I had a chance to knock off an elusive stay at a regular Hyatt hotel by visiting the Hyatt Olive 8 in Seattle, Washington, which has a nice indoor pool.

Booking the Hyatt Olive 8

Full disclaimer: this stay at the Hyatt Olive 8 hotel was necessary as part of an industry conference. While I did not pay for my stay out of my own pocket, the commentary mentioned below remains my own opinion.

With that out of the way, the Hyatt Olive 8 is one of three(!) Hyatt hotels in roughly a three block radius. Hyatt nearly has a monopoly on this one area of Seattle. The other two hotels are the Grand Hyatt Seattle and the Hyatt Regency Seattle. I’ve reviewed the Hyatt Regency Seattle before and also have stayed at the Grand Hyatt before (but not for a review). What set the Hyatt Olive 8 apart was that it’s a regular Hyatt. Those of us trying to knock off Hyatt’s Brand Explorer benefit have limited opportunities to get a regular Hyatt.

Anyways, the group rate for this stay was $309 per night, which honestly feels a bit heavy for what you get. Rates here do creep up to that level in the summer, but through most of the year you can find them in the $250-$300 range.

The Hyatt Olive 8 is a Category 5 hotel under the World of Hyatt program. Free nights currently range from 17,000 to 23,000 points per night, but the range will expand to 15,000 to 35,000 in May 2026. Honestly, I don’t know why this is a Category 5 hotel given the cash prices. This one feels more like a Category 4 to me.

Earning Hyatt points

Full disclosure: in this section are refer-a-friend links where I may earn some points for referring. There is no requirement to use the below referral links to apply but note your offer may differ when going directly to the card issuer.

Chase has a couple of cards that earn Ultimate Rewards points that can transfer to Hyatt at a 1:1 rate:

• The Chase Sapphire Preferred card (refer-a-friend link) has a limited-time offer of 100,000 points for spending $5,000 in the first three months. It has a $95 annual fee.
• There is currently a limited-time offer (refer-a-friend link) on the Chase Ink Business Unlimited that gives an excellent 100,000 points for spending $8,000 in the first three months. There is no annual fee.

The Hyatt personal credit card (not an affiliate link) offers a 30,000 point bonus when spending $3,000 in three months. On top of that, you get 2X earnings during the first six months until you reach $15,000 in spend. At most, this is a 45,000 card for spending $15,000–and most certainly not the 60,000 bonus it claims disingenuously claims. But, on the bright side, if that $15,000 spend happens within the same calendar year, you’ll also get six elite night credits and a Category 1-4 free night certificate.

The small business version of the Hyatt credit card (refer-a-friend link) offers a 60,000 point bonus when spending $5,000 in three months. The main appeal here is the easier path towards earning elite status (5 elite night credit for every $10,000 in spend per calendar year), but it also gives up to $100 back on Hyatt purchases.

First impressions of Hyatt Olive 8

For this trip, Jenn and the kids didn’t join me. Instead, I brought along my parents so they could spend time exploring Seattle (their first time). After landing at SEA airport, we took a Lyft over to the hotel though using the light rail was also an option. Once at the hotel, we quickly found the front desk just inside the front doors.

The agent checking me in was nice enough and got me checked in without delay. He acknowledged my Globalist status but let me know there were no upgrades available as the hotel was sold out.

He asked how frequently I wanted housekeeping services and I declined the option. If you opt out of housekeeping services, you can choose one of three options:

• A bottle of wine (red or white)
• A chance to earn 35,000 Hyatt points from a monthly raffle
• $10 food & beverage credit per day

While the highest valued item is the Hyatt points, I instead went with the wine. I’m figuring most will choose the raffle and I just have terrible luck when it comes to raffles. Better to get something instead of likely nothing? You might have to ask for it as the front desk might not produce the card proactively.

Just to the right of check-in is an activity desk. I never found it staffed for my stay, so I’m assuming someone from the front desk comes over to assist as needed.

The room

Just around the corner from the lobby are the guest elevators. As with many hotels, if there is an event going on, the elevators might get a little jammed.

I made my way up to the 15th floor where my room for this stay (1553) awaited.

Bedroom

Right inside the entrance was one of those keycard slots for you to insert a card to get power to your room. Oddly enough, they already had one in the room when I showed up. So much for saving power.

The room itself feels like a typical big city room: a bed, a chair and desk, and not a whole lot of room to do much else. The tan wall makes the room look yellow in pictures but it didn’t feel quite this yellow in person.

I found the king bed to be firm enough for me. In case you’re wondering, my parents were staying in a different room on the same –I didn’t force them to snuggle up in my room. Pillows are not the best but at least they give plenty. The biggest issue I found was the lack of electrical outlets by the bed.

Next to the bed is a small bench for your luggage though it might not be deep enough depending on the size of your luggage. The cabinet next to it houses bottled water in reusable containers, a mini-fridge, and coffee maker.

Across from the bed is the TV, which I found to be large enough.

And then continuing on to the left of the TV is the desk and swivel chair. Nothing wrong to say about this–it’s perfectly functional!

I ended up using this chair quite a bit while I was chatting with the kids over the phone. It’s comfortable enough for me, thankfully.

Since I’m only on the 15th floor, the view is just a sea of buildings with the room facing the convention center.

Bathroom

The bathroom felt pretty typical of the hotel style from around 20 years ago, with a lot of shades of brown or yellow everywhere. I guess that fits the yellow hue the bedroom had in photos. The vanity has a single sink, which works for me since I was here alone.

The shower is just full of complaints from me. Let’s count the ways:

• There’s no shower door, making it difficult to remain warm while using it.
• While the temperature was fine, the coverage of the spray was small, adding to the cold feeling while showering.
• The shower pipes made a loud vibrating noise when it was in use.

At least the controls are by the soap and not under the shower head or it would have been a complete fail in my book.

Shower amenities are by BeeKind, which is just OK.

I normally don’t say anything about the toilet but this time it amuses me. Is that a phone jack by the toilet? But with no phone in sight? Makes me think they imagine someone likes dial-up internet while sitting on the porcelain throne.

The replacement for housekeeping

Within 30 minutes of my arrival, a friendly employee dropped off the bottle of wine and a single glass. I guess he got the note that I’m here by myself. It’s a 2022 cabernet sauvignon from Washington Hills, a $15 bottle of red wine for those who care.

Me? I certainly don’t mind. It’s frankly quite great that I get anything these days in exchange for declining housekeeping. That’s one of the things I miss about the old SPG program where making a “green choice” meant earning extra points. As much as it seems exciting to sit in a hotel room and drink alone (my parents don’t drink), I brought this bottle home. Good thing I’m checking a bag on Delta anyways.

Breakfast at TIDAL+

TIDAL+ is the only full-service restaurant at the Hyatt Olive 8. If you happen to be here as a Globalist, this is where you’ll get your free breakfast. Though the picture I have is from the outside, all seating is indoors.

Though I stayed here several days, I ended up only eating at TIDAL+ one time for breakfast. I wasn’t feeling in the mood for breakfast, but wanted to at least experience it once to offer up an opinion.

The breakfast menu is fairly typical. I always try to get a sense of how expensive it is to eat breakfast based on the typical two-egg breakfast. When I was here as a guest, it was $20–not a great price. But surprisingly, it’s the most expensive thing on the menu. I don’t think I’ve ever noticed that before.

I ordered the omelet with a side of fruit. This omelet isn’t one of the largest I’ve seen, but it’s plenty filling and they definitely put a lot of ingredients inside. I think the fruit is the healthier choice than the potatoes. When my parents were here for breakfast, they commented that the potatoes were rock hard. Not sure if it’s a bad batch or if it’s a common occurrence beyond when we were here.

Overall, not a bad breakfast but I’m not sure I would have paid for it if it weren’t free. (Well, I know I at least wouldn’t have because I only did it to check it out, not because I was hungry, but still.)

Dinner at TIDAL+

I made it a goal of mine to have dinner with my parents each night in town. The first night, we just kept things simple and ate at TIDAL+. Or, at least I thought both my parents would come, but only my dad did.

The dining area inside is simple enough. It won’t accommodate a huge crowd well, but I’d wager hotel guests are the overwhelming majority.

The dinner menu is a single page and includes some options that certainly seem good enough for us.

I ordered the short rib with house demi. The short rib itself was tender but the dish wasn’t big at all and the short rib wasn’t dense. In retrospect, I probably should have chosen something else like the burger, but I just had the Delta Shake Shack burger on the flight here. Personally, I don’t think it needs the house demi, would have instead gone maybe for the chimichurri.

Furthermore, the short rib at the nearby Andare at the Hyatt Regency Seattle puts this one to shame.

My dad ordered the fish and chips, which he found to be just OK. The fries were on the salty side (which was true of my dish too). The breading wasn’t too thick or heavy, which is good.

Our recommendation would be to go eat dinner elsewhere. There are plenty of better places to go. Don’t be lazy like we were this evening!

O8 Bagel Shop

Just off the lobby entrance is the other place that has food on property. Where this is relevant is if you chose the daily $10 food & beverage credit for declining housekeeping. While you could eat at TIDAL+ with the credit, I think this is the more compelling option.

You can choose from the various coffees, bagels and other hot breakfast items, or the grab-and-go options with your credit. If you happen to be here in the evening, you’ll find it unstaffed. The grab-and-go is still available but you’ll need to stop by the front desk for them to ring you up.

This bagel shop is also home to a pizza vending machine. Unfortunately, you won’t be able to use your food & beverage credit here. I wager that if my son Alex were here on this trip, he would have made me buy him a slice.

Fitness center and pool

One level up from the lobby is where the fitness center and pool are located. The fitness center is actually quite large, with plenty of natural lighting. Remarkably, it’s one of the better features of the hotel.

On top of just using the gym, they also have free classes for hotel guests. There aren’t many options in a typical week, but it’s still nice that they’re offered. Most options are available over the weekend.

• Wind Down Wednesday: 5-6PM
• Focus Friday: 7:30-8:30AM
• Serenity Saturday: 9-10AM
• Self-Care Sunday: 9-10AM

Maybe they couldn’t find good alliteration for the other days?

There are plenty of machines inside on top of the free weights. I don’t think I’ve seen this place even close to being full during my stay. It spans about the same square footage as the restaurant underneath.

They also have a yoga studio in this fitness center, which is great if that’s more your thing.

Around the corner from the fitness center is the indoor pool. It’s not really intended for guests to hang out and splash, but that’s usually how these indoor hotel pools work. I feel like most I see are set up for lane swimming. The pool is kept at a balmy 84°F, which doesn’t feel cold especially with the air itself being warm in here too.

There are some lockers here to hold your stuff, but I didn’t notice locks on the lockers. (Does that make them simply -ers then? Sorry, I’m clearly in a dad joke mood now.) You’ll also find plenty of towels next to the lockers too.

Around the corner from the pool, hidden away in a corner, is the hot tub. During my stay, they kept the hot tub temperature up at 104°F. That’s nice enough to melt my troubles away. Sadly, I didn’t bring a swimsuit with me and didn’t want to get kicked out for trying it without one. Oh well.

Odds and ends

Right next to the door into the gym of all places is a vending machine offering plenty of junk food. Naturally, that’s the first thing I think of after exercising–aren’t you the same? Somewhere in the lobby seems like a more natural fit to put this machine, but at least it’s not inside the fitness center.

How much is it for a small bag of candy? A whopping $4.25. Oy, I miss these things being $0.50 at the grocery store checkout lines (OK, boomer — I know).

The hotel has a spa (elaia spa) but I didn’t get a chance to use it on this stay so there’s not much I can comment on it.

Also, don’t get the Olive 8 hotel confused with the Olive 8 Residences. The upper floors of the building are considered the residences while the lower floors are the hotel. This entrance to the residences is around the corner from the hotel and it’s a little more subdued in appearance. Odds are you won’t get them confused, but just wanted to point out it’s a multi-use building.

Recommendation: Only if you have a need for the indoor pool and gym

Let’s take this all in for a moment.

• The hotel feels overpriced from an award category perspective.
• It’s in walking distance to the convention center, but so are two other full-service Hyatt hotels.
• The dining at the hotel isn’t impressive.
• Rooms feel like they’re due for a refresh, especially the shower.

If I stopped the review there, that would easily be a no from us. However, the fitness center and indoor pool could offer some benefit to you (or your kids). Thus, I will say that if you’re here and want to make use of those services, I definitely don’t blame you. In fact, there are times when I travel with the kids myself and we are interested in finding indoor pools for them during colder months. So, I get it.

There’s also the added benefit of declining housekeeping to get something in return, which is a dying breed, but I wouldn’t consider a place to stay purely on that.

But, really, they got me on this stay because it’s a regular Hyatt. There are only 12 of these hotels around the world–and really only 7 if you exclude the 5 in India. With such a small footprint, it’s hard to end up in one of these.

Have you been to the Hyatt Olive 8?

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