Hyatt Regency Etoile; The Best Hotel for a Family Vacation in Paris
Updated: Aug 17, 2023
You can read about and watch documentaries on world culture and discover regions and significant cities, unlike anything you have experienced in your own life. Or you can choose to immerse yourself by traveling and living briefly in another part of the world. For example, Paris is a city that needs to be experienced in person; it needs to be walked and viewed with your own eyes and not through the lens of a camera. Suppose your family plans to experience the city of love and is looking for your home away from home. In that case, you will find the best family experience at Hyatt’s Regency Etoile.
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Check-In
Turn to the right after you pass through the giant revolving doors, and you will be standing near the concierge and bellman desk. Just past this point is the guest service center with six counters to process your arrival check-in or departure checkout. Again, the check-in process was quick and smooth. Furthermore, we felt welcomed as if we were frequent guests that the staff knew personally.
Most Hyatts in the US thank us for being globalists and inform us of the benefits we would have, like access to a club room for snacks or an included breakfast. But at the Regency Etoile, a hospitality manager met us, gave the kids souvenir key chains, and had chocolate bars for the whole family. The manager walked us around the lobby and escorted us to our rooms to explain the features and amenities. After taking our family to see our rooms, Our manager took us to the member’s club for snacks and drinks. After having a bite to eat and a bit more conversation, our hospitality manager said goodbye and left us to enjoy the beautiful view of Paris.
photo: courtesy hyatt.com
Lobby and Mayo Market
The lobby is large, or vast is a better descriptor. There are multiple lounge areas, a buffet area for breakfast, and the Mayo Market. You rarely see the lounge areas of a hotel lobby buzzing with guests conversing and discussing plans or experiences while enjoying beverages and snacks. However, at this hotel, guests were relaxing, interacting, or lounging and reading books any time we passed through day or night.
The Mayo Market is to the left of the main entrance when you arrive or to the right when you are leaving. It is a boutique-style cafe with snacks, light boxed meals, bakery items, deli items, and alcoholic and nonalcoholic beverages at reasonable prices. We missed dinner one day, and everyone was too tired to go across the street or down the block and find a restaurant. The club upstairs was also closed for the night. We could buy a charcuterie meal and humus and pita bread wedges downstairs. The kids found bottled juice they enjoyed, and Alaina and I found a bottle of champagne. Our snack night was reasonably priced and less than appetizers and drinks in a local restaurant.
Concierge
The Concierge experts are your personal problem solvers. They are available to all hotel guests regardless if you are enrolled in any of Hyatt’s travel programs. Our hospitality manager informed us that the Concierge desk would arrange transportation, make reservations, acquire tickets to attractions and events, and solve airline issues if needed. Think of them as in-house travel agents or consultants. For example, we had a problem obtaining a rental car. We consulted with the desk to develop the best action plan; their advice and help were priceless.
photo: courtesy hyatt.com
Adjoining Rooms
Renovated 2017-2020, Hyatt’s Regency Etoile is the highest skyscraper Hotel in Paris. It boasts 995 rooms. As with most hotel rooms in Paris, the Regency’s rooms are a bit small; our family booked adjoining rooms that together create a suite. The main room had a king bed, couch, mini fridge, and desk; the adjoining room had a queen trundle bed, sofa, mini fridge, and desk. Both rooms had a small closet and a small dresser. Both rooms had similar bathrooms with a nice showers.
I have back issues, and some beds leave me sore and stiff in the morning. I was worried about inflammation from all the walking we would do each day, compounding this problem. Once we overcame jet lag, I had some of the best nights of sleep. I did not need to wake, stretch, or take an anti-inflammatory pill to start the day.
Paris hotel rooms are smaller in size. Our family of four would not have been able to stay in just the primary bedroom. When booking, realize you will only get two people to fit comfortably in a room. You may be able to fit three children in the adjoining room and a fourth on the couch in the master if your family is larger. But plan on booking at least one full suite if you are traveling as a family.
Remember that electrical adapters are needed in Europe for devices incompatible with the wiring. We found a nice adapter on Amazon that included a small power strip. One nice feature Hyatt included was universal USB adapters in the nightstands and on the desk to power up your phone, tablet, or small laptop.
We used the hotel as our base of operations. We scheduled our days in the city to explore museums, shops, and neighborhoods. We needed a comfortable place to rest and renew, and our suite at Hyatt worked perfectly for our needs.
photo: courtesy hyatt.com
Club Lounge
The club lounge was the hotel feature that was most enjoyed by all of our family. The convenience of being able to refuel our bodies with a quick breakfast or a small late meal was indispensable. We never took advantage of the morning buffet in the lobby because we could get a complete quality breakfast in the club. In addition, they open the connecting doors between the club and the late-night lounge Windows during breakfast. Opening the connecting doors allowed for ample comfortable seating during the busiest time of the day and spectacular views of the Eiffel Tower and the surrounding city.
Each morning, there was a large selection of baked bread, cream cheese spreads, and butter. The hot bar had several styles of eggs, bacon, and sausages. The cold bar had fruit, cheese selections, salmon, and cold cuts. There was a daily salad bar with fresh produce and hot and cold cereal. The club offered cappuccino and espresso machines and an extensive tea selection. There were many juices and sparkling water styles, and champagne was also available. My wife and I often mixed mimosas to enjoy while eating and gazing at the Eiffel Tower early in the morning.
All afternoon the beverage cooler was available with Coke products, juices, several brands of bottled beer, champagne, and sparkling water. Often there were finger foods and small appetizers functional throughout the day in case you needed a quick snack between reservations or a quick meal to take on the go.
Window Bar
Hyatt’s late-night bar is a spectacular place to view the Eiffel Tower lit up at night. It is adults only, like any bar or nightclub, and requires dressing appropriately. The doorman will ask you to review the dress code if you show up in gym clothes and flip-flops. But do not stress about needing an upscale look; long pants with a colored shirt for men or long pants with a blouse and a casual dress will work for girls. After being seated at a table, most with panoramic views of the city, you can order drinks. The bartenders create all of the standard and a few custom cocktails and martinis. There are several brands of beer available as well. I love the 1664 gold lager; it is refreshing any time of the day. Unfortunately, they do not offer food at Window, so make sure you have dinner or eat. At the same time, the club opens earlier in the evening.
If you are interested in booking this hotel or a similar Hyatt Regency at the best current rate check out availability and pricing here
Travel Hub
The Hyatt is situated a block from both RER and Metro stations. On day one, we learned that traffic in Paris could get worse in minutes. We scheduled a river dinner cruise and pre-planned the time to travel by car. We checked the travel time as we were getting ready and again before confirming our Uber ride. We were all set to be on time and a bit early. As we traveled from the hotel to the pickup location for the cruise, traffic worsened. Travel conditions were deteriorating in front of our eyes, along with the chance to make our cruise on time. Had we taken the metro, we would have been to the pickup location with plenty of time to spare. For the rest of our trip, we leveraged the metro and RER for our travel needs, and it was so convenient to have the Porte Maillot station a short 3-5 minute walk from our hotel. We could travel all over Paris and as far away as Disneyland and the Palace of Versailles without renting a car or using an Uber. The metro system was easy to navigate with the help of google maps, and the cost was very affordable, a fraction of the cost of using a cab or Uber. The hotel’s proximity to the metro station makes it a precious asset for a vacation that has your family traveling to all parts of the city.
I will not choose Hyatt Regency Etoile if you are looking for a resort getaway with plans to lounge in a luxury room or property with the intent to relax most of your days. But you need a good base of operations for a business trip or family vacation centered around touring the city. In that case, this is the hotel for you. You will have the best views, proximity to airports and public transit, and an excellent, upscale spot to relax at night with fellow travelers. The customer service is a 10 out of 10, the cleanliness is a 10 out of 10, and the modern accommodations and atmosphere are a 9-10 out of 10.
Would you like to take your family to Paris? Do you need to know where to begin sorting through options and planning your trip? Please email us at sunhatsntravelmaps@gmail.com we offer travel research and coaching services.
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