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Hyatt Regency Santa Clara REVIEW - MASTER THREAD

Hyatt Regency Santa Clara REVIEW - MASTER THREAD

Old Sep 30, 2006, 10:09 pm
  #1  
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Hyatt Regency Santa Clara REVIEW - MASTER THREAD

Preface: The pressure to keep Diamond is still on. A one night stay before picking my wife up at SFO.

Rate: Prepaid. Less than $100 base rate.

Transportation: I drove in.

Parking: There are two wedding being held at the Hotel. There is a lot in front of the Hotel which was/is full. There is another lot just for Hotel guests but it requires a key. So if you are just coming in it is no good. The final alternative which is not really clearly marked is a parking structure. You can reach it by driving straight in and heading back. The right portion of the garage is for Hotel guests. All options at least tonight are free.

Check-in: I did the web check-in online and again it did not work at the kiosk. The system is useless and a waste of time IMHO. I was given a room on the RC level. The agent was very friendly and helpful.

Perks: The RC Lounge at this Hotel is only open on the weekdays. Like Sunday to Thursday. The Lounge is located on the Lobby level and of course is closed tonight. You will receive a continental breakfast coupon and that is it. You can buy up to the buffet for like $4. Bring your own water because the RC rooms do not have comp water. The Hotel plans to renovate and add a proper RC Lounge in the future. I should get amenity points, WEBPDA and G2 for the stay.

Room: I've been here before when this was a Westin. I think before that it was a Doubletree. The rooms have been renovated from my last stay. Not bad. Very standard and certainly better than the Hyatt San Jose. Just think standard room.

Internet: Wired and $9.95 for 24 hours.

Gym: ?, Spa: ?, Eating venues: ?, Local markets: ?

Local area: Great America should be around here somewhere.

Negatives: Hunting for a parking spot for 10 minutes, the lack of a Lounge and somewhat dated rooms.

Closing: This goes on the books for future stays. Not a bad drive to SFO on the weekends. The bonuses are good and the price is right.
RTWSTARALLIANCE is offline  
Old Oct 1, 2006, 8:25 am
  #2  
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I used my voucher this morning to have the full buffet in the cafe. One would take their continental in the lobby bar. The buffet is taken in the cafe. Total additional cost $4.33. The Hotel does not deliver at least a Sunday newspaper. A limited supply is available upon exiting the elevator banks walking into the lobby.

There looks to be a driving range behind the Hotel. Last night I could not figure out what was running. This morning I found a blower unit opposite the room. Runs 24/7.

I made a comment last night about the lack of a Lounge on the weekends and the fact bottled water is charged in the room. A few minutes later a platter with cold items and two bottles of water appeared compliments the management. Nice. You get the sense the property is trying very hard to get the Hyatt act on. I looked online this morning and the Hyatt SJ is no showing anymore so this is the only Hyatt in Santa Clara (San Jose). A nice change and considering this was a Westin welcome change. The area is crowded with Starwood properties which are dated. I would stay again and welcome the renovation they speak of. Apparently a couple rooms have been redone. Regards
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Old Oct 1, 2006, 2:26 pm
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Thumbs up

RTWSTARALLIANCE, it is nice to read a less-frequent visitor's view of this property, which as a frequent guest I found very accurate.

Other notes to add to your comments:
1. Great America is right across Tasman Drive from the hotel.

2. The parking garage behind the hotel is excellent parking, espcially in Feb-Apr when the rains come through the valley.

3. The gym is fine, but it gets crowded in the mornings.

4. Alternatively, there is a nice walking/jogging path along the canal behind the hotel, convention center and garage, which follows the canal for a long way in either direction, but is not too crowded in the mornings if you want the exercise. Go out the front of the hotel, turn left to Tasman, and walk past the convention center to the bridge, and there is the path.

The staff at the hotel try really hard to meet the Hyatt expectations, although the site itself is a little dated and not quite up to par.
Wilbur is offline  
Old Oct 1, 2006, 3:42 pm
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Originally Posted by RTWSTARALLIANCE
Parking:...There is another lot just for Hotel guests but it requires a key. So if you are just coming in it is no good.
Actually, you don't need a key. You just drive in/out [I'm there every week or two.]

But the hotel does have problems: Hot water is hit or miss, often miss. The air conditioning often doesn't work.

Good points: Great staff, very responsive. As weird as the Regency Club is (it's a fenced off area just off the lobby), the folks who work there are really great. But the food is pretty minimal.
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Old Oct 1, 2006, 5:53 pm
  #5  
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There is T-Mobile wireless internet at HR Santa Clara as well. $9.99/day pass IIRC.

OT: T-Mobile cell phone users can get HotSpot deal at $19.99/month (29.99 for all others) - a great offer considering UA RCC, Starbucks and Hyatt coverage.

Back to Santa Clara - one thing my SO hates there is the air conditioning duct facing the bed. I wish there was a way to adjust airflow direction. Perhaps renovation will take care of that.

Some rooms have really huge balconies - try to get one if possible.
Also there was always a heavy terry robe in my room - a big plus for me.
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Old Oct 2, 2006, 8:19 am
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I forgot about the hot water let alone the low water pressure in the shower. My sink had better water pressure.

I did notice the rooms with a balcony.
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Old Oct 3, 2006, 6:47 pm
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Originally Posted by RTWSTARALLIANCE
I forgot about the hot water let alone the low water pressure in the shower. My sink had better water pressure.

I did notice the rooms with a balcony.
Hyatt took this property over from Westin late 2005. They are renovating the rooms and some key aspects of the hotel such as the hot water situation. They need to get that fixed ASAP because it can take up to 10 minutes to get hot water in the morning. The property has a lot of potential and has a monopoly on the Hyatt name in Silicon Valley now that the San Jose property has become a Holiday Inn.
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Old Feb 4, 2007, 4:07 pm
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Santa Clara is the best Hyatt in the bay area besides Union Square in SF. The staff is very very polite and always a pleasure to talk to. The rooms are always very clean and up to Hyatt standard. In comparison, Burlingame (SFO) is a horrible, dated place with unhelpful staff. San Jose was the worst, but thank god it's no longer a Hyatt. The only downside to Santa Clara is the fact San Jose was rebranded as Holiday Inn, which makes Santa Clara extremely difficult to book. It's constantly sold out Unless you are already a Diamond member, you might consider picking another chain because it would be very difficult to hit Diamond if you are counting stays at Santa Clara.
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Old Jul 12, 2007, 11:47 am
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Update on the Santa Clara Hyatt: New decor!

The SC Hyatt has completed renovations on several floors, and the trendy baby-blue and brown decor and steel and marble walls and floor look interesting, although they clash a little bit with the underlying 1980's architectural structure. Flat-screen TVs, fancier bathroom fixtures (some good, some useless), blond Danish Modern furniture - it is in the Hyatt Place style look.

Service is still very good, and I still recommend getting restaurant breakfast coupons instead of eating at the "Regency Club"/corner cubbyhole.

Water pressure is still woeful, which is the biggest downside. Otherwise it is good to see them trying to update the hotel.
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Old Jul 14, 2007, 6:28 pm
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Was at Santa Clara last night on a rate of $109. The Regency Club is closed (open Monday afternoon to Friday morning only) so was given 1 appetizer coupon and breakfast coupons.

Had the lamb lollichops which was rather nice but my watermelon margarita was more expansive at $11 than I saw in the menu $8 since it was supposedly a premium cocktail.

Breakfast was nice and upgrade to the hot buffet for $4. The staff are nice and it is a shame that it is so far from the client and rate so high during the week.
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Old Oct 27, 2007, 6:10 pm
  #11  
das
 
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Originally Posted by Wilbur
Update on the Santa Clara Hyatt: New decor!

The SC Hyatt has completed renovations on several floors, and the trendy baby-blue and brown decor and steel and marble walls and floor look interesting, although they clash a little bit with the underlying 1980's architectural structure. Flat-screen TVs, fancier bathroom fixtures (some good, some useless), blond Danish Modern furniture - it is in the Hyatt Place style look.
The renovations got some very negative reviews on TripAdvisor, but personally I like the new look of the rooms. It looks different from your standard issue hotel room, and I like the large work desk facing the window and the straight line patterns on the carpet.

My only complaint - even though I'm a Gold Passport member, booked at published rate on Hyatt.com (it's the weekend, so $89), the kiosk automatically assigned me a room on the 3rd floor next to the ice machine. I thought that room was for Priceline guests!

Fortunately, the front desk cheerfully reassinged me, but anyone have an idea why the kiosk was programmed to give me such a poor room location?
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Old Nov 10, 2008, 10:50 am
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I just spent an hour there a couple of weeks ago. It was supposed to be a night - perhaps even two - but I decided to move. The killer for me is that they had (temporarily?) destroyed their fitness center. But the Regency Club was gone too, and the nice breakfast previously offered to Diamonds was reduced to coffee and a donut (this is an assumption; I was gone long before breakfast). I got a AAA voucher for food, but the value in the overpriced restaurant was minimal to me...and so into the trash.

Still, the place was fine, clean, and I was treated okay. (I used to spend 50 nights a year there.) There was - on this particular day - enough parking, so I wasn't shipped to the Great America parking lot, a fifteen minute walk away. (That happens too often.)

Your interests may vary, and you may have a splendid time at this property.
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Old Nov 12, 2008, 11:33 am
  #13  
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Had a two night stay as a new diamond. The FD staffs were polite and pleasant, the service was good, the room was clean and comfy. Didn't get any upgrade though.

The only downside was the Regency Club. Compared to the Lounge at San Jose Marriott, where offers all kinds of alcohol and non-alcohol drinks, ice creams, hot breakfast, the Regency Club was not up to Hyatt standards.

However overall it's a decent hotel for business stays.
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Old Nov 12, 2008, 7:46 pm
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Originally Posted by YYC
Had a two night stay as a new diamond. The FD staffs were polite and pleasant, the service was good, the room was clean and comfy. Didn't get any upgrade though.

The only downside was the Regency Club. Compared to the Lounge at San Jose Marriott, where offers all kinds of alcohol and non-alcohol drinks, ice creams, hot breakfast, the Regency Club was not up to Hyatt standards.

However overall it's a decent hotel for business stays.
I'm guessing you stayed there more than two weeks ago. I think the Regency Club is entirely gone (temporarily?) now.
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Old Nov 12, 2008, 9:10 pm
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Nope, I just departed yesterday. The REgency Club was still there (Sonoma Room).

If it were to be gone, I would then have to move my stays to Marriott.

Originally Posted by 365RoadWarrior
I'm guessing you stayed there more than two weeks ago. I think the Regency Club is entirely gone (temporarily?) now.
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