A 4 night business trip took Zuzu & me to this massive glass skyscraper: the Hyatt Regency in Downtown Dallas.
Hyatt Regency Dallas Downtown Review tl;dr
Despite our big smiles with the enormous hotel & Reunion Tower in the background, our 4 night stay in the downtown Hyatt Regency Dallas was lackluster.
No significant issues but nothing was particularly endearing either.
The best parts were the stunning glass exterior and the atrium of this old school Hyatt Regency. I expect they’re just as impressive as when the Hyatt Regency Dallas was built in 1978. Staff and the breakfast buffet were good but our room was in dire need of remodeling and new furniture.
Booking & Reservations
While most of our travels are for pure fun, Zuzu & I were here to work a booth at a trade show so our company footed the bill.
It’s one of the few times that we’ve paid cash to stay at any hotel since 2021 when we learned how to stay at luxury hotels and resorts for free.
Earning Hyatt Points
For our 4 night stay, we had $711 of spend which was eligible to earn World of Hyatt points.
If you get and use the Hyatt credit card like I did, that spend would earn you 9x (9 points per dollar) for a total of 6,399 points. As a Hyatt elite (Discoverist or higher) level, you’ll get at least 10% bonus points which would total 6,754 points or more.
That’s enough for a free night at off peak rates at the Hyatt Place Nashville Airport, just down the road from where Zuzu & I live.
Award Category 3 Hotel
If we had been redeeming points, the Hyatt Regency Dallas Downtown is a Category 3 hotel. That means that normal nights cost 12,000 Hyatt points.
Off peak nights are 9k points and peak nights will set you back 15k Hyatt points.
How Much Were Our Hyatt Points Worth
When we get free nights at hotels & resorts with points like we did at the $2000/night Andaz Maui in Hawaii, I always track how much value we got out of our points.
Here’s the full data behind the historical value of Hyatt points to Zuzu and me. Spoiler alert: it’s almost 4 cents per point!
As a rule of thumb, Hyatt points should be worth 1.5-2 cents to most people. If we had redeemed 12k points for 1 night at the HR Dallas, our Hyatt points would have been worth 1.8 cents each in this specific case.
Location
Located just off Interstate 35E, the Hyatt Regency Dallas is right on the western edge of downtown Dallas and within walking distance of several tourist attractions like Dealey Plaza & the Historic West End. The iconic Reunion Tower is part of the same building complex as the Hyatt.
Need to hop a bus or train? There are underground tunnels to the adjacent Union Station. The Omni Dallas Hotel is 2 blocks away and the Kay Bailey Hutchinson Convention Center is just 1/2 mile from the Hyatt’s front door.
Address
Nearest Airport
If you’re flying Southwest like we did, you’ll be glad to know that Dallas Love Field (DAL) is the closest airport to downtown Dallas. Love Field is about 7 miles away from this Hyatt.
The much larger and newer Dallas Fort Worth Airport (DFW) is about 20 miles from the Hyatt Regency Dallas.
Other Hyatts in Dallas
With nearly 30 Hyatt hotels in Dallas Fort Worth, you have a lot of choices. The Hyatt Regency Dallas is one of three Hyatt hotels in downtown Dallas:
- Hyatt Regency Dallas Downtown
- Thompson Dallas
- Hyatt House Dallas Uptown
Just 6 miles north of downtown Dallas, the Hyatt House Lincoln Park is the next closest Hyatt hotel after the 3 Hyatts in downtown.
Lobby Checkin
When you enter the Hyatt Regency Dallas, the registration desk is immediately to your left.
There were a few people checking in but the dedicated World of Hyatt line allowed anyone who has joined the free loyalty program to skip the regular line. That’s what we did.
Although she wore a mask, we could sense Julie’s smile as she handled our check-in.
She was friendly and efficient as she explained our World of Hyatt Globalist benefits which included free water bottles, free breakfast and a free room upgrade. The Hyatt terms promise that Globalists get a free upgrade to “the best room available… including Standard Suites.”
One of the reasons we picked the Hyatt Regency Dallas was because the 950 square ft Sunset Suites & the 850 square ft Horizon Suites were available to rent for the dates were staying. Both are “Standard Suites” so we should have been given the “best available” of those standard suites.
Instead we were given the smallest standard suite, the Studio Suite. We were told this is the only suite that the hotel manager gives as free upgrades despite what the Hyatt terms promise.
Studio Suite Room
I’ve got to admit that I was pretty disappointed with the room upgrade.
The 550 square foot Studio Suite didn’t feel like a suite at all. It was just a slightly larger than average room with not-much-of-a-view and beat up furniture.
Fortunately, the King sized bed was comfortable and I’ll award a half bonus point for the helpful motion sensing lights under the bed.
The coffee maker, small refrigerator and the closet all met minimum requirements.
The most interesting aspect of the Studio Suite was the island in the center of the room.
There were 2 big screen TV’s on the 2 sides as well as counter space and drawers on both sides of the island.
We did like the layout of the large bay window. I would have enjoyed sitting on the cushions below the window if the view would have been decent.
It wasn’t.
View from our Room
Our best available room upgrade didn’t even have a view of downtown Dallas. We mostly had a view of the interstate and of the light industrial area of Dallas past the Trinity River.
Downtown Dallas was on the other side of the hotel but I guess the general manager didn’t want us to enjoy that view for free.
What was the best part of our view? Well, we were were directly over the Hyatt Regency’s pool. But, wow, that pool looked tiny from our window.
That’s because the pool was tiny.
Bathroom
The bathroom was the best part of our room.
While most of the furniture in the room was in need of a remodel, it looked like the bathroom had been updated within the past few years.
Shower
Our bathroom had a nice large shower with good water pressure even though we were on a high floor.
Bathroom Amenities
The soap, shampoo and body wash are the standard Pharmacopia brand that you find in most low and mid scale Hyatt hotels across the USA. It was fine.
Restaurants & Bars
Inside the spacious open air atrium, there were 2 restaurants and a large bar.
Centennial Restaurant
We were pretty happy with Centennial Restaurant in the Hyatt Regency Dallas.
I got a quick togo dinner the night we arrived and the food was a little better than expected.
See the blurry guy in the right side of the picture below? I think his name was Manny and he was the shining star of our visit to the Hyatt Regency Dallas.
btw, if you know his name, please drop me a note so that I can give him proper credit.
We had the breakfast buffet 3 times during our stay. Each time we enjoyed the food but there was this one guy who always stood out as making sure everything was as good as it could be.
He was either hustling to & from the kitchen or he was hustling over to say a few friendly words with the hotel guests.
He was always full of energy and he ALWAYS had a smile on his face!
While the food was nowhere near as good as the best hotel breakfast we’ve ever had, it was good enough. And we always left the restaurant in good spirits from seeing our new friend Manny.
Monduel’s Bar
Most impressive thing about the atrium bar? It had a spectacular view of Reunion Tower though a massive wall of glass.
Other than that, the bar was fine but not much different than any large hotel bar.
I had 1 drink at Monduel’s bar. The bartender was pleasant and the drink was fine. Nothing memorable.
Hotel Amenities
Since this was a working trip, we didn’t get much chance to enjoy the hotel. We were pretty much just in our room or in the restaurant for breakfast.
Pool
As I mentioned earlier, our room had a view of what looked to be a tiny pool. Not only did it look tiny, the pool WAS tiny.
For a hotel with 1,120 rooms and suites, it’s hard to believe how small this pool was. Try putting 4 people in this swimming pool and it would probably feel crowded.
The pool deck had the same sad view that we had from our room. If you like to stare at interstate bridges, you’re in luck because that’s pretty much all you can see. There is no hot tub.
It’s clear that the hotel designers did not intend for anyone to enjoy the pool area. If they did, it would have been on the other side of the hotel where you could have spectacular views of the downtown Dallas skyline.
And they wouldn’t have made it smaller than most back yard pools.
Fitness Center
On the main floor, there was a pretty nice fitness center that would easily hold 15 people at a time.
Pet Friendly
If you want to bring your dog to the hotel, there’s good news. The Hyatt Regency Dallas is pet friendly.
Parking
Valet Parking is $38 for overnight guests and includes in and out privileges.
If you have an electric vehicle, charging stations are available on a first come first serve basis in the valet garage. There is no electric charging station for self parking at the Hyatt Regency Dallas.
Zuzu & I paid $22 per night for self-parking in the outdoor (not covered) Radish Lot about 100 yards away from the hotel entrance. This parking lot is at the north end of the hotel at the intersection of Hotel Street and Reunion Boulevard West.
Same as with the Hyatt’s valet parking, in and out privileges from the self parking lot is for overnight guests only.
Globalist Benefits
Elite Check-in
I was happy to see a dedicated World of Hyatt line at the registration desk. It probably saved me 10 minutes after a long day of travel.
Globalist Recognition
Julie at the front desk thanked me for being an elite member and for my loyalty to Hyatt. She was efficient and friendly as she explained my Globalist benefits.
Room Upgrade
While I was given an upgrade to a studio suite, I wasn’t really impressed. As I said earlier in my review of the Hyatt Dallas, the room wasn’t large, didn’t have an impressive view and the furniture had quite a bit of wear and tear.
When I asked about getting an upgrade to one of the Horizon Suites or Sunset Suites (both are “standard suites”) which showed as available for booking, I was told that the manager only gives the inferior Studio Suites as upgrades to Globalists.
HEY, GLOBALISTS! Keep this in mind when you need to book a Hyatt in Dallas, TX!
Late Checkout
We were offered a late checkout of 4pm but we had an early flight so we didn’t need the Globalist late checkout benefit.
Resort Fees
Since the Hyatt Regency Dallas is by no means a resort, thank goodness that they don’t charge a resort fee.
Bottled Water
Free tickets for bottled water were easy to get.
Earning Hyatt Points
As a Gloabalist, I did get an extra 30% on top of the points that I earned on my eligible spend.
Faster Internet
Sorry, I forgot to document this. World of Hyatt élite members are supposed to get premium internet speed for free. Not sure if I did or not.
Club Access
The Hyatt Regency Dallas did not have an open Regency Club when we stayed.
According to this 2018 review of the Hyatt on Travel Codex, the lounge has been “closed for renovation for years.”
Free Breakfast
As Globalists, we enjoy a free breakfast and the Hyatt Regency Dallas had a good breakfast buffet.
Free Parking
If we had been staying for free on points like we usually do, the $38/night valet parking would have been free.
Hyatt Regency Dallas Downtown Review: 3 of 5
The best I can say about staying at the Hyatt in downtown Dallas was that it was fine. While there were a couple of high points, they were offset by several disappointments.
If you’re only looking for a huge hotel to sleep in and maybe grab a drink at the bar, this would be fine. Just don’t bring the family and expect them to enjoy this hotel while you’re working.
Bottom Line: Would We Visit Again?
Nope. There are just too many other interesting hotels in downtown Dallas. Zuzu & I didn’t hate the Hyatt Regency Dallas but there’s no reason to return.
Read About Our Favorite Hotel Stays
Once we learned how to stay at luxury hotels and resorts for free, Zuzu & I have stayed at some amazing hotels.