Date of stay: February 2024 Room type: Queen room | 39 m²/420 ft² | Non-smoking | 1 queen bed Pricing: Redeemed Hyatt Cat 4 award (approx value of $300) Net price per square foot: $0.71 | Price per square meter: $7.69 Breakfast: No
UPDATE AUG-2025, unfortunately this hotel has closed due financial reasons.
Reasons for picking this hotel: I had an expiring Hyatt Cat 4 certificate that had the expiration date extended multiple times due to the pandemic and this was my last chance to use it before it truly expired. I needed to be in San Francisco but unfortunately every available Hyatt property in San Francisco was a Cat 5 or above! The Waterfront hotel in Oakland was a Cat 4, but I found out it was actually a nice ride using a ferry into the city.
Transportation / Access: The Waterfront hotel is located in Oakland’s Jack London square, a short walk from the ferry terminal. Despite being a Bay Area resident most of my life, I have never taken this ferry, the ferry schedule was not too bad, with hourly departures and the last boat leaving SF to get back to Oakland at 9:20PM. The ferry ride took about 25 minutes and I got some wonderful views and enjoyed some coffee on board.
Leaving Jack London square for the trip back to San FranciscoCatching the last ferry from San Francisco back to Oakland with the beautiful bay bridge and city lights in view
Room Summary:
The room was quite large, decorated in a nautical theme with an adequate number of outlets. The bathroom was spacious, and clean, with a typical lack of amenities (most US hotels are like this). Though showing its age, it was comfortable and quiet.
I had no time to try out any of the food and beverage facilities at this hotel.
Final thoughts
I enjoyed staying at the Waterfront hotel, I don’t think I would pay a cash price of $300, but I am glad to have had the chance to visit when it was still open, and it gave me a chance to view Oakland in a new light. I even brought my parents over from SF on the ferry (their first time on it too) to have some lunch.
