When I’m visiting the Bay Area, I’m often changing the hotel during the weekends. That’s exactly what I did during my most recent stay in the Bay Area. This time I picked the Hyatt Centric in Mountain View. I stayed there before but this time my stay was not exactly what I was hoping for. Please read my review of the Hyatt Centric Mountain View.
Location & Check-In
The Hyatt Centric Mountain View is a 10 minute drive from downtown Mountain View and Palo Alto. The hotel itself is located in a newly developed area with mainly apartment buildings and offices. There are some restaurants within walking distance (Pacific Catch, Mendocino Farms) as well as a Safeway and a Starbucks. There is sufficient parking in a parking garage close by and the hotel has a dedicated section in that parking garage. You’ll have to pay a daily rate of $20 for the privilege of using that dedicated section though.
When I arrived at the hotel for check-in, I had to wait for another guest to check in. I overheard that the guest was also globalist with Hyatt. She was recognised as such and she also got an upgrade to a suite. I think that guest felt very welcome and attended to and I was patiently waiting to receive the same kind of service. Unfortunately, someone else from the front desk then appeared and decided to help me. And the service I received couldn’t have been more different. I was clearly helped by someone who doesn’t understand the importance of the check-in experience. Or better, the person knew but simply couldn’t be bothered that day. There was no smile, no friendly welcome but instead I got my room key and we were done… When I did ask if I got a nice room, the person confirmed that I got a corner room. At least, that made me happy since corner rooms are in general less noisy. So with check-in efficiently taken care off, I headed to my room.
The Corner Room
When I came to my room I was shocked; this was not a corner room! In fact, I had the room next to the corner room! I was thinking about going back to the friendly front desk, but finally decided to keep my room. After all, as long as it would be quiet, I would be happy…. The room was a studio suite with 1 king bed – exactly what I booked. This room is slightly bigger than a normal room. The wooden floors and fresh decoration made it a pleasant room to stay in.
The building of the Hyatt Centric Mountain View is pretty new; it opened in 2019. However, the construction has some big flaws in my opinion. It’s really noisy. You can hear people walking in the room above you and next to you. It reminded me of some old wooden Residence Inn hotels from the 80’s. You can also clearly hear people talking in the room next to you. Again, very surprising because it’s a fairly new building. This all means you have to be lucky with whom is occupying the room next to you. Unfortunately, I wasn’t lucky.
In the room next to mine – the corner room I was hoping to get – they decided at around 2 am to have some big discussions mixed with frantic walking. This continued until well after 3 am. Very annoying especially since one of my objectives of going to a different hotel in the weekend, was to find a place which is more quiet… So that didn’t really work out so good. Anyway, it was a good excuse for my poor golf the following day.
Other notable mentions
The breakfast is served in the weekends starting 07:30. I wish that was at least half an hour earlier, especially since there is no buffet but only a-la-carte service which can take some time. But no complaints about the actual dishes; it’s fresh and everything I tried, tasted very good.
The hotel also has a swimming pool at the second floor. But to be honest, that area doesn’t look very inspiring.
Conclusion
The Hyatt Centric Mountain View has a lot going for it. Location is good, being located exactly between Mountain View downtown and Palo Alto – both only a 10 minute drive. The hotel is only 5 years old and the decoration looks fresh and new. Breakfast is good even though it can take some time for the dishes to arrive.
But I cannot get over the fact that the service I received at the check-in was really bad, and the rooms have bad sound isolation. This should definitely be something to take into account when you’re considering staying there.
During this stay, I’ve also stayed at the Hyatt Regency Santa Clara. Please read my review of that hotel. In a couple of days I will also stay at the Grand Hyatt SFO. The number 1 airport hotel. Please read my review of that hotel also.
The Hyatt Centric Mountain View hotel is a category 5 hotel. Please read my blog about when it makes sense paying with points instead of cash.
Leave a Reply