Stay Report: Hyatt Regency Dar Es Salaam, The Kiliminjaro (Tanzania - April 2018)

Stay Report: Hyatt Regency Dar Es Salaam
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I was going to be meeting a friend and staying in Dar Es Salaam for one day.  My friend was staying at the Hyatt Regency for work so I just stayed with them instead of booking my own place.  The hotel is located near the city center and was originally the Kempinski hotel before Hyatt took it over.  From the outside, it looks like a really nice and grand hotel, and the grandeur continues inside into the hotel.

From the outside, you enter the hotel’s parking lot and drive up to the hotel’s main entrance.  After you pass through the security, you enter into grand lobby that has lots of open space and lots of sitting areas.  The left side of the lobby contained the elevators, the check-in desks, another sitting area, and the entrance to one of the restaurants (where breakfast is served).  In the middle of the lobby is a sitting area and a walkway with water underneath which leads to the coffee shop.  To the right of the lobby is another restaurant as well as shops.  Also in the middle of the lobby is the staircase which leads to the second floor which contains the meeting rooms as well as entrance to the spa, fitness center, and pool.  My friend had left a key to the room at the check-in desk, so I went there to collect the key.  Even though I arrived in the morning, there was only one attendant behind the large check-in desks so it took some time for me to retrieve the key.  Once I had the key, I went to the elevators and went to the room.

The hotel is shaped in a block with the hallway down the middle and rooms on either side; one side of the hotel faces the parking lot and the ocean while the other side faces the city and neighborhoods.  The room that I had faced the parking lot and the ocean and generally was a nice room.  As you opened the door, on right was the bathroom while on the left was a luggage storage area next to closets.  The closet was open which meant that if you did unpack into the closet, everyone could see all your clothes.  One side of the closets contained a safe, a mini-fridge as well as a coffee maker.  The hotel also provided two complimentary bottles of water, which were placed next to the coffee maker.  Below the open-closets were drawers for additional storage space.   

The bathroom itself was quite large and contained a shower (behind one door), a toilet (behind a second door) and in the main bathroom a sink and a tub.  There were also nice bathroom toiletries provided in the storage next to the sink.  Next to the tub was a window with blinds that, if opened, opened directly into the room.  I am not sure what about Hyatt bathrooms, but none of them provide complete privacy – why would you want a window into the bathroom from the room?

Further into the room, on the right side was the bed while on the left side was a long shelf that ran across half the room and connected to the desk.  The desk was parallel to the wall so that it stuck out into the room and connected near the bed, which made it difficult for people to move across the room if you are using the desk.  The desk did have plugs and USB ports, which was a nice and welcomed gesture.  Mounted on the wall in the middle of the room was the TV and across from the TV was the bed.

This room had one queen bed and generally the bed was comfortable.  There was a nice duvet and the bed was comfortable enough for a good night’s sleep.  The only downside was that the bed was not as spacious if you are sharing it.  On both sides of the bed was a small night stand with plugs and light switches next to them, and in between the bed and the window was a couch.   Overall, the room was nice and had all the amenities needed; it wasn’t a spacious room but neither was it a tight room.

The hotel is a full-service hotel so there are many facilities for guests to enjoy.  These include a sauna, a fitness center, a spa, meeting rooms, a coffee shop, two restaurants, complimentary wifi, and complimentary bottles of water in the room.  As I was only at the hotel for a short period, I was not able to experience all the facilities.  I tried the coffee shop, one of the restaurants for breakfast, the wifi, and enjoyed the complimentary water.  The coffee shop was nice and relaxing and the service was very good; the wifi was decent speed and did not seem to limit devices, which is a good thing; the room included breakfast so went down to the restaurant, and the selection was decent but not as good as I would have thought coming from a Hyatt; and finally the complimentary bottles of water were a nice gesture.  I did know of people who tried the spa and they enjoyed the massages they received there.

 

Overall, the stay at the Hyatt Regency Dar Es Salaam, The Kilimanjaro was nice.  The hotel is a full-service hotel and has nice facilities.  The rooms are nice and a good size, the bathroom is also spacious and nice, and the beds provide a comfortable night’s sleep.  The hotel is also conveniently located within the city center and is a 10-15 minute walk to the ferry terminal. The only negatives were the following: 1) I asked for additional toiletries from the housekeeping and never received an update nor the toiletries (apparently the housekeeping service is not good at all); and 2) the window between the bathroom and the bedroom.