Hyatt Place Eugene / Oakway Center Review

Booking & Stay Details

I reserved the Hyatt Place Eugene / Oakway Center through the Hyatt mobile app while on my road trip from Seattle to Eugene. Reservation was smooth as always. Rooms with a King Bed or two Queen Beds had the same price of just over $180/night.

Location

The Hyatt Place Eugene / Oakway Center is located within the Oakway Center. The Oakway Center is a shopping and dining destination in Eugene. It features many stores like lululemon, Old Navy and Nordstrom Rack as well as a lot of dining options. It is about a 20-minute walk to the Autzen Stadium. 

From the hotel you can use I-105 to get to I-5 which runs all the way down to the Mexico Border and up to the Canadian Border. 

Parking

The hotel has its own parking garage. Actually, the hotel is built straight on top of the parking garage. Level 4 of the garage is for hotel guests only and they have an option to activate gates which you can open with your room key. During my visit, the gates were all set to stay open, and no room key was necessary to get in and out. This feature will be activated during busy days at the shopping mall. Even while having such a fancy parking garage, parking is complimentary during your stay.

In front of the main entrance is a parking spot which can be used for check-in only and has a 10-minute limit.

Shuttle Service

The hotel has a shuttle, but it is only for Southwest crew members and not for hotel guests unfortunately. 

Check-In

It was a little hard to find the front desk when I arrived. I saw the sign next to the parking garage entrance that it is for guests of the hotel. So, I drove in there and parked on the second floor in the first free spot I found. I was looking for a sign toward the hotel lobby but couldn’t find one. So, I took the elevator, which was marked shopping/dining downstairs and walked back to the front of the building. The main entrance shows a sign that you have to take the elevator to floor five for the main lobby. 

I went upstairs to the fifth floor and the front desk is right in front of you as you walk out of the elevator. You can’t miss it from here. I didn’t know that hotel guests are supposed to park on the fourth floor, and I missed the sign inside the parking garage. The hotel elevators can access parking floors 3 & 4 as well as the floors with guest rooms which are 5, 6 and 7.

Check-in was otherwise quick and easy. After I got my room keys I took the elevator back downstairs to the ground level and walked up the parking garage ramp to my car and parked up on the fourth floor to have easy access to the hotel elevators as these don’t go down to the second but go down to the first/ground floor which is also the welcome lobby of the hotel. 

1 King Bed Room (Room 616)

This room is located right around the corner from the elevators. I didn’t mind at all and there was not a lot of foot traffic outside my room during my stay either. As you walk into the room you have the bathroom to your right. 

It comes with a vanity with a single sink and a very large wall mounted mirror. Next to the vanity is the toilet followed by the walk-in shower with glass sliding doors. Another sliding door gives you privacy while in the bathroom. The bathroom and entryway have a tiled floor while the rest of the room has a carpeted floor. 

After the entryway you have a small living area which consists of an L-shaped sofa which can be transformed into a bed if needed. In front of the sofa is a small ottoman chair. On the other side of the room from the sofa is a work desk with an office chair. On top of it you will find the in-room hotel phone as well as the coffee maker. The shelves on the right side of the desk hold the condiments for the coffee maker and ice bucket. Attached to the office desk is a dresser with three drawers. Behind the door of the dresser hides a well-sized refrigerator. Above the dresser is a wall-mounted TV which can be swiveled slightly to either side. This hotel features Chromecast integration, which lets you stream content from your phone directly to the TV. 

Next to the dresser is a closet for additional storage space. The closet is next to the air conditioning unit which sits in the corner of the room. Opposite the closet is the King bed. On either side of the bed is a nightstand which is mounted to the headboard. The window in this room does not have a particularly pleasant view. Straight ahead is the second half of the U-shaped layout of the hotel section of the building. You see the room of the lobby area as well as a partial view of the outdoor patio.

Public Areas & Amenities

Welcome Lobby

This area is located on the ground floor of the hotel elevators and the main pedestrian entrance of the hotel. It features a few comfortable chairs to relax in and is a good meeting point for your group before heading out.

Main Lobby

The main lobby is located on the fifth floor of the building. Here is also where you will check in. Besides housing all the amenities of the hotel like the breakfast and bar area as well as fitness center and pool, it has not much else to offer. After breakfast has finished you can use the breakfast area as well to sit down and relax or get some work done. 

Business Center

Two workstations and a printer are set up on a desk close to the front desk, near the breakfast dining area. 

Fitness Center

The fitness center is located behind the Sky Bar. You must take the hallway to the left of the bar and follow the signs. Fitness Center and Pool Area share a common entry way. From there you must use your room key to get into the fitness center or pool. The fitness center is very well equipped and has a window toward the end of the room which faces outwards onto the Sky Deck.

Pool Area

The indoor pool is located next to the fitness center. Your room key is necessary to open the door to the pool area. There are a few chaise loungers inside the pool area. Besides the pool there is also a whirlpool for your enjoyment.

Restrooms are in the common entryway of fitness center and pool area. 

Sky Deck

The Sky Deck is part of the Sky Bar. It’s an outdoor patio on the fifth floor. It’s great to hang out and you don’t need to buy anything from the bar to hang out in the area. There is also a small fireplace on the Sky Deck.

Guest Laundry 

The guest laundry facility is located on the fifth floor as well. Follow the hallway to the left of the Sky Bar and follow the signs. Inside is a single washer and dryer which are coin operated. Unfortunately, the hotel has no dry-cleaning service.

An ice machine can be found on the fifth floor as well. Follow the signs. You will pass it on your way to the guest laundry.

Dining

Breakfast

The breakfast area is located to the right of the front desk on the fifth floor. It’s a very spacious area and features lots of seating options. The first half is more comfortable sofa chairs and small tables which you would use to hang out during the evening hour rather than for breakfast. The second half features actual dining tables which are perfect for breakfast.

The breakfast choice is great and plentiful. Lots of choices to start your day. A separate area in the breakfast room houses the buffet. You can find everything from scrambled eggs, cereals, toast, yoghurts to oatmeal, juices and much more.

Hours: Daily: 6 a.m. – 10 a.m.

Sky Bar & Sky Deck

The Sky Bar is located to the left of the front desk. You can sit at the bar counter or at one of the few tables in the bar area. Besides drinks the bar also serves a decent choice of food. After I checked in and settled in my room I came downstairs for a drink and some Mac & Cheese which I enjoyed outside at the Sky Deck.

The Sky Deck is the patio area outside of the building and you can get to it next to the Sky Bar counter. It’s a beautiful place to hang out and relax. If the weather is right, this is the best spot in the hotel. The Sky Deck faces west so you have good views of the sunset and of course the neighboring buildings.

Hours: Daily: 11 a.m. – 11:30 p.m.

The Market

This is a small market located opposite the front desk. Here you can get snacks and beverages to buy.

Conclusion

My stay at the Hyatt Place Eugene / Oakway Center was very enjoyable. The hotel is almost “brand new”. It opened in August 2017, according to the front desk agent. I didn’t receive an upgrade to a suite as they were sold out for that room type when I checked the app after I checked in. Staff throughout the hotel were super friendly and always willing to help you if I needed anything. Because it was only a one-night stay, I couldn’t enjoy all the amenities to the fullest as I had to work as well.