Hotel Review: Hyatt Regency Grand Reserve Puerto Rico

If your looking for a tropical escape in Puerto Rico full of luxury, the the Hyatt Regency Grand Reserve is a fantastic choice. This resort is tucked away near Coco Beach with all kinds of on-site amenities that will help you truly relax on vacation. And while it’s not perfect, we do think it’s pretty great. Here’s our review of the Hyatt Regency Grand Reserve Puerto Rico, along with all the details you need to know about your stay.

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Overview of Hyatt Regency Grand Reserve Puerto Rico

First, let’s get into all the details about staying at the Hyatt Regency Grand Reserve, from booking it to what to expect with your rooms to the dining options.

Booking the Hyatt Regency Grand Reserve

On thing that’s a bit of a heartbreaker is that the Hyatt Regency Grand Reserve went up one Hyatt category in March 2023. While it was previously a Category 4 (meaning you could use those Category 1-4 Free Night Certificates here!), it’s now a Category 5.

Honestly, for the luxury it offers it is still a pretty great deal though. If you are looking to book with points, standard nights will cost you 20,000 Hyatt points. But cash rates can be pretty reasonable for a luxury property. While there are rates at peak times running in the $600 range, off-peak season can have rates closer to $300 per night.

Hyatt Regency Grand Reserve Puerto Rico sign

Hyatt Regency Grand Reserve Location

The Hyatt Regency Grand Reserve is located in the Río Grande area of Puerto Rico, which is on the eastern part of the island. It has a very secluded feel due to its location, which can be either a pro or con depending on the type of vacation you are looking for.

While the resort is technically only about 30 miles (46 km) from Old San Juan, it can feel even further away (especially if you are trying to get into San Juan during morning rush hour). So, if you are trying to do a lot in the most popular area of Puerto Rico, it’s not a great location. This is why, on our trip, we chose to split our stay between the Caribe Hilton in San Juan and the Hyatt Regency Grand Reserve.

However, the Hyatt Regency Grand Reserve IS close to El Yunque. So if you are looking to spend a lot of time exploring the rainforest, it can be a great location.

On the other hand, if you are looking to spend a lot of time at the resort and just relax at the pool and on the beach, the location won’t be an issue at all. It’s only about 30 minutes away from the airport, which makes it very easy to get to. Plus you can still get our and explore El Yunque if you want to.

Hyatt Regency Grand Reserve Lobby

When we first walked into the lobby at the Hyatt Regency Grand Reserve, we were definitely wowed by how gorgeous it was. It was even POURING rain when we arrived and the walls that usually are open to the outside were closed, and we still thought it was gorgeous.

It’s decorated in soothing tones with upscale touches. The front desk was super helpful and offered us a complementary bottle of wine to take to the room (not sure if this is standard or because we were celebrating our anniversary). And because it was pouring down rain, they drove us to our room in a golf cart because the rooms are spread out in several different bungalows.

Hyatt Regency Grand Reserve Rooms

Hyatt Regency Grand Reserve rooms are mostly located in several different bungalows along the property. There are also villas you can rent that are located in their Villas en la Reserva area. This is a newer area of the resort that offers villas with private balconies, room for larger families, and a courtyard with its own pool.

We had a garden view deluxe room with a king bed and tub and thought it was absolutely wonderful. When we arrived at the hotel we had been out hiking in El Yunque and it had started to rain on us. I was soaked, so I jumped into a warm bath immediately and it was heaven.

The tub was inside the shower area and could be either opened up to the bedroom or the curtain could be closed. Honestly, I thought it was nice, and I liked that the shower and tub were all contained in one area.

The rooms have tile floors (which I love because you know they are cleaner than carpet!), comfortable seating, and plenty of space. I also particularly loved the that there was a raised wooden area along the wall underneath the TV that was a perfect place to lay out a suitcase.

Rooms of course also come with amenities like at TV, A/C, a hairdryer, a coffeemaker, a small fridge, an iron and ironing board, and a hot water kettle.

Hyatt Regency Grand Reserve Restaurants

Because the Hyatt Regency Grand Reserve is so far away from most other places, they need to have a pretty decent amount of on-site dining options. We found this was mostly the case, although because we were there during a less crowded time, not every restaurant was open every night. For example, although Water’s Edge advertises dinner, I’m not sure it was open for dinner a single night we were there.

So here are the dining and drink options at the Hyatt Regency Grand Reserve!

Pro Tip: For restaurants that take reservations, we highly recommend you make reservations before your trip, especially if you are traveling at a more popular time!

Water’s Edge

Water’s Edge is the restaurant that offers breakfast each morning. And I have to say, I thought this breakfast buffet was FANTASTIC.

Not only were there fresh fruits and hot items like eggs and potatoes and breakfast meats, but they also had some sweet treats I loved. (I am a big sweets for breakfast person). Since we were there in the fall, they had pumpkin pancakes out with various toppings, and I honestly think they were some of the best pumpkin pancakes I’ve ever had.

And of course, if you are a Hyatt Globalist, you will be able to get this breakfast buffet for free.

Water’s Edge is also open for dinner, where they offer a buffet as well. The buffet options rotate on a seven day schedule. So if you go multiple times during your trip, you are unlikely to have repeat dishes.

Prime 787

Prime 787 is the onsite steakhouse at the resort. They offer steaks, seafood, and more. This is definitely a restaurant you’ll want to dress up for a little bit and a great place to celebrate a special occasion.

When we ate here I had the burger, and honestly I thought it was fine. A good choice, but nothing that blew me away. I also thought it was a bit overpriced, but that’s probably to be expected at a location like this.

Nori Asian Grill

Nori Asian Grill is located right across from Prime 787 and offers Asian dishes like sushi, sashimi, and appetizers like pork dumplings, spring rolls, and vegetable tempura.

They also offer a Teppanyaki dining room as well, where you can watch the chef prepare your dishes at a hibachi table.

Néctar

The newest restaurant at the Hyatt Regency Grand Reserve is Néctar, which offers local upscale Puerto Rican cuisine. This restaurant began as a food truck and has now expanded into a space at the resort. And to be honest, this was the best meal we had at the resort.

Now, it wasn’t perfect. When we were there they told us they had just been open for a couple of months. So, there were clearly a few service issues they were still working out. They also still had not finished decorating the space.

But I truly didn’t care because the food was AMAZING. We had mac & cheese croquettes for an appetizer and they were incredible. For my main dish I had chicken in alcapurrias (a breading of plantains and taro) along with yucca fried with bacon. It was fantastic and I seriously could not stop eating that yucca even once I was full.

Martini Bar

The Martini Bar is located between Prime 787 and Nori Asian Grill. And they serve…you guessed it…cocktails! It’s a fun space decorated with vodka bottles. But note that seating is pretty limited.

Lobby Bar

The lobby bar offers all kinds of drinks and is located in behind the check-in area. I loved this section because yes, there is the bar, but there is also all kinds of open lobby space with couches and comfortable seating around it. So you can get a drink at the bar and then go find somewhere nice to sit even when the bar is pretty crowded.

Wet Bar (Pool Bar) and Food Truck

There’s of course a swim-up pool bar here too! They offer all kinds of drink you can enjoy pool-side.

And behind the Wet Bar there is a food truck where you can grab a pool-side lunch. I believe that this can rotate through different food trucks from time to time, but when we were there I grabbed a really delicious burger from the food truck that was there.

The Market

The Market is a grab-and-go place that is open 24/7 at the resort. Here you can get things like specialty coffees, sandwiches, pastries, and smoothies. They also sell pre-packaged foods that you can take for snacks later.

The Sand Trap

There is a sports bar area of the resort called The Sand Trap where you can get food and drink. You’ll also find a Top Golf Swing Suite (a golf simulator) here.

La Mina Restaurant

This restaurant is located in the pool area of the Villas En La Reserva. It offers seafood and Puerto Rican dishes.

In-Room Dining

The resort of course also offers room service. It’s open from 7:00 a.m. until usually 10:00 or 11:00 at night. There will be a menu in your room.

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Hyatt Regency Grand Reserve Pool

The Hyatt Regency has a large pool with plenty of lounge chairs, daybeds, and umbrellas. There are also cabanas you can rent. And there are plenty of sections within the pool too. There are shallower areas better for kids, deeper areas for games like volleyball, and benches and lounge chairs within the pool itself.

We spent most of one of our days at the pool and moved around to several different chair locations. They were all lovely, and really the only reason we moved is because of noise levels as more people (and some louder families) came out to the pool.

Oh, and of course there is hotel staff that will come and take your drink orders at your chair!

Hyatt Regency Grand Reserve Beach

The resort has its own large private beach area, so if you want a beach day you don’t have to travel far at all. The beach is stocked with lounge chairs and umbrellas and it’s lined with palm trees so it looks like the true tropical paradise that it is.

There is also a watersports kiosk on the beach, so if you want to you can try out some water activities like kayaking or snorkeling, this is where you can go.

Resort Activities and Amenities

Rainforest Spa

There is an onsite spa at the Hyatt Regency Grand Reserve called The Rainforest Spa. It is located between the main area of the hotel and the section where the room bungalows are.

You can get massages, facials, and salon services. They also have their own small private pool where you can relax before or after your treatments. There’s also a sauna and a steam room.

Fitness Center

The fitness center is located in the spa building. It is pretty basic, but if you are looking to get some exercise during your vacation it should be sufficient.

There are also a few tennis courts on property near the fitness center. And while they are not technically on Hyatt property, there are several golf courses next to the resort.

Kids Club

While there is technical a “kids club” on property, it really just looks like a small play area and it was definitely not open when we were there. I have read online that activities are sometimes offered for kids at the hotel, but they will still need to have an adult with them. (So this isn’t a drop your kids off and then relax by the pool situation.)

Event Spaces

There are plenty of spaces in the resort to host events! The weekend we were there, both a wedding and a corporate event were happening. On property this is a wedding chapel, a reception area, a ballroom, and of course you can choose to have events in multiple outdoor spaces.

Hyatt Regency Grand Reserve Pros & Cons

So let’s look at the pros and cons of staying at the Hyatt Regency Grand Reserve!

Pros:

Absolutely beautiful resort.
Spacious rooms.
Solid on-site dining.
Private beach and large pool area.
Truly feels like a tropical paradise.

Cons:

Out of the way of most other attractions.
You won’t really get a true feel of Puerto Rico here.
On-site dining is pretty pricey, and since it’s so far away from everything else it’s more inconvenient to find something else to eat.

Our Hyatt Regency Grand Reserve Puerto Rico Review

We really loved our stay at the Hyatt Regency Grand Reserve! It was definitely a luxury resort with good amenities and a polished feel. Our room was spacious and I loved our bathtub. The grounds were gorgeous — basically the whole thing was like a huge garden next to the beach lined with palm trees. And the restaurants we ate at were pretty delicious (although some more than others).

However, I did feel a tad bit weird being in Puerto Rico, an island that has been in such need since Hurricane Maria, and secluding ourselves at a luxury resort. I didn’t stress about it too much, because we had definitely spent a good part of our trip exploring other parts of Puerto Rico, but I didn’t love that coming to a resort like this didn’t feel like Puerto Rico.

It was also clear that we were there during an off-season, because there were multiple things that were not open and crowds seemed kind of low. But I’ll assume that’s probably not the norm.

My overall review of the Hyatt Regency Grand Reserve in Puerto Rico is that it is definitely a solid luxury stay. We thought the resort was gorgeous and really enjoyed our time there. If we had the opportunity to go again, we would definitely be there!