I enjoyed a very pleasant stay at the Hyatt Regency Kathmandu, a full-service property with nice amenities and excellent service. It is an aging facility and also not the cleanest, but I really liked it and greatly appreciated how well the hotel treats World of Hyatt Globalists as well as the value when paying with points.
Hyatt Regency Kathmandu Review
Originally, I was going to spend all three nights in Kathmandu here, but I spent one at The Dwarkia’s Hotel and two nights so that I could compare the two properties.
Booking
The Hyatt Regency Kathmandu is one of the nicest Category 1 hotels in the World of Hyatt program. A free night will cost:
- 3,500 points (off-peak season)
- 5,000 points (standard season)
- 6,500 points (peak season)
Meanwhile, the nightly rate at the hotel was $220 for a base room during my spring stay, which made it easy to use 5K points per night instead of cash.
Location
The hotel is located in the heart of bustling, dirty Kathmandu and truly is like an oasis. At 37 acres, the hotel grounds are vast and the driveway from the street to the hotel entrance is over 500 meters long.
In fact, you might even run into wildlife on the road…
As you pull in, you will be greeted by the tranquil sound of running water. The hotel’s extended entrance is beyond the water, with a casino located through a door on the left side.
Check-In
After arriving late from Bangkok, I checked into the hotel after 10:00 pm and was warmly welcomed and thanked for being a Globalist. I’ll address Globalist recognition below, but this hotel certainly takes care of its elite guests.
The lobby is filled with mini-temples in what it calls The Court of Nine Chaityas, featuring replicas of ancient shrines from the Kathmandu Valley. In the afternoon, incense is lit and fills the lobby with the smell of a temple.
Beyond the mini-temple is a seating area and the hotel bar, which serves as the de facto Regency Cub lounge.
Guest Room
My room, 701, was on the top floor of the main building and appeared to have only three suites.
My suite had an odd layout with a hallway at the entrance leading to a large bedroom and a separate desk area, with a large bathroom adjacent to the work area.
The bathroom included a spa-style bathtub in the center with a large walk-in shower and a toilet in the corner without any door. Yes, the room and the batroom especially certainly screamed circa 1995…
A welcome amenity included a fruit bowl and some sweet chocolate treats on sticks (too sweet for me, but a nice gesture nonetheless).
Sunrise view from my room:
Later in day:
View from across the hall:
Regency Club
The Regency Club closed during the pandemic and, at least as of my visit, had not reopened. But rather than simply eliminate the lounge like so many other Hyatt properties have done, the hotel offered a happy hour in the hotel lobby bar plus complimentary soft drinks, tea, and coffee all day long.
Enjoying barista-made coffee and fresh-squeezed orange juice all day long is a real treat and a huge personal value-add for me.
You can also dine on a terrace overlooking the pool and garden below.
In the evening, between 6:00 pm and 8:00 pm, there are free alcoholic drinks and a selection of daily chef specialties served tapas style. You can make a meal out of it if you wish and of course, the great coffee and juice are available too.
Food + Drink
Three on-site dining options are available.
The Living Room
Borrowing a name from the Park Hyatt brand, the bar I reference above is called The Living Room. It features a full menu of dishes like burgers, sandwiches, and salads plus a long cocktail menu.
Sesame
Breakfast and dinner buffets are available in Seasame. The breakfast buffet is phenomenal, with a huge selection of Western items as well as a wide variety of Nepalese and Indian dishes. Juices are fresh-squeezed, omelets are made to order, and the coffee is excellent too.
Rox
The hotel’s Italian restaurant offers woodfire pizza and other Italian specialties. I do not eat pizza much anymore, but had a late dinner and thought the freshly made pizza turned out perfectly.
The Terrace
Poolside dining at The Terrace.
Room Service
If room service was available, I did not see any menus…
Pool
A large outdoor pool is surrounded by chairs and was really refreshing after a hot day of tourism.
It seemed there was at least one other pool as well, but it was closed off and emptied… perhaps someone who has stayed in the last couple of months can chime in if it has reopened.
Fitness
The fitness center had a mix of brand new and slightly older equipment but was housed in a room that seemed run down and it seems that the hotel sells gym memberships because the gym was very crowded and as I sat in the crowded sauna (see below) all the guys seemed to know one another.
Spa + Wellness
A full-service spa with a wide range of treatment options are available, though I did not try any. There’s also a wellness area with sauna, steam room, and hot tub.
Cleanliness + Age
I think the pictures attest, perhaps especially the one of the steam room directly above, that the hotel is aging. The rooms are dated. So are the restaurants and common areas.
But what disappointed me far more than that was the common areas outside my room. When I arrived, there was a giant hairball outside my door.
It was still there in the morning.
AND THE FOLLOWING MORNING!
The following morning I also found another “friend” lying outside the evlator. I smashed it…but it wasn’t cleaned up when I checked out…
An old-school property is not a dealbreaker for me. Frankly, this isn’t either…but I was disgusted by it. There is simply no reason to allow these sorts of things to sit on the floor.
The room appeared clean, but in the wellness area it looked like it had been a long time since the showers had been scrubbed:
Service
I’m obviously not glossing over the cleanliness issues nor am I downplaying that the hotel is quite dated by now. But I did like this hotel and one reason I really liked it was Subash in The Living Room. He was so excellent in making small talk and also a great barista. He really made me feel warm and welcome and I appreciated that greatly.
The entire staff was excellent…there was not a single bad encounter.
CONCLUSION
I enjoyed my stay at the Hyatt Regency Kathmandu and give it a positive review overall, even though it could have been cleaner and is now showing its age. This is a great hotel to use your World of Hyatt points at, nicely takes care of Globalists, and has lovely staff. If I had to choose between this property and The Dwarika’s, I would choose here.
Hey Klint!
Why don’t you try vlogging on your channel and present your tour videos and reviews there as well. I am sure it will be a treat for your readers.
Shame about the cleanliness. With a bit of modernizing, it could be a wonderful grand hotel of sorts.
Dirty…the United of hotels.