iherebyresign

I stayed here last March and to me it appeared the suites were nearly complete. Yet, they are still not bookable even months into the future. I'm curious what is going on with them.

isaifan

A) It seems they are closed at the moment just due to low(er) occupancy. There wasn't any construction going on when we were there. It looks like they will be awesome to stay at when its ready.
B) We loved visiting El Yunque forest and taking the short hike to swim at the waterfalls. We also loved taking the night tour to visit the BioBay with the water that lights up. We visited San Juan a couple of times to walk around and enjoyed a few restaurants and dessert shops.
C) Its physically there, but I don't think it was open during our visit. Again, staffing was super light. Maybe later in the year, with expanded occupancy and staffing the suites and kids club will be available.

platbrownguy

Thanks for the review -- we'll be going for 4 nights next month (to use up 4 of the Cat 1-4 certificates, which this seems like a decent use for)

The lack of suites was actually one of the reasons why this seemed like a good use of the certificates, since you can't use a Globalist suite upgrade with the certs anyhow. Food on-property seems limited but the location is pretty close to the (excellent) kiosks in Luquillo where we'll probably end up eating each night anyhow.

occy

I had to cancel at the last minute. I have re-booked for April 2021.

Thanks for the awesome review isaifan!

iahphx

That "beach playground" is a good idea because the hotel beach is pretty poor and definitely a downside to this resort.

I visited here just before the pandemic started and, now that I'm a Globalist, it seems inevitable that I will return (assuming the award price stays at 12K). Does anyone know what they're doing for Globalist breakfast now? And is the Lounge open? Waiting for the suites might be the best idea, though. Maybe next winter?

azepine00

Is there an email contact I can reach out to discuss a couple requests and stay details?

Also a general question - the most recent (and likely not the last) iteration of schedule change has us arriving after 11 pm and departing 7 am - for those first and last nights does it make sense to stay at hyatt or pick smth convenient near airport with shuttle. I plan to rent a car but I am not sure about hours there - never been to SJU. I may push for rebooking if there is nothing practical.

platbrownguy

Arrival at SJU is pretty easy. Have your QR code ready at baggage claim and you'll enter a queue where that's scanned, then you're out, and rental cars are now across the drive from baggage claim (no more shuttle). If you're renting a car during your stay anyhow, I can't imagine wanting to shuttle to a hotel and then get back to the airport to get a rental the next day & then repeat the night before your flight out. Just rent the car upon arrival and keep until your early a.m. dropoff.

Now, as for hotels, I wouldn't enjoy the drive to the Hyatt post-11pm. We're similarly arriving at 10:27pm (on the 772 from MIA) and thus staying the first night in San Juan. We're staying at the Sheraton Convention Center because my wife prefers it to the Courtyard, but the Courtyard by the airport (Isla Verde) is perfectly serviceable and is closer than the Sheraton.

If you've never been to Puerto Rico before, I think you'll find the drive from San Juan to the Hyatt very beautiful and worth seeing by day. There are three ways to go: the toll road is fastest, then Route 3 is usually just a few minutes slower (and you can stop at the Wal-Mart in Canovanas, or the Ralph's (full-size supermarket & liquor store) on the way. Then 10-15 min slower than that would be to take 187 from the airport/Isla Verde straight along the coast into Loiza and then turn south to meet back up with Route 3 (this actually still allows you to stop at the Wal-Mart and/or Ralph's).

(Although we haven't stayed at the Hyatt before, we've stayed at the St. Regis numerous times and have done the drive to the current Hyatt location when it was the Melia, to go to the spa there. Have been going to Puerto Rico regularly for 18 years. This trip, we're doing 1 night @ Sheraton San Juan on a Bonvoy CC cert, 3 nights @ St. Regis on points, 4 nights @ Hyatt Grand Reserve using Cat 1-4 certs, and then probably 2 nights paid somewhere TBD in San Juan, likely the Renaissance La Concha.)

soy

Useful info, thanks. Please do post back after your stay with details on the current globalist treatment. I am hoping to visit later this year, having twice rescheduled since my original plan for April 2020

nycflyer17

Anyone know how good the internet is at this hotel? Was thinking of going for an extended trip, but would want to WFH for part of it.

Braswch

I spent a couple weeks there and had to WFH while there as well. I had a 1st floor oceanfront room, so sitting out on the patio was a nice place to work (had to keep my bug spray handy as you do anywhere in PR).
There were others in my group, and they all had no problems WFH with the Wifi there. I on the other hand was unable to use the Wifi with my corporate laptop. The Wifi unlike most Hotels does not require you to login, you simply just connect, it's an open Wifi. Seems my Corporate IT does not allow connecting to the internet with that kind of Wifi. No one else had this restriction. So if you've got good IT, you should be fine!

Unless there's been a recent announcement, There is no GM right now FYI.

summerbreeze187

Nice tips, thanks for sharing. What is GM?

Braswch

There is no General Manager.

nycflyer17

Thanks, that's really useful to know. Shouldn't be a problem for me but definitely could ruin someone's WFH experience!

Edit: I wonder if wired is a possible workaround in your example?

Braswch

I did see some wired outlets in the outdoor lobby area but I never tried that. I did think about it.
My workaround was to either not work. Which was nice, We were on the beach, or I just used the HotSpot function on my phone. OR... I used another laptop.

nycflyer17

Did you have to supply a negative test before arriving from the US mainland? Wasn't sure how that worked currently.