Hyatt Regency Coconut Point – 50 Tips For Your First Visit

There are certain kinds of surprises that most people don’t like.  I’m talking about the surprise of realizing that you forgot something at home, that your kids aren’t tall enough for the super fun water park that you just spent a bunch of money to stay at, or that a small cup of red grapes cost $7 at the coffee shop (true story).  So, I’m here to save you from any unfortunate surprises that you may encounter on your first visit to the Hyatt Regency Coconut Point.  Here are my 50 tips for your first visit to the Hyatt.

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Tips For Your Room at the Hyatt Regency Coconut Point

• The rooms do not have microwave ovens.  There is a small fridge and coffee maker though.
• The balcony’s have 2 chairs and a small table.  If your neighbors are on their balcony, there is no privacy.  I went outside and looked out…and then looked over at our neighbor standing on his balcony.  Our neighbors were great to talk to and we shared restaurant tips, but I would prefer a privacy wall.
• Do you usually forget something when you travel?  They have items available to have or to borrow.  The list of items is in the room.
• Show your kids the sensor light that is at the foot of the nightstand.  This will guarantee that they get out of bed over and over to make sure the light turns on.
• The rooms have the largest flat screen t.v. that I have ever seen in a hotel room.

Notice that every room has a balcony. Nice!

• You are supposed to get 2 bottles of water put into your fridge everyday.  We didn’t get water everyday, but our fridge was pretty full.
• There is a clothes line in the bathroom for wet swimsuits.
• There is a small table and light on the side of the bed that doesn’t have the nightstand.  I love this and wish more hotels would do this!
• The walls are good at keeping the noise out.  We didn’t hear anything our whole stay, and the hotel was full.
• There is a DVD player in the room.  If you didn’t bring your own DVD’s, there are complimentary ones to borrow at Cool Beans.

Related post:  Where to Eat in Southwest Florida

General Tips About the Hyatt Regency Coconut Point

• There is free parking outdoors, and a fee to park in the ramp.  There was a convention going on while we were there, and the outdoor parking lot was usually full by mid-morning.  There was always someone out directing in-coming cars to an overflow parking lot when this happened.
• Would you like a glass of champagne or a mimosa?  Yes please!  That was our check-in experience…nice!
• There is a Cool Beans coffee shop that sells a variety of food items.  Besides the usual coffee shop goodies, there were prepared sandwiches, wraps, breakfast burritos, yogurt, salads, bottled drinks, fruit, candy, and more.  Beware of the high prices.  Sandwiches were around $10 and a cup of prepared fruit was $7.  The price of the coffee drinks was comparable to Starbucks.  They also offer a few flavors of ice cream that are sold by the scoop.
• Complimentary copies of USA Today and The Wall Street Journal are available weekday mornings at the concierge desk.
• There are a lot of outdoor games set up throughout the grounds.  This was nice for families, and people were actually playing the games.  There was also a putting green and rock climbing wall, but we didn’t see anyone using them while we were there.  There are hammocks, and we used them.

There is a lot of room for kids to play, so bring some toys.

• There is a lot of outdoor seating by the various pools, fountains, and restaurants.  There was more than one morning that I enjoyed my coffee and newspaper sitting outdoors.
• A few weeks before we arrived, I noticed that the hotel was full.  I was a little concerned that it would be crowded around the property.  I did a little research and found out that a conference was going on during our visit.  It turns out that the people attending the conference had so many activities going on, that the pool areas were fairly empty.  The hotel has a conference center off to the end, so you hardly know when a conference is happening.
• The staff is very friendly.  You will get a “hello” and “good morning” from everyone you walk by.
• There are a couple of fire pits that are surrounded by comfy chairs and are perfect to warm up by when the evenings are a little cool.  If you are desperate for s’mores, there are s’more kits available in Cool Beans for $18.

It can get cool once the sun goes down, so grab a spot by the fire.

• The hotel is located at the end of a long road, and not within walking distance of any off-site shopping or restaurants.  For this reason, there is a shuttle you can take to the other nearby Hyatt, the boat landing, and the Coconut Point shopping area.
• If you have a car, there are a few Publix and Winn-Dixie markets nearby to stock your room with food and drinks.
• There is a nice gift shop, just turn left once you walk in the front door of the hotel.  The shop looks like its a fancy clothing store for women, but go inside because it’s more than that.
• The resort is a category 4 Hyatt (until March 18, 2019), so if you have the Hyatt credit card, you can use your annual free night here!  After March 18th, it jumps up to a category 5 hotel, and you can no longer use your free night from the Hyatt credit card.  Rooms will go for 20,000 points per night.
• There is a daily $35 resort fee.  Yes, they’ve jumped on the resort fee bandwagon and will happily charge you for the free parking, 2 bottles of water, welcome champagne, the water park, use of the chairs by the pool, local phone calls, fax service, and it even covers the coffeemaker and coffee in your room.

Tips For the Water Park and Pools

• The water park and slides are open until dusk.  After that, the pools are still open until 10:00.  Hours may vary, but are posted in the pool area.
• Kids ages 17 and under need wrist bands before going down the slides, even the smaller slide outside of the water park.  You can get them in the pool hut.

This is the smaller slide outside of the waterpark.

• There are inflatables available to rent for $5-$10 a day, and the best part is that they’re already inflated.  You can buy the inflatables for $10-$20.  The inflatable are at the pool hut.
• The Corkscrew bar and grille provides waiter service to the pool areas.  While we were there in December, Corkscrew closed at 5:00 during the week.
• The menu for Corkscrew had a few kid options that were reasonably priced.  The portions were large, and the kiddos also got fruit and yogurt with their meal.  Plus, the Shirley Temple’s were a big hit and full of cherries.
• Drinks are expensive for the amount you get.  That didn’t stop us though.  They had a lot of tropical creations to choose from, local beer, and soda.  The menus for all of the restaurants are available online.
• You aren’t required to use a tube in the lazy river.  The river has a pretty good current in some spots, so it’s fun to float without a tube.

I could float in that all day….and I did!

• The water in the water park is warm.  It’s heated and was very comfortable.
• The whole hotel, grounds, pool area, and water park were very clean.
• Be sure to take the elevator to the bottom floor to get to the pool.  This way you avoid walking through the lobby in your pool attire, but you also get to walk thru the grotto.  The kids will have fun pointing out their favorite pictures.

The grotto to the pools….so much better than a neutral painted hallway.

• There aren’t any coolers allowed at the pool.  We brought some of our own snacks and some bottles of water with no issues from anyone.  We were also ordering food and drinks from Corkscrew.
• There is a pool and hot tub just for adults.  It didn’t look like much fun though…just relaxing!  Ha!
• The water depth of the pools varies.  The pool at the end of the corkscrew slides is 3’6″, the lazy river is 3′, the pool with the smaller blue slide is 4’9″, and there is a zero entry pool that has 2′ and 3′ sections.
• The height requirement for the slides is 48″.
• Many of the chairs by the pools had large umbrellas to block out that welcome Florida sunshine.  Seriously though, it’s nice to have the umbrellas.

There were plenty of open seats, since most of the guests were stuck in a conference.

• The lazy river has two waterfalls.  So much for a relaxing float down the river.  Fortunately the waterfalls only drench floaters on one side of the river.  They are pretty easy to navigate around and I didn’t get soaked until our third day there.

Tips For Your Visit to the Private Island

• The hotel is not on the beach, but they do have a private island to make up for that.  The boat ride to get there is about 15-20 minutes long.  The guide gives you a little history along the trip, so it’s interesting.
• You can make your reservations online the day before you want the boat to take you to the island.  The boat left once an hour.  You will get the info and schedule when you check in for your room.

This is the view from the back of the boat. There is more seating in the front.

• You’ll want to get to the landing about 15 minutes before departure.  It takes about 5 minutes to walk down the boardwalk to the water.
• You need to bring your own towels.  Grab them from the pool area.
• As you board the boat, your family is given a key card.  The key card is for the restrooms on the island, and is your ticket to leave the island.
• There is no food or beverage for sale on the island, so bring your own cooler and snacks.
• The sand is soft and nice to walk on.  There are shells to be found, and some spots have more than others.

The beach is nice and not crowded.

• If you don’t want to set up camp down on the sand, there are a lot of beach chairs up on the deck of the building that has the restrooms.
• There are a lot of beach chairs available.
• The water wasn’t very clear while we were there.  Maybe other times of the year it’s been clearer?

One last way that I usually pick up a few tips is to read thru the hotel reviews on Trip Advisor.  Some of the reviews are worthless, but the rest can be helpful.  Read the reviews about the Hyatt Regency Coconut Point here.

Well those are the 50 things that I wish I had known before our visit to the Hyatt Regency Coconut Point.  We really had a fantastic time at the resort, and now that you are even better prepared than I was, your family will have an even better time!

Does your family love waterparks?  Check out these posts:

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• Hey!  This Holiday Inn has a Waterpark!
• 71 Tips for Your First Visit to the Wilderness Resort in Wisconsin Dells