I knew I wanted to splurge on one hotel night while I was in Nice so I decided to stay at the Hyatt Regency Nice Palais de la Méditerranée. You probably already know that I’m a big Hyatt fan so it’s probably no surprise that I chose this hotel. I read a lot of reviews during my research and everybody was raving about it so I was pretty excited about my stay. This is especially true after staying in a very tiny hotel for three days prior. I was ready for some SPACE!

 

Review of the Hyatt Regency Nice

// LOCATION //

The Hyatt Regency Nice is situated right in front of the Promenade des Anglais which is the main promenade that hugs the coastline in Nice. The location is great if you want to go to cafes, the beach, walk along the promenade, etc. Literally, everything is within walking distance of the hotel. Also, if you are coming from the train station, it’s an easy 15-minute walk. I did this walk with two suitcases and a backpack all by myself. Lastly, if you are looking for a money exchange place, the best rate I found (not by much) was around the corner from the Hyatt Regency Nice.

 

// ROOM //

The hotel is located in the historic Palais de la Méditerranée and is comprised of 187 rooms. There is a casino on the ground floor (which btw, the Hyatt website doesn’t even mention that) and a restaurant on the third floor. My room was a 1 King Bed Deluxe room located on the 5th floor (517) and I ABSOLUTELY loved it. The room is dead center of the hotel so you have a view of the whole hotel and the French Riviera from your patio. If you are looking for a room like mine, I believe any room on the -17 stack should work (i.e. 517, 617, 717).

The bedroom had been nicely updated with new furnishings, but I have to say the bathroom looks a bit outdated. It has that yellow marble look to it which was probably fancy years ago, but now just looks dark and old. My favorite part of the room was definitely the patio doors. They span across the whole room so you can open all of them up and have that “indoor-outdoor” living everyone always raves about.

 

// FOOD //

The only food I had here was the breakfast buffet that came with my status. The breakfast buffet had a great variety and there was a guy making omelets if you wanted that. The breakfast is hosted on the third floor with an even better view of the Promenade des Anglais since the tables are right next to the edge of the building. Keep in mind, since this is a restaurant, they will check for your French Health Pass or 72-Hour QR code.

 

// POOL + BEACH //

Sadly, I did not go to the pool or the beach during my stay at the Hyatt Regency Nice. I know I know! How could I come all the way to the French Riviera and not step foot in the water? First of all, this is NOT a sandy beach. It is a beach that is made up of rocks that you usually see near rivers. The smooth kind, you know? Second, even the though pool looked inviting, there was no drink service from what I could tell and I rather spend my time exploring the city. Maybe if I was with someone, I would have tried either, but usually, if I’m traveling by myself, I like to walk around the city more.

 

// SERVICE //

The service at the Hyatt Regency Nice was the real star of the show. I’ve never noticed how much service can really change how I view a hotel. Before my trip, I was researching this hotel on Yelp and TripAdvisor like there was no tomorrow. Almost all the reviews talk about how great the service was. In my mind, I’m thinking, what are they doing differently that makes them stand out more than any other luxury hotel. Well, let me tell you!

First, since I have Globalist status, they upgraded my room before I even got there. It showed on my app the day before I arrived so I knew what I was kind of getting already. This is probably only the second time that it’s been updated on my Hyatt app before I got there.

Second, when I was checking in, the Rooms Manager (Roch) came out of his office and personally greeted me. I thought I did something wrong because he came from nowhere and just started talking to me about my trip and my stay. I finally figured out that he was just being nice/welcoming and wanted to give me his card in case I needed anything during my stay. I was floored that he would do this for every guest that came in. That truly exceeded my expectations.

Lastly, I believe every room gets the same little gift during their stay. I wasn’t probably supposed to be in the room, but a gentlemen came by to drop off two bottles of juices, an ice bucket, and Socca chips. Socca is well known in Nice as a type of savory chickpea flour pancake. There are a lot of restaurants that serve it, but I was excited that the Hyatt gave me a bag in chip form. My only wish is that they would have served it with some dip. The chips got too dry after a while without any dip to help it.

 

// COVID //

During check-in, they did not check for my CDC vaccination card or my QR code which was expected since they are not required to. There are plenty of hand sanitizing stations around the hotel so there’s never a lack of hand sanitizer. You are required to wear a mask indoors but are free to take it off outdoors or while eating/drinking. As mentioned above, you will have to show your French Health Pass or 72-Hour QR code if you plan on dining at the restaurant.

 

Cost of Staying at the Hyatt Regency Nice

I was literally going back and forth on if I should book this hotel with points or if I should just pay in cash. This Hyatt Regency Nice is a Category 6 hotel which means that it would cost me 25,000 Hyatt points. At the time, the regular room rate was only 278.10 euros + tax ($326.44 USD total). If I paid with points, I would have to transfer my Chase points to Hyatt, and I know Chase points are worth roughly 2 cents per point. So the better deal is to definitely pay the regular room rate. With that being said, I had a bunch of Chase points and not a lot of money lol.

So, I booked it on points, and literally up until a couple of days before, decided to refund back my points and just pay the regular rate with my Hyatt credit card. I was seriously thinking about this up until the very last day that I could cancel my reservation. In the end, I’m glad I refunded my points because I ended up needing the points for an emergency trip anyways.

Was it worth the money I paid for the hotel? ABSOLUTELY! There are some hotels out there where I literally think I just gave them my money and got nothing but a bed and a shower. But at the Hyatt Regency Nice, I got the full experience. Everything from checking in to checking out. Now, if the price was well above the $500 mark, then at that point I would have definitely used my points. But since it was well below that, paying the regular rate is the better choice.

 

Who Should Stay at the Hyatt Regency Nice?

I would say singles, honeymooners, and couples would for sure have a great time at the Hyatt Regency Nice. That’s pretty much all I saw while I was there. The hotel is quite romantic being situated right in front of the French Riviera and all. Families could also stay here but I don’t see the hotel having a lot of activities for the kiddos to do. The pool might be fun, but I figured you would probably want to go to the beach instead.

 

Conclusion

I would definitely come back and stay at the Hyatt Regency Nice Palais de la Méditerranée. The location of the hotel can’t be beaten. You are minutes away from the beach, promenade, and restaurants. The hotel staff was amazing and you literally can’t get a better view of the French Riviera in my opinion. The patio was the best part of the room and I encourage you to book the 1 King Deluxe room if you can.

 

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