[Hotel Review] Hyatt Centric Waikiki Beach, Honolulu, Hawaii

There are three World of Hyatt hotels in Waikiki Beach, Honolulu, Hawaii: The Hyatt Regency Waikiki Beach Resort and Spa (category 5), the Hyatt Centric Waikiki Beach (category 4), and the Hyatt Place Waikiki Beach (category 3). Of the three, only the Hyatt Regency is actually on the beach (or more correctly, across the street from the beach).

We stayed at the Hyatt Centric for five nights in October.

The lobby of the hotel is quite modern and welcoming, almost whimsical. The staff is very friendly and professional. After a long flight from Europe, we arrived at the hotel fairly late.

There is a cute bar, but it was not operational (Covid . . . sigh)

The hallway had a nice Hawaiian vibe to it.

We were upgraded to a suite. It is a large room, with an adjoining small living room with a sofa and TV. This is a City View Suite, described as a spacious loft style suite reaching up to 500 square feet. These rooms include one king bed, separate living room with sleeper sofa, and stunning views of Waikiki city center. 

Since we were in the middle of the pandemic, we were happy to have the living room where we could eat take out meals and relax. Since the couch is a sleep sofa, it would also work well for families traveling with a young child or two. Unfortunately, the accommodations did not have a terrace. I don’t think that any of the rooms at the hotel have balconies, but we wished that the room had one.

Here are some photos of our suite, which I thought was very nice, modern and roomy. (The balloons were for my birthday).

This is the living room area.

This is the bathroom:

In hotel bathrooms, it seems like it would be so easy if they would only close off the toilet with a door….

This is the view:

The pool is on the same level as the lobby. Unfortunately it is not a real swimming pool. It is actually only a few inches deep.

Because of the pandemic, the hotel did not serve breakfast. As a Globalist, we were compensated 500 or 1,000 points per night (I forgot which), but we really would have preferred the breakfast. There is a Starbucks Reserve adjacent to the hotel, so this is where we got our coffee each day.

All in all, the hotel was very nice and we had a pleasant stay. However, through no fault of the hotel, I was not happy with my choice. The hotel would be perfect for a business trip, but I was in Waikiki for a Hawaiian beach vacation. If I did not have a beach, then at the very least, I wanted a functional pool. Similarly, a balcony would have benefited the experience. Lastly, the hotel did not offer one morsel of breakfast. I cannot blame the hotel for any of this, but, in retrospect, I should have stayed at the Hyatt Regency (even though I would not have been able to use category 1-4 free night certificates at the Hyatt Regency).

Here’s a tip! If you love poke as much as we do, go to the Foodland Supermarket in Ala Moana Shopping Center! Buy a pound or two of poke and then bring it back to the hotel for an unforgettably wonderful feast!