Our most recent reader’s success story comes from Jess’ husband, Ted. Originally, the whole family had planned to go to San Antonio to watch the eclipse. Circumstances changed for Jess and Molly, but Ted went anyway and wrote us a reader success story: Hyatt Place and the Eclipse. (Yay, for Ted)! Here’s his story:

I recently stayed at the Hyatt Place San Antonio/Riverwalk Hotel on a trip to attempt to see the total solar eclipse on April 8, 2024. The next total eclipse visible from the United States will be in 2044, so I traveled from Houston to San Antonio to put myself in the path of totality. Due to the thick cloud cover, the eclipse turned out to be mostly a bust, but that doesn’t mean that my trip wasn’t enjoyable. And the hotel itself was excellent. This hotel is a Category 3 hotel and cost 12K points a night.

 

Hyatt Place San Antonio/Riverwalk

Approaching the hotel, it looked just like most Hyatt Place properties. It is very conveniently located in central San Antonio and sits right on the famous San Antonio River Walk, with easy, direct access just off the lobby. It is a short drive to many of San Antonio’s attractions. A famous tourist attraction is nearby, but I can’t imagine what it’s called now. Maybe it has something to do with a rental car company? I’m not sure. I can’t think of it. (Ted is a major jokester😜)

 

You would certainly recognize the room layout if you’ve ever stayed in a Hyatt Place. But despite the familiar design, the room was far nicer than the typical Hyatt Place room. Indeed, it appeared to have been very recently updated.

 

 

On entering the room, there is a living space with a couch and a desk. There’s a coffee/refrigerator area nearby. And there was a built-in place to put a suitcase, which I thought was a nice touch—not to mention a big improvement over the typical folding suitcase stand (though there was one of these, too). My room had a king-sized bed, and it was quite comfortable.

 

 

Indicative of how updated this room is, there were actually a number of USB-C connectors to accommodate the latest charging cords. Most hotel rooms seem proud even to have the older USB-B connectors, but this one had USB-C!

 

 

I enjoyed the complimentary breakfast buffet, which was not too bad—significantly better than that at most Hyatt Place hotels. I found a nice table near a window. All in all, it was a good breakfast experience.

 

 

Activities in San Antonio

(That reminds me—I still can’t think of what that famous tourist attraction is called. Why do I keep thinking of rental car companies? Hertz? Enterprise? No, I don’t think it’s either of those.)

I arrived in San Antonio on Sunday, the day before the eclipse. I attended a Sunday night San Antonio Spurs basketball game at the Frost Bank Center. The game was a highlight of the trip—it went into double overtime! Afterward, I spotted some entrepreneurs selling eclipse glasses for the next day’s big event.

 

 

The Eclipse

The eclipse began at 12:14 p.m. local time on Monday under heavy clouds. Near the start of the eclipse, there was enough of a break in the clouds so I could see the moon just beginning to move in front of the sun—all the while using my eclipse glasses. Then, about 30-45 minutes later, there was another brief break in the clouds, and I could see the sun about 40% covered by the moon. But both these breaks were short-lived.

Totality came at 1:33 pm, and the clouds continued to block the sun completely. But right when totality hit, it did get almost completely dark outside! Streetlights and headlights came on, the temperature dropped a few degrees, and birds sang as if it were dusk. This lasted about two minutes, and then everything quickly began to get lighter and return to normal. There was one more brief break in the clouds, and I could see the moon still covering about 95% of the sun on its way off the sun.

Despite being unable to see much of the eclipse, the whole getting-dark-in-the-afternoon thing was cool and worth the trip. Not to mention the River Walk and the Spurs basketball game. And I was very pleased with my accommodations at the Hyatt Place San Antonio/Riverwalk. I highly recommend it if you are planning to visit here.

 

Bottom Line

Thanks, Ted, for your reader success story about the Hyatt Place and the eclipse. Next time, check out the Alamo, that historic attraction with a name like the car rental company you couldn’t remember! 😉

 

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