Hyatt Regency Cape Town in South Africa [In-Depth Review]

At the start of a 2-week trip to South Africa, Zambia, and Zimbabwe, my best friend and I had the opportunity to spend 5 nights at the Hyatt Regency Cape Town. We would spend the remaining part of our trip on safari, so this was the only option to redeem hotel points.

The hotel is conveniently located in the city center and Bo-Kaap neighborhood. During one of our days in the city, we went on a food tour and found ourselves circling our hotel for some of the city’s best cuisine.

The Hyatt Regency Cape Town is the only World of Hyatt property in Cape Town, but it is not the only one in South Africa: there are 3 more Hyatt properties in Johannesburg.

Thanks to the generous hospitality, kind staff, and prime location, I thoroughly enjoyed my stay. Here’s what you can expect while staying at Hyatt Regency Cape Town.

Booking the Hyatt Regency Cape Town

To book the Hyatt Regency Cape Town, I redeemed 60,000 World of Hyatt points transferred from Chase Ultimate Rewards for our 5-night stay in a 2 Twin Club room. When I booked the hotel in August 2023, it was a Category 2 World of Hyatt property, so this Regency Club-level room went for 15,000 points per night. Now, the hotel is a Category 1, and a Regency Club-level room is just 7,000 points per night.

The cash rate for this room was 4,238 South African rand. This is equivalent to about $230 per night at the time of writing. At this rate, and even with the inflated price I paid in August, I still received just over 1.5 cents per point in value from my redemption. Upgraded Points values World of Hyatt points at 1.5 cents per point.

I transferred these points from Chase Ultimate Rewards, which are valued at 2 cents per point. But these were points sitting in my World of Hyatt account for months while I found a needed redemption after canceling a trip earlier in the year.

I love redeeming points for Hyatt stays because there are never any resort fees when you redeem points. It truly feels like I’m saving money when I can use my points this way versus still being stuck with those additional fees like at other large hotel chains.

If paying cash for your room, I’d recommend either a hotel credit card that earns bonus points and elite perks or a card that rewards you for hotel bookings through a credit card portal. In this case, The World of Hyatt Credit Card earns up to 9 points total for Hyatt stays — 4 Bonus Points spent at Hyatt hotels and 5 Base Points as a World of Hyatt member — plus a free night award for Category 1-4 hotels, which the Hyatt Regency Cape Town is.

The Platinum Card^® from American Express and Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card are great options for earning flexible bonus points. The Amex Platinum card earns 5x points on prepaid hotels booked through AmexTravel.com, while the Capital One Venture X card earns 10x miles on hotels booked through Capital One Travel, respectively.

Hyatt Regency Cape Town Location

Hyatt Regency Cape Town is located in the Bo-Kaap neighborhood of Cape Town. The neighborhood is adorned with colorful homes in bright shades of pink, green, orange, and yellow. As our tour guide explained, the neighborhood is a National Heritage Site, and only South African residents can own the homes there.

The neighborhood is also home to the Cape Malay, also known as Cape Muslims or Malays. In fact, some surrounding hotels and restaurants were “dry,” meaning they didn’t sell alcohol. We were there during the holy month of Ramadan and witnessed one of the neighborhood’s Iftar celebrations. Hundreds of Muslims laid prayer rugs facing Mecca on the ground outside and prayed at dusk before breaking their fast together. Muslims and non-Muslims were invited to partake.

We arrived on a Wednesday morning, and the drive to the hotel from Cape Town International Airport (CPT) took about 45 minutes in rush-hour traffic.

Several restaurants are near the hotel and the V&A Waterfront, including a shopping mall and the Cape Grace Hotel. The Waterfront is a 5-minute Uber ride from the hotel. Despite the proximity to several restaurants, we were advised not to walk even a few blocks from the hotel, especially not at night. We heard this from 3 different people, so we took it as fact that we should always take a car from the hotel.

Checking In

As soon as we arrived, bellhops and the concierge were waiting to help us with our luggage.

When we entered the lobby, the first thing we saw was the concierge desk behind the rotating doors. Several seating areas were right beyond the concierge, before the front desk. A pitcher with spa water, glasses, and warm towels were set to the side for guests to grab independently.

Our flight landed at CPT around 8 a.m., so the front desk wasn’t busy when we arrived at the hotel. I couldn’t check in online due to the lengthy travel day(s) between California and Cape Town. Because of that, I couldn’t let the hotel know what time we would arrive.

Our room wasn’t ready, but I gave them my name, and they offered to hold our luggage. They directed us to the gym and showers to freshen up. After a 12-hour flight from London to Cape Town (plus another 2 flights before that), a hot shower sounded like heaven.

Once we were ready for the day, we let the front desk know that we would be leaving to check out the Waterfront and would return sometime around check-in. We returned a little before 3 p.m. and were given the keys to our room. A bellhop followed us to our room with our luggage.

Lobby

The lobby had several seating areas and served as a social space in the evenings while we were there. Off the lobby, there was a patio as well.

The concierge desk also was located just inside of the hotel’s front doors in the lobby.

Elite Benefits

I don’t hold elite status with World of Hyatt and received no additional amenities during my stay. I did receive 3,000 bonus points thanks to a World of Hyatt Bonus Journeys promotion for stays through April 30, 2024.

Amenities

The amenities at Hyatt Regency Cape Town were enough to keep any guest happy. However, the amenity that impressed me the most was the twice-a-day housekeeping service.

Fitness Center

Located to the left of the pool deck at Signal Hill Terrace, the fitness center at Hyatt Regency Cape Town features several cardio machines and free weights. A water station sat near the complimentary towels on a wall separating men’s and women’s locker rooms.

The women’s locker room had 2 bathroom stalls, 2 showers, and 6 lockers. Beyond the shower was a door that led to a co-ed sauna. The fitness center and sauna was open 24 hours.

Swimming Pool

The swimming pool is on the mezzanine floor, just beyond the Signal Hill Terrace outdoor restaurant that serves wood-fired pizzas, hookahs, and cocktails. The pool overlooks part of the city, and is surrounded by lounge chairs and cabanas.

Artificial turf added a pop of color to the bright blue of the water and the steel grey and khaki of the pool furniture. Note that the pool did not have a wheelchair lift.

The pool was open from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m.

Wi-Fi

Wi-Fi worked throughout the hotel pretty much everywhere except for the elevators. I could get a few hours of work done and FaceTimed my family without any glitches. My friend was able to stream TV shows on her phone without issue as well.

Parking and Transportation

The hotel has self-parking for R140 (~$7). While not listed on its website, the hotel offers a shuttle to the V&A Waterfront.

Concierge

The concierge was friendly and always greeted us with a smile. We appreciated his genuine interest in discovering what we were doing each day. The concierges can be spotted by their black top hats and tails. They either meet you at the door as you enter or wish you farewell as you leave. One concierge eagerly recommended we take a hop-on, hop-off bus around Cape Town. He was excited for us to enjoy our visit.

Laundry

The Hyatt Regency offers laundry service for a fee.

Meeting Facilities

Meeting space can be found on the mezzanine floor, to the right when exiting the elevator. There are 3 meeting rooms, including an executive board room that overlooks a courtyard.

Club Lounge

The hotel’s website says that the Club Lounge is available to Club Level guests from 2 to 10 p.m. Light canapés are served between 6 and 10 p.m. However, I forgot that we had a Club Level room at all and wasn’t reminded of this when we checked in. I attempted to find the lounge to get at least a peek but did not see it even after following signs for it on the mezzanine.

2 Twin Club Room

Bedroom

Our 2 Twin Club room on the seventh floor featured 2 twin beds essentially pushed together to make 1 king-size bed, a desk, and plenty of space. A television was located directly across from the bed.

A counter with cabinets and narrow closets on either side was to the right when entering the room. The left closet housed the laundry bag to send out with housekeeping and the safe. The other side held the iron, ironing board, 2 sets of robes and slippers, and hangers.

In the center of the counter sat a tea kettle, an assortment of teas and coffee, cups, glasses, and water bottles.

There was no true dresser except for 2 drawers and 2 large cabinets underneath the countertop.

A desk and chair sat opposite the beds near the window.

From our window, we had a view of Table Mountain, Lion’s Head, and the colorful homes of the Bo-Kaap neighborhood below. We even had the privilege of watching the neighborhood break fast at Iftar one evening, bringing neighbors and visitors to the street to commune, sing, and celebrate.

Bathroom

The bathroom was large and included a free-standing bathtub and walk-in shower.

There was a single sink with full-size bath products by a brand called Distillations, including hand soap, body lotion, body wash, shampoo, and conditioner. The only downside of the bathroom was the shower design. The glass enclosure was about a foot too short, making for a very wet outside shower area.

Food and Beverage

There are 4 dining establishments at Hyatt Regency Cape Town, as well as 24-hour room service.

Urchin Restaurant

Urchin Restaurant is the hotel’s fine dining establishment where you can order fresh, local seafood. Urchin is open for dinner service from 6 to 10:30 p.m. Monday through Thursday.

126 Cape Kitchen & Café

126 Cape Kitchen & Café is a halal restaurant that is open for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, serving a buffet and à la carte menu. For breakfast, Cape and Malay cuisine is served alongside traditional American breakfast items like omelets, toast, and pancakes. For lunch and dinner, you can find mild curries, biryani, beef, chicken, and seafood dishes. 126 Cape is open for breakfast from 7 to 11 a.m., lunch from 12:30 to 3 p.m., and dinner from 6 to 10 p.m.

The Market

The Market serves prepackaged snacks, sandwiches, desserts, and Starbucks coffee and is open 24 hours.

Signal Hill Terrace

Finally, there’s Signal Hill Terrace, where the pool is located. You can order food and drinks from 10 a.m. until 11 p.m. daily.

Service

At check-in, the hotel seemed a little unprepared for us. Granted, we arrived way before we could expect our room to be ready, but they still seemed a little surprised to have guests in front of them. Their fluster continued when we returned from the showers, and the same gentleman who had greeted us seemed to have forgotten who we were entirely. It was just an odd moment and didn’t taint our experience.

Despite the first impressions, service was impeccable throughout our stay. Every staff member greeted us with a smile and said hello. We were incredibly impressed by the woman who greeted us at breakfast each morning and remembered our order after the first day. I was sick one evening and into the next day, and the women at the restaurant loaded my friend up with teas, tips for hydration and nausea, and offered to walk me to the pharmacy if I needed anything throughout the day.

But above all else, I was most impressed with housekeeping. I really appreciate a freshly made bed and well-stocked towels in the bathroom without asking for them. Water was plentiful at any time, and they ensured we had what we needed before we even had to ask. Each evening, a housekeeping manager would come by to check before bed if there was anything she could get us. We didn’t require much, but they always promptly responded with anything we were missing, whether face towels or more water.

Final Thoughts

I thoroughly enjoyed my stay at Hyatt Regency Cape Town. Admittedly, even without the attention paid to us by the concierge and the restaurant staff, they would have had me at housekeeping.

The location was centrally located and close to the places we wanted to go, even though we were cautioned not to venture out too far on our own. I would highly recommend Hyatt Regency Cape Town, especially to someone visiting the city for the first time who isn’t familiar with the city’s orientation.