First time in Aruba and spent 5 nights as a Diamond at the Hyatt Regency Aruba Resort Spa and Casino in early April 2016. 4 nights on P&C, 1 free Chase CC night. DSU applied-confirmed into a Family Suite. Upon check in, we were offered further upgrade into the Cayena Suite for 2 nights, but on a lower floor overlooking the water slide so we passed. No problem keeping the suite for the free night even though they were pretty much at full capacity.

A few observations that come to mind as much has already been covered :

Beach Palapa/Pool Chair Situation

This is an area of major complaint regarding this property and seems many (myself included) come down prepared to experience the worst. It's definitely a bit of a hassle/source of stress but honestly, I didn't think it was that bad - especially considering we were there at the peak of the peak season.

I found the best free ways to book a spot are to either :

1) Login to hyattbeachservices.com (you need to be on the property to do this) and PRECISELY at 4pm : start looking to reserve a palapa or pool chair. The interface leaves alot to be desired. There is only a "Book Palapa" button once logged in (no "Book Pool Chair" button). On a tablet you can tap the actual spot on a map, on a phone, you scroll through available spots. Scroll past palapas for pool chairs. It's worth taking a look at the map for a general idea of where you want to be, but don't waste alot of time looking back and forth because you don't have alot of time.

This online process is a bit tricky - it seems to take a minute or 2 after 4pm for the reservation system to "switch on". You need to wait and see that the spots are "available to book", then book AND confirm. It's not always obvious if the system is "on", and if not, then you are just tapping and clicking with no feedback and getting annoyed. If you don't book, confirm, and see a "You are booked for xxx" at the top of your screen while logged in, then you haven't made a reservation.

Spots go fast and you will see them disappearing before your eyes in realtime. I would say if you don't book a palapa within the first 3-4 minutes after 4pm, you won't be able to online. Pool chairs seem to last a bit longer but after 5-7 minutes all available spots online are gone.

Make sure you claim your reservation by 10am the following day and put some personal belongings at your spot, or it will be up for grabs. If you miss booking online at 4pm as I did several times, don't worry. We never got shut out..

2) If you miss out on booking online, head down to the beach/Towel Hut in the early am (coffee and chairs provided in line). I was getting there "late" at 7-7:15 am and never had a problem securing a spot either on the beach or pool. They start assigning remaining spots at 7:30 am.

3) If you miss out on options 1 and 2, return to the Towel Hut at 10 am to see if any reservations have not been claimed. I never did this so can't comment on effectiveness. But, on the first day we arrived at around 3pm - the staff at the Towel Hut initially offered us spots under the main, large palapa, but were ultimately able to find us a mid beach Palapa no problem for the rest of the day. There were also open spots at the pool.

Of course, if you don't want to deal with the above, you can always contact the Towel Hut and rent a palapa or cabana starting at $50. Or book then cancel if you manage to get a free spot.

Water Sports

The concierge drives you towards two big tour providers on the island - Red Sail and De Palm. Red Sail is onsite and we rented a sailboat one day which was fun. Saw many others enjoying tow boat rides and jet packs etc. We also took quick cab ($11) on our own to Catalina Cove and Malmok Beaches a bit north for snorkeling (vs paying $60-$80/person for the boat to take us there. The only downside to this is getting back - there is a city bus that runs every hour ($2.60/pp), or roaming white minibus/vans ($2/pp) that will run the route to the hotels. But, we never waited more than 15-20 min for a ride.

WiFi

Wifi coverage here is fantastic. You will need to login once every 24 hrs with last name/rm#, but you will get a reliable, strong signal everywhere on property - even in the water at the beach. I was able to stream video onto multiple devices, including an Amazon Fire Stick connected to the LCD's in room.

Service/Lounge

We ended up eating at the Regency Club more than expected. They have a pretty good breakfast spread (7am-10am) - in addition to many continental choices there is hot oatmeal and a rotating hot egg option, salmon, cold cuts and cheese. Drinks and snacks available all day. Dinner (5-7pm) rotated with hot appetizers and salads including ceviches, sushi and other seafood. There seemed to be limited amounts of seafood so show up by 5:45 or so if you want the better options. Dessert comes out from 7-8pm. Complimentary wine and beer served between 5-8pm.

Service is excellent at this property - staff is friendly and eager to please. Anytime we had a request, service was prompt and delivered with a smile. I didn't get as warm and fuzzy Diamond reception as at other Hyatt's, but knew this would be the case coming in as there are so many repeat travelers here. It wasn't an issue.

Room

We were blocked into the highest floor Family Suite (700 sf) on the 8th floor directly off the elevator (*46 line), directly under the Regency Club and overlooking pools/gardens/restaurants/beach. Decent sized suite with 1 bedroom with 42" LCD, sitting and desk area,and living area with pullout couch and 50" lcd, wet bar, 1 bathroom (single vanity, large walk in rain shower), ceiling fans and standing balcony. Perfectly adequate for a family of 4.

Bathroom is a touch awkward - the opaque glass door leaves less privacy which is strange for a family suite. The counter could have easily accommodated a second sink and even looks as if it were originally planned that way considering the single sink is cut off to the side. The spout on the sink is too close to the backsplash.

No noise issues from club above (closes at 8pm) or elevators, but band/bar noise from lobby area could be an issue on the weekends. Family suites on the other side of the elevators are more quiet (*07 line) - but have limited property view and no sunset view.

Room location was great for us as it was close to elevators and directly under the lounge. Wet bar and separate, empty fridge is a nice touch.

Location

This hotel is located in the prime Palm/Eagle Beach area and is very convenient - walking distance to malls/shopping/restaurants. It's also a quick cab or bus ride (stop right outside the Hyatt) to northern beaches (Catalina/Arashi/Malmok or downtown).

Grounds are beautiful and well kept. Seems there is always staff doing something on premises either cleaning, pruning plants, tending to the pool or varying wildlife (birds, fish, swans, lizards) around the property.