Review: the new Hyatt Regency Stratford hotel, London

This is our review of the Hyatt Regency Stratford hotel, inside the Westfield shopping centre.

It’s a good time to be a World of Hyatt member as the brand has been on an acquisition spree, cannibalising some of its rivals to bulk up its offering in the UK and Europe.

Case in point: the Hyatt Regency Stratford, which re-opened in April after a full refurbishment which transformed it from a Holiday Inn to a Hyatt Regency. Other signings for the Regency brand include Hyatt Regency Manchester, which I reviewed as a Crowne Plaza in 2018 before it joined Hyatt, as well as the Hyatt Regency London Blackfriars, formerly the Crowne Plaza London The City, opening (finally) in the Autumn.

Given that Hyatt has historically had very poor coverage of the UK and Europe this can only be a good thing, although I’m not sure IHG sees it that way ….

Hyatt Regency is Hyatt’s upscale, full-service hotel brand. That said, I can understand that you may be confused because the jump in style and location from Hyatt Regency The Churchill in the West End to Hyatt Regency Stratford is substantial.

The same building containts a Hyatt House hotel for longer stays, which used to be a Staybridge Suites. This is still being refurbished so we did not visit, but we hope to take a look at some point.

The Hyatt Regency Stratford invited us to stay and see what they have done with the place. The hotel website is here.

Where is the Hyatt Regency Stratford?

Getting to the Hyatt Regency Stratford is a bit of a pickle because it is – literally – part of Westfield Stratford City shopping centre, which are rarely designed for their ease of navigation. (It turns out that Westfield also has the world’s worst website, so this doesn’t appear to be an isolated problem.)

The easiest way to get to the Regency is to head up to the ‘outside’ street that bisects the mall and connects the tube station to Stratford International and the Olympic Park. If you’re coming from the tube, DON’T GO INSIDE. Instead, take the lifts or the stairs right in front of you as you exit:

You then want to walk all the way down the street, towards the Vue and John Lewis, until you hit the centre where three streets meet. On the corner, immediately on your left, you should see the entrance:

To check-in, take the elevators up to the third floor, where reception is.

The location is not as weird as you may be thinking. Due to the investment for the 2012 Olympics, Stratford is ludicrously well connected to Central London. Whilst the modern Jubilee Line is the fastest way into the West End, multiple other underground, DLR and overground lines converge here. If the price is right it isn’t a bad place to be, especially if you are flying into London City Airport.

Inside the Hyatt Regency Stratford

The first thing that is immediately obvious as you step out of the lift is that this isn’t a Holiday Inn any more. The hotel has had a top-to-bottom refurbishment that has transformed it from cheap-and-cheerful to a classy, sophisticated property.

Here is the lobby, with the lobby bar behind:

Check in was quick and easy and I was given my room keys.

Rooms at the Hyatt Regency Stratford

I was given a Regency Suite on the eighth floor, which had just opened. In fact, I’m pretty sure I was the first guest as they delivered the Nespresso machine during my stay!

The Suite is just under 40 square metres. First up is a living room:

On the right you have a wardrobe, dressing table and mini bar:

The mini fridge is unstocked. Not pictured is the Vertuo Nespresso machine, which they installed after I checked in!

You also have a dining table as well as a sofa, TV and ledge all along the left wall which could be useful as a luggage rack:

As I was on the 8th floor I had a fairly decent room, although the ongoing development of Stratford and the Olympic Park meant I could only see the Arcelor Orbital from my room as a number of new apartment blocks have gone up in recent years:

Next door is the bedroom and bathroom, with a king size bed:

There is another big TV opposite the bed, plus two bedside tables with UK mains and USB sockets on either side:

The room also comes with two sleep capsules, which contain a sleep mask, ear plugs and lavendar pillow spray.

To the right is the bathroom:

There is a large free-standing bathtub plus a walk-in shower:

and

The bathroom itself features fairly neutral tiling but is elevated hugely by a black marble sink, which ties the whole room together nicely:

Toiletries are by Antipodes:

The refurbishment has been well done in my opinion. For the most part it is neutral, but it makes use of texture, material and statement pieces to elevate the whole.

Gym

There’s also a hotel gym on one of the higher floors. It’s not huge, but it does feature a couple of running machines etc with views across to the Olympic Park:

Bar and restaurant at the Hyatt Regency Stratford

With so many restaurants and bars in Westfield Stratford City the Regency didn’t have to make such an effort with restaurants or bars but you’ll still find both on the third floor, next to the lobby.

Again, both are stylishly furnished. Here is the bar:

The restaurant, called Elondi, is fairly large and is also used for breakfast:

There’s also a terrace opposite the bar and restaurant. I’ve been told that this will also be refurbished:

Unfortunately, the new tower blocks obscure the view of the Olympic Park from here, so you’ll have to made do overlooking the disguised service ducts and rooftops of the mall!

Given the hotel’s location and the range of food outlets available I was impressed with the menu. To start, I had some delicious oysters:

I then went for baked white fish (I can’t remember exactly what and I can’t find a menu online!) with a side of green beans and celeriac fries which was good, although the fish was slightly overcooked and rubbery. The celeriac fries in particular were delicious.

Service in the restaurant and bar was really good although we were one of the only guests on a quiet Wednesday night.

Hyatt Regency Stratford breakfast

Breakfast is also served in Elondi and features a buffet. There doesn’t appear to be an a la carte menu, although I was very happy with the buffet.

It included various cold cuts including smoked salmon and cheeses, including one that had green marbling that made it look a bit like soap!

There was also yoghurt, fruit and granola:

Pastries:

Hot items included everything for a full English breakfast, with some delicious hash browns and fried or scrambled eggs.

Conclusion

I wasn’t expecting much from a hotel that is literally inside a shopping mall but I was very pleasantly surprised.

The hotel has been very well refurbished, to the extent that you could never guess it was previously a Holiday Inn. The design is classy and sophisticated and the use of the Regency branding began to make more sense.

Whilst it’s a bit of a maze to get to, the location is great, just a couple of minutes from Stratford and Stratford International. You can walk to the Olympic Park, go swimming in the Aquatics Centre and shop to your heart’s content. It’s definitely a great option if you’re heading to an event at the London Stadium.

Rooms are available from £175 per night in October, albeit the suite I was given is over £300. It is a Category 3 hotel, so World of Hyatt redemptions are from 9,000 points per night off-peak. This could mean that it could be cheaper to buy Hyatt points than pay cash for a room when there is a ‘buy points’ promotion on. The hotel hasn’t loaded any ‘upgrade to a suite with points’ rates yet.

You can find out more, and book, on the hotel website here.

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World of Hyatt update – April 2024:

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