Review: Hyatt Regency Tokyo

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The Hyatt Regency Tokyo, in partnership with a few other central Tokyo hotels, offers a paid bus service from both Narita and Haneda airports but, as I wasn’t in the mood to be driven around Tokyo as others were being dropped off art their hotels, I chose to take the train into Shinjuku station and walk the 1,000 yards to the hotel.

a map of a city with a mile and mileage Hyatt Regency Tokyo Review

If you happen to be traveling with luggage or if you’re not up to doing the walk there’s a subway station right underneath the hotel (Tochomae – 1 stop from Shinjuku) that you could make use of.

I had chose the Hyatt Regency Tokyo for a number of reasons and one of those was for its central location and convenience to an area of Tokyo I know better than others – Shinjuku. As I was only in town for two nights I figured I’d get more done if I was starting from a base I knew.

Check-in & First Impressions

The hotel’s lobby is huge, almost cavernous, but when I arrived it was mostly pretty quiet. There are 3 enormous chandeliers hanging from the ceiling….

a chandelier from the ceiling Hyatt Regency Tokyo Review

a room with chandeliers and a mirror Hyatt Regency Tokyo Review

….and I began to get an idea of the size and grandeur of the lobby (at least in some people’s eyes) when, during my stay, I spotted a wedding reception taking place under the chandeliers!

The reception desks are on the far left of the lobby and there was no one in line ahead of me to check-in.

a large tiled floor with people standing in front of it Hyatt Regency Tokyo Review

The agent checking me in was friendly and acknowledged my Diamond status. I accepted 1,000 points as my arrival gift (I had no need of a food and beverage amenity) and was handed an information sheet on the Regency Club (click to enlarge).

a close-up of a document

The desk agent informed that I had been upgraded to a Club Floor room and handed me my keys.

Hyatt Regency Club Floor Room

While the Hotel goes up to the 28th floor, the Club Rooms are situated on the 6th, 7th, 8th and 9th floors while the Regency Club itself is only on the 9th floor.

a sign on a wall Hyatt Regency Tokyo Review

I found this a little unusual as, in my experience, hotel clubs/lounges are usually on higher floors (often the very top floor) as are the the rooms which grant club access (like the Grand Hyatt in San Francisco for example).

Still, the upgrade was a real upgrade as I had booked the cheapest room the hotel offers (a “king room”) which offers 24 square metres in area while the Club Room I was given has 35 square metres of space.

a door handle and a card Hyatt Regency Tokyo Review

My room was set out like most hotel rooms are – a short corridor joined the entrance door to the main sleeping area and the bathroom was off to the side of the corridor.

a room with a desk and chair Hyatt Regency Tokyo Review

The main sleeping area wasn’t exactly big…but then it did have King bed in the middle of it.

a bed with a chair and a tub Hyatt Regency Tokyo Review

A large glass window divides the sleeping area from the bathroom (more on that later)….

a bathroom with a large tub Hyatt Regency Tokyo Review

…a lounger chair, stool and small table were by the window…..

a chair and table in a room with a view of a city Hyatt Regency Tokyo Review

a chair and a table in a room Hyatt Regency Tokyo Review

…while opposite the bed was a large-screen TV and a desk.

a desk with a chair and a television Hyatt Regency Tokyo Review

a desk with a television and a chair Hyatt Regency Tokyo Review

The TV was huge for the room it was in (the pictures don’t really show that very well) and the desk turned out to be a good size and comfortable to work at.

The power ports in the room were US-style 2-pin ports…..

a pen in a box on a desk Hyatt Regency Tokyo Review

….and while there were 4 of them around the desk area – two on the desk itself and 2 close to floor level….

a wall outlet on a wall Hyatt Regency Tokyo Review

….only one side of the bed had a power outlet…and that was a single:

a switch on a wall Hyatt Regency Tokyo Review

While only one side of the bed had a power outlet, both sides had panels to control the lights with the panel closest to the window having a few more controls:

a close up of a switch Hyatt Regency Tokyo Review

The room had the main closet in the hallway but, where the corridor meets the sleeping area, there was a further cupboard containing various amenities.

a room with a bed and a cabinet Hyatt Regency Tokyo Review

a small room with a small cabinet and a small refrigerator Hyatt Regency Tokyo Review

There was a mini bar…..

a refrigerator with drinks and cans Hyatt Regency Tokyo Review

shelves with bottles and glasses on it Hyatt Regency Tokyo Review

…some snacks….

a bowl of food in a wood box Hyatt Regency Tokyo Review

….and a kettle with some teas and coffee:

a tray with cups and saucers on a table Hyatt Regency Tokyo Review

In the main closet the hotel provided a good-sized safe into which my 15″ laptop fitted with ease.

a black and grey safe with a number pad Hyatt Regency Tokyo Review

The bathroom is small but nicely designed….

a bathroom with a glass shower door Hyatt Regency Tokyo Review

a bathroom with a sink and a lamp Hyatt Regency Tokyo Review

a sink on a counter Hyatt Regency Tokyo Review

…and as well as two bottle of complimentary water……

a group of bottles and glasses on a counter Hyatt Regency Tokyo Review

……the property also provides any number of other amenities a guest may want during their stay:

a paper with text on it Hyatt Regency Tokyo Review

I’ve now found this at quite a few Hyatt properties and even some non-Hyatt ones and I like that more and more places are offering this.

The bath sits on the other side of the window overlooking the main sleeping area…..

a white bathtub next to a bed Hyatt Regency Tokyo Review

…but there’s a blind that can be brought down for added privacy.

The shower was fantastic – the water pressure was great and it didn’t take an age to heat up…..

a bathroom with a bathtub and a shower Hyatt Regency Tokyo Review

…while the complimentary toiletries weren’t bad either.

a group of bottles of shampoo Hyatt Regency Tokyo Review

35 square metres is approximately 377 square feet and while the room isn’t small, it’s also not exactly spacious so I wouldn’t suggest any one visits with a large number of suitcases – the room would soon feel a lot smaller.

The Regency Club Lounge

The lounge’s hours are as follows:

Reception: 7:00am – 9:00pm
Breakfast: 6:30am – 10:am daily
Cocktails: 6:00pm – 8:00pm daily
Tea service: 10:00am – 6:00pm and 8:00pm – 9:00pm daily

The lounge is on the 9th floor of the Hyatt Regency and opened on the dot of 6:30am on the two days I visited.

a hallway with a door open Hyatt Regency Tokyo Review

The lounge is shaped like the letter “L” and, as you walk in through the main doors, the reception desk is straight ahead and you turn left to enter the lounge proper and walk down one side of the “L”.

The first area you come to is the lounge’s main dining area:

a room with tables and chairs Hyatt Regency Tokyo Review

Past this area is a section where food are drinks are laid out further in is the corner of the “L” with a few tables and chair and more room for food to be set out.

a room with a table and chairs Hyatt Regency Tokyo Review

a table and chairs in a room with a window Hyatt Regency Tokyo Review

A left turn at this corner area takes you down the second side of the L-shaped lounge with a private-ish dining area to the right (I’m not sure who that’s for)…..

a glass door with a table and chairs Hyatt Regency Tokyo Review

….and more relaxed seating further down:

a room with chairs and tables Hyatt Regency Tokyo Review

a room with couches and chairs Hyatt Regency Tokyo Review

Breakfast is served as a buffet in the Regency lounge with quite a lot of choice.

On this visit the hot selection was a combination of Japanese and western food….

a buffet table with food on it Hyatt Regency Tokyo Review

a buffet line of food Hyatt Regency Tokyo Review

a table with bowls of food Hyatt Regency Tokyo Review

…and the cold selection offered most things you could expect from a hotel breakfast, including:

Pastries & breads.

a table with food on it Hyatt Regency Tokyo Review

Cold meats, fish and salad items.

a table with food on it Hyatt Regency Tokyo Review

Cereals and numerous accompaniments to the cereals (nuts, berries, seeds etc…)

a table with food on it Hyatt Regency Tokyo Review

Yoghurts (plain & blueberry).

a table with food on it Hyatt Regency Tokyo Review

And fruit and fruit salads.

a table with plates and bowls of fruit Hyatt Regency Tokyo Review

On the drinks front there was a plentiful supply of teas (which remained in place throughout the day)….

a row of glass jars with labels on them Hyatt Regency Tokyo Review

…as well as a coffee machine….

a coffee machine with a basket of cups on top of it Hyatt Regency Tokyo Review

…and a selection of juices:

a beverage dispenser with orange juice in a glass case Hyatt Regency Tokyo Review

It wasn’t a bad selection at all for a lounge breakfast – the bircher muesli was particularly good – and there was no shortage of anything as staff replenished the food as soon as it was running low.

a bowl of oatmeal with strawberries and seeds on a table Hyatt Regency Tokyo Review

I didn’t visit the lounge during the cocktail period but the coffee machine, the selection of teas…..

a table with jars of spices and coffee Hyatt Regency Tokyo Review

…and a selection of cold beverages and juices were all available throughout the day.

a refrigerator with drinks and beverages Hyatt Regency Tokyo Review

In addition to all that the lounge also provides guests with complimentary access to the New York Times….

a sign on a table Hyatt Regency Tokyo Review

…which is a nice touch.

Gym & Spa

The gym and spa facilities are located on the 28th floor of the hotel (the top floor).

a sign on a wall Hyatt Regency Tokyo Review

a sign with a wooden frame Hyatt Regency Tokyo Review

I didn’t try out the spa but the pool looked nice…..

a pool outside a door Hyatt Regency Tokyo Review

…while the gym was very well equipped for a city centre hotel.

The changing rooms offered lockers for clothes….

a row of lockers with numbers Hyatt Regency Tokyo Review

…and smaller lockers for shoes (which have to be removed before you can get anywhere near the pool):

a group of wooden lockers Hyatt Regency Tokyo Review

The equipment on show included treadmills overlooking Tokyo….

a group of treadmills in a room with windows Hyatt Regency Tokyo Review

a row of treadmills in a gym Hyatt Regency Tokyo Review

….various other cardio machines and miscellaneous torture devices….

a group of exercise bikes in a room Hyatt Regency Tokyo Review

a gym with exercise equipment Hyatt Regency Tokyo Review

…a free-weights area…..

a gym with weights and weights Hyatt Regency Tokyo Review

…and a water fountain to cool you down and towels to dry you (and the equipment) off.

a room with a shelf with shelves and a machine Hyatt Regency Tokyo Review

Once guests are done in the guy there are showers and washroom facilities within the changing/locker rooms:

a room with a mirror and a table Hyatt Regency Tokyo Review

Other Information

The Hyatt Regency Tokyo has a total of 5 restaurants offering Japanese, Chinese and French dining, an “Italian inspired” coffee shop and a pastry shop ih the lobby, a lounge on the 1st floor and a bar (Eau de Vie) on the 3rd floor.

True to form I didn’t try a single one of these out (I prefer to explore the city and eat out if I’m actually paying) but, the hotel’s webpage has more information on all of these.

While I didn’t use the airport bus service when I arrived I did make the most of it upon departure.

I was flying out of Tokyo from Haneda airport which is two train changes from the Hyatt Regency so it made sense to take the bus at a cost of ¥1,230 ($11).

The buses pick up at a number of city hotels before heading out one of the two Tokyo airports (timetables for both are below) and the journey times are set for around 1 hour.

On the morning I took the bus to Haneda this is how long the journey took:

37 mins to Terminal 2
43 mins to Terminal 1
52 mins to the International Terminal

Thoughts

I liked the Hyatt Regency in Tokyo as it was exactly what I needed on this trip. As I explained in the introduction to this trip, I wasn’t looking for luxury or opulence – I just needed somewhere central, clean and comfortable at a reasonable cost….and that exactly what I found the property to be.

The room wasn’t large but it was big enough for two people and the King bed was very comfortable. I would have liked the room to offer power outlets on both sides of the bed but that’s the only criticism I can think of from my stay.

The lounge was nice and relaxing outside of breakfast hours (when it could get busy) and the food selection for breakfast was very good indeed. The staff were all typically friendly (I’ve been lucky in that I’ve only encountered helpful, friendly people on my visits to Tokyo) and the concierge was great when I was looking for dining suggestions in the area.

Considering the reviews of the Park Hyatt Tokyo and the Andaz Tokyo that I’ve recently read, I can’t imagine paying 30,000 or 25,000 points per night to stay at those properties when the Hyatt Regency can be booked for just 12,000 points/night. Likewise, if you’re paying with cash, those two properties cost considerably more per night than the Hyatt Regency and, from what I’ve read, I’m struggling think of a situation where I would choose either of those over the Hyatt Regency.

If you have top-tier Hyatt status (which I no longer do) and if you wanted to cash in a suite upgrade, the Park Hyatt would probably be a better option but, considering I keep reading the word “tired” and the phrase “needs an update” with reference to the Park Hyatt I think I’ll stick with the Hyatt Regency and enjoy the good value it offers until such time where the Park Hyatt raises itself back up to a level it should be at.