Hyatt Place Melbourne Caribbean Park: What to expect
I’m gonna be honest and say I mostly stayed here because I love to stay at a new Hyatt and discover all the little details and thought that go into a property. My flight from the Gold Coast to Tullamarine airport in Melbourne was very delayed so I ended up arriving, in a very expensive taxi, just short of midnight.
I’ve been to the city of Melbourne plenty of times and my regular stay is the Grand Hyatt Melbourne due to its central location. This hotel was the opposite. It’s in a suburb called Scoresby and the only thing within walking distance is a very large BP service station and McDonalds.
It sounds bleak, but stay with me. From this description alone, you would be forgiven for thinking that I didn’t enjoy my stay here, but I was very pleasantly surprised by this out of the way Hyatt location.
Why is this hotel all the way out here?
I try to imagine why someone would stay at a certain hotel. What are they things that would make it worthwhile to stay in a location? When it comes to Hyatt locations, often the draw is obvious- it’s close to the convention center or it’s central to all the most sought-after tourist areas. This hotel is decidedly not either of those things. It’s close to the Dandenong ranges which you might get a view of from your hotel room.
The best thing I could put together is that this was an upmarket stay for people from the state of Victoria or further afield who are driving through with their car on a road trip. The location would also make a beautiful event venue that could accommodate many people so perhaps it works well as a destination event center.
The upsides of staying further from the city
Although it wasn’t immediately apparent to me, I did begin to understand the upsides of staying at this particular property outside of Melbourne. Firstly, for someone like me who travels to get a sense of peace and relaxation, it was nice to be somewhat isolated. Melbourne is one of my favourite cities and the temptation to pop out to the endless number of incredible local cafés or shopping centers is often hard to resist. I didn’t have that dilemma when staying at the Hyatt Place Melbourne Caribbean Park. I could enjoy a relaxed schedule
Secondly, aside from the cost of the taxi to get here, I saved a bit of money since there was nowhere close by to drop any cash. It was something I later realized when I moved to the Hyatt House South Melbourne. Within an hour of being there I had already found my way to cute local shops and dropped $100 on books and art supplies, more on that in another post.
So, I still don’t pretend to know what the biggest drawcard is here, but I know why I would come back. It’s a modern stay with Hyatt service in an area that doesn’t compete for your attention.
What’s great about the Hyatt Place Melbourne Caribbean Park
New and modern rooms
The rooms here are slightly different and more stylized than the Hyatt Place hotels that I’ve stayed at in the United States. It felt like there was a lot of space and it was more luxurious than what I would expect from the Hyatt Place brand.
Seating area in the room of the Hyatt Place Melbourne Caribbean Park
Quality food
I did notice when I got to my room they had a Globalist gift for me of a few beautiful looking macarons and some chocolates. They had no business being as good as they were, omg. While you’re outside of Melbourne CBD, you are constantly reminded by the quality of the treats and breakfast that you’re in a place that takes their food seriously. Also, this is one of the rare Hyatt Place hotels that has room service.
Isolation and solitude
I am always evaluating hotels based on whether I could do my own little writing retreat there and this one is now high on the list. The desk was comfortable and next to the window, I could stream from my phone to the TV, it had a lot of creature comforts that I like in a place. It was a good mix of feeling at home but also feeling taken care of.
A few helpful tips before you stay at Hyatt Place Melbourne Caribbean Park
- If you’re coming from the airport, go ahead and take the extra step to book an Uber. As I mentioned before it’s an expensive taxi ride so I would imagine a ride share would save you a significant amount.
- A feature of many of the new Hyatt properties that I’ve stayed at are the presence of water filling stations in the hallways of each level. Rather than offering free water bottles, they had a carafe in your room that you could fill.
- If you want a unique Melbourne café experience, it might be worthwhile to go to Drom. I was fortunate enough to have a friend locally who drove me there for a short catchup, but I would consider taking an Uber there and back. It’s situated in a slightly industrial area and the outside and music give the look and feel of a nightclub. I saw a poster of a recent visit from the pasty chef who created the viral Dubai chocolate so it must be a destination café. Again, my friend who is local took me here so it’s a well-known spot.
Is there room service at the Hyatt Place Melbourne Caribbean Park?
Yes, there is! I didn’t order it but based on the quality of the food at breakfast and the little Globalist gift treats that were left for me I’m sure it would be good. Besides, there aren’t many other walkable locations nearby unless you want to get Maccas (McDonalds) or something from the service station.
Is there a Globalist breakfast at the Hyatt Place Melbourne Caribbean Park?
The Globalist breakfast is access to a small-ish buffet. There weren’t a lot of options, but the quality was good. I don’t normally eat toast, but the artisan sourdough rosemary potato bread was something I had both mornings that I was there.
What is the Globalist gift at the Hyatt Place Melbourne Caribbean Park?
The gift was a small plate of sweets, that included different flavored macarons and two pieces of chocolate that all appeared to have been handmade on location. There was also a sneaky bottle of Chardonnay in the fridge.
What is the gym like at the Hyatt Place Caribbean Park?
The room is spacious with a lot of windows which is always nice. There’s a cable machine in one of the corners and a walled mirror with plenty of free weights. The cardio machines are facing the window and this means there is plenty of space in the interior of the room to do stretching or recovery work if you need to.
Why stay at the Hyatt Place Melbourne Caribbean Park?
This is the question that consumed me for the entire stay that I was here because I do like to be helpful to anyone who’s evaluating where to spend their tourist dollars. What I was left with as time went on was a very comfortable, very ‘Hyatt’ stay in a location outside of the main part of the city. It wasn’t geographically close to what I consider Melbourne, but it still had the refined feel of a Melbourne experience.
I would even go as far as to say this might be my favourite actual property (if we don’t account for physical location) of the Melbourne offerings, including the ones in the CBD because it was such a nice mix of comfort, refinement and design.
I could see myself staying here again to spend a few days away from it all, save a bit of money by not being so exposed to all the shopping and restaurants in the city, and getting in a few good value stays with my points to help me accrue the minimum yearly nights to keep my Globalist status.
Hyatt Place Melbourne Caribbean Park vs. Hyatt Place Essendon Fields
Both the Hyatt Place Melbourne Caribbean Park and the Hyatt Place Essendon Fields are category 2 properties, so I thought I’d help you compare them here.
Location
The biggest difference between the two is location. Hyatt Place Essendon Fields is extremely close to Melbourne Tullamarine Airport, and I’ve often stayed here to do an extra night between long-distance layovers. It’s the one I would choose if I needed to simply stay closest to the airport. The Caribbean Park location is nearly an hour away.
Comfort
Hyatt Place Melbourne Caribbean Park is the winner for me in this category. The food is higher quality, and the property is more luxurious. It’s a good stay if you want to be a hermit for a few days. While the Essendon Fields property is a perfectly fine stay, it is among the more utilitarian, a no-frills experiences offered by Hyatt.
In nearly every aspect, the Hyatt Place Melbourne Caribbean Park is the choice I would make if I had to decide on one of these two category 2 hotels. The exception is if I was there for a quick night and needed to stay close to the airport- in this case the Hyatt Place Essendon Fields is perfect.