocked in the little market fridge.

Breakfast was abysmal (industrial eggs, cheap deli meat slices, and rubbery pancakes etc), but we made our own food in the room. The gym (open 9 to 7) was also tiny and a bit of a let down.

Overall I think the Sheraton Puerto Rico is substantially nicer but this is a good option if you want a kitchen.

platbrownguy

Came back for 3 nights this past week and had a very positive experience. I had a second room booked for the last two of the 3 nights, and they made sure that room was across the hall from mine. All the staff were great -- this was a work trip but I had a fair bit of free time so I asked for some recs and the staff were eager to help. I had a "kitchen one bedroom bay view" this time, and it was well worth the additional cost over a studio -- the kitchen had a full size fridge and was well stocked with pots/pans/etc., so I was able to make light dinners on 2 nights and real eggs (to supplement the buffet) on 2 mornings. The buffet is improved from before -- there was real ham and a decent potato dish, plus french toast/pancakes, cereal, oatmeal, etc. -- but it is still a weak link.

The "Distrito T-Mobile" by the convention center is now fully operational and is worth checking out! It is an upscale open air mall with various restaurants, a stage (there was live music), and some shops and entertainment. My rate included a $50 voucher to Arena Medalla which is a very fun sports-bar-like establishment... pool table, ping pong, darts, etc. upstairs (along with karaoke rooms), plenty of tables and booths downstairs, and decent food.

La Placita at Santurce was hopping on Friday night (think Sixth Street in Austin, or Duval Street in Key West, fully packed), so things are definitely very close to being back to normal, though you still have to show your papers (vaccine card or an antigen test no more than 48 hours old) before you go in pretty much anywhere.

Parking was included in my rate otherwise it is up to $16/night. Pool table/foosball is now available until 10pm (same with gym and outdoor pool). No problem to get additional water bottles from the front desk as needed. Overall a great choice in San Juan if you want a kitchen & don't need to be in Old San Juan or on the beach.

Warriorconcept

Your review was too good, was going to book this then sold out on points. Guess I'll settle for the HP nearby...

platbrownguy

I mean, don't get me wrong, it's still a HH, but it's a nice/new one with great staff. The "Distrito T-Mobile" mall is equally walkable from the HP and is worth a wander through in the afternoon/evening.

Warriorconcept

Cheers, thanks. It'll be my first time in PR so still trying to figure out an itinerary.

platbrownguy

I've been 25ish times. My musts when I take a first-timer:

• get dropped off at El Morro (or park in the garage right by it, if driving), walk around there, then walk down through the streets of Old San Juan, have lunch some place (I like the diner-style lunch counter at Cafe Manolin; bougier would be the restaurant at El Convento; more touristy but still good would be Cafe El Punto)
• take a day trip to El Yunque, at least do one of the hikes (the Mount Britton trail is very nicely made, doable, and satisfying -- views of both the north and south coasts of the island from the top!)
• near El Yunque, there's a restaurant called Rincon del Sabor in Luquillo (unrelated to ones of the same name elsewhere -- it just means "flavor corner"), with the best seafood mofongo on the island, just incredible; Luis runs the front and his wife Carmen cooks and they are the best
• if you are (or act, LOL) under 40 and want true PR nightlife, check out La Placita in Santurce on a weekend night, it's wild

Aside from that I plan my trips out (or not) depending on what the other people want. There are beaches, museums, history, food, whatever. Snorkel or kayak in the bioluminescent bay if that's your thing (there are tours for that). Tour the Bacardi house. Have fun!!

Warriorconcept

Cheers, thanks so much!! Excited !