dpb132

Three-night stay booked via FHR. At check in was presented with an AMEX "mailer"-style card that summarized the benefits.

Early check-in: used (arrived around 1:30pm)

Late check-out: not used

Upgrade: booked a Vista Casita, upgraded to a Summit Suite (2-category upgrade)

Internet: free property-wide for all guests

Breakfast: Dollar figure wasn't specified, but all charges were covered except for gratuity. Note that you can use this in the restaurant or for room service, but the latter requires a nominal delivery charge.

Amenity: $100 F&B credit (does not include gratuities)

Overall: this is one of my favorite hotels in the country. I had a stay here last year which included a few relatively minor issues with the room and service; the GM reached out personally to comp one night of my recent stay (this may also account for the 2-category upgrade). The setting is amazing, and amazingly peaceful, being a few miles north of Santa Fe proper. There is a complimentary Mercedes van shuttle that will take you to and from town. Staff greats you by last name within a day of checking in and is universally friendly. The FS app makes all manner of requests simple and discrete. Highest recommendation.

clubman

So after looking through the entire thread, and finding no reference to the FS HK at all. I was wondering whether anyone here has any experiance there when booking through FHR?

Thinking in terms of upgrades, where the free breakfast can be taken etc...

Also how would you rate it compared to the MO and the Upper House in terms of FHR benefits?


Thanks!

JohnnyP

(Thanks for the review of the FS Encantado. We're thinking of a visit.)

Meanwhile, my review of the Westin Riverfront in Avon / Beaver Creek, CO.

Four night stay booked via Centurion. We were presented appropriately with FHR materials on arrival, including 4 breakfast vouchers for any entree at Maya (the main restaurant) valid for two adults, 1 $100 spa voucher, and a mail-in FHR review card. We were also offered and accepted the guaranteed 4PM late checkout.

Parking: Required valet parking of $25/night or self-parking for $50/night (not a typo). Ridiculous. No overnight parking anywhere in the City of Avon. Would be cheaper to park for free in Vail and take an Uber!

Early check-in: Not used. Check-in was very friendly and upbeat. I was not recognized as an SPG Gold member at check-in.

Upgrade: Booked studio suite, received sort-of mountain view 1-bedroom suite (we were one of maybe 4-5 guests in the whole hotel). The standard of the room was better than their photos -- we were impressed. Full kitchen and sitting room with gas fireplace and small Bose CD/Radio/AUX system. Big bedroom with Heavenly bed and well-designed lighting. Great patio to enjoy the view of the river. Bathroom was a bit of a let down -- large, but fairly basic and dimly lit. Westin toiletries always leave much to be desired as well. The kitchen was really well-stocked, even including things like a coffee bean grinder and a blender!

Internet: Complimentary basic internet. Since I am SPG Gold, selected the $15/day premium internet.

Breakfast: Since Maya was closed for breakfast and lunch during this quiet period, we had lunch in the small Lift cafe. We could pick any entree off the menu, including things like buttermilk pancakes, egg white omelets and more, as well as a drink (coffee, orange juice, etc.). It did not include smoothies. The voucher covered the entree + gratuity. You could not use the voucher for room service. Thankfully, FHR is a better benefit than the SPG Plat breakfast here which, based on other reviews, only includes the Lift Cafe "packages" (which is a bit of a misnomer) like a yogurt parfait or a breakfast burrito.

Volvo Driving Program: This was great! The hotel had several brand new Volvo XC90 cars for guests to use free of charge. We took one for a spin one evening to Vail for dinner. Awesome benefit. (Particularly if you parked outside of Avon for free parking -- good potential valet-avoidance strategy there!)

Spa: They were running several low season specials including a $99 50-minute massage (regularly $140). As usual, treatments included access to the sauna, steam room and relaxation area. There was a separate locker room just for the spa. Masseuse was absolutely fantastic -- one of the better hotel spa massages I've had in a while. There was also a salon on location and they were offering "specials" like a $45 haircut for men.

Gym and pool: Really great facilities, well-kept machines and weights. They allow locals to buy memberships here, so it was always busy, but not crowded. Classes were $50. The pool was not for playing really, it was a saltwater lap pool and I never saw the lanes empty. They had 3-4 hot tubs with views of the mountains and poolside service (not during off season).

Check-out: No problems with late check-out. There were some issues with the bill which were resolved. For example, their system did not recognize my SPG Gold status, so i was charged for premium internet (and maybe missed out on a better upgrade?)

Overall: Really liked the property and the rooms. Far better property than the Park Hyatt Beaver Creek, even at the suite level. Having such a nice, well-equipped kitchen was a game changer for us. The location in downtown Avon was also a general positive as you could walk to some stores, like Starbucks, and down along the river or to the city park.

That being said, we probably won't ever go back during the summer. The $25 resort fee + $25 required valet parking (or $50 self parking) is usurious, particularly during the summer months. I can understand during the busy ski season, but when several of the hotel amenities are shut down and the town is practically empty it's over the top to add 30%+ cost on top of the hotel room. Avon should also open up their ski lots for overnight parking like Vail does during the summer. They sat empty our whole stay.

We're looking forward to exploring the FS Vail during our next trip up to the mountains.

mia

You may not have qualified for that benefit:

http://www.starwoodhotels.com/prefer...language=en_US

Kendryk

Booked City-View Executive Suite
Upgraded to Palace-View Executive Suite ($400 CAD/night difference!)
Third night free

Early check-in was used - arrived at approximately 2PM, and housekeeping had finished cleaning the room during the check-in process.

Breakfast on Sundays is served in the Market Kitchen which is located in the basement of the hotel and features glass floors where you can see the ruins of the buildings that the property is built atop. On other days, breakfast is served in Boccalino. The spread at Market Kitchen was better than Boccalino.

F&B credit was $100 USD, which I partially used for room service - food quality was actually good, but Seoul in general has such great food that it paled in comparison.

Late check-out was not offered but I did not ask for nor require it.

Wifi is complimentary for all guests. Premium wifi is complimentary for all Club/Executive rooms/suites.

The views from the suite and from the executive lounge were absolutely amazing. The executive lounge staff were great and remembered me by name by the end of the first night. All staff recognized me and service was excellent all-around.

One of the best city hotels I've stayed at. Would book again and recommend to others in a heartbeat.

KatW

Thank you for this, dpb. We've booked a five-night stay to coincide with two operas at the end of July. We're both desert virgins and hoping for a grand experience. Plus, of course, the music.

CRAZ8

Room Booked: City View, High Floor

Upgraded To: Partial Harbour, Low Floor (6th)

Early Checkin: 1:30pm - asked if higher floor available, and needed to wait until 2:30 to get Partial Harbour, 10th floor

Late Checkout: 2pm

Wifi: High speed is extra $, but FHR covered this

$100 Property Credit: Used for lobby restaurant for lunch - Hotel exchange rate: $1 US = $1.21 CAD, and $121 of bill credited

Breakfast: The letter doesn't give a value, but it's enough for the full weekend brunch per person.

Room was comfortable and quiet, and the view was pretty good. The 10th floor seems to be one that the elevator system uses to keep one, so we'd often get an elevator immediately.

Lobby has live music every afternoon, and was very loud. With people, music, and acoustics, it was actually hard to perform check-in! In the evening, the lobby bar turns into a big party space with a full band. After noon, the lobby was not a place to have quiet drink and read a book.

Oru - the restaurant for brunch - had similar acoustics, and at 11am on a Sunday the place was full, and at full volume too. Service was much slower when full, and we got comped some mimosas - although on the FHR rate, this may have been covered anyway.

Fairmont President's Club: I added my number to the reservation form during booking, and I called Amex and had them call the hotel to make sure it was added. It was NOT added. During check-in, it should have been added, but it wasn't. President's club members shouldn't need to line up - the doorman should have your keys and info at many hotels.

The location is great, and the room was good too, but I'm likely to stay somewhere else next time. We had drinks and dinner in the Rosewood Hotel Georgia, and that place had a very quiet lobby, and Prohibition in the basement is a great cocktail bar.

DCEsquire

Ojai Valley Inn & Spa http://www.ojairesort.com/

Room Booked: Fireplace Suite (not lowest tier but not highest end either)

Upgraded To: Spa Penthouse Suite (retail $2,800 a night!!) We are staying over here for the long weekend.

Early Checkin: N/A

Late Checkout: 4pm

Wifi: Included anyway.

$100 Property Credit: Credited.

Breakfast: 60 dollars each day.

Room was exceptional. The normal suite is 2 bedroom 2 bath. They gave us 1 br and 1 bath plus 2 of the 3 patios overlooking the spa pool. (We don't need 2 beds or baths so I don't feel any slight whatsoever. They can rent the other room as a 1 br/ 1 bath or upgrade someone else.

The person checking us in said she had NEVER seen an upgrade like this. I'm still wondering what the heck happened. It's the second most expensive room on the property. Amex Plat basically paid for itself for the next decade in one 4 night stay!

scubadu

Congratulations on the awesome upgrade, enjoy it! However, two observations:

1) Clearly that is an anomalous upgrade and folks reading (particularly newer card members) shouldn't assume upgrades such as this are the norm for the FHR program and...

2) This upgrade only "paid for itself for the next decade in one 4 night stay" if, and only if, you would have spent the delta $ to actually purchase the suite upgrade if it had not been complimentary. If not, then the "savings" logic is slippery at best.

Regards

DCEsquire

Regarding your points:

1. I've had the card for less than a year but I agree that it's probably highly anomalous.

2. I agree but it was a fantastic treat for the two of us. We are celebrating a special occasion so it provided a lot of psychological value not to mention free entry to the much quieter spa pool and hot tubs.



2

ellyrambo

Ritz Carlton Amelia Island

Booked: Ocean View Suite. Space available upgrade mentioned as benefit but not offered, didn't ask.

Early check in not needed, late checkout offered but not used.

Additional benefit: $100 spa credit.

Breakfast: $60 a day at Coast, which covers the buffet (not available for room service). The welcome letter had lower amount, but I was told $60 and this was reflected on my bill.

Valet parking was $24 a night, and there was a resort fee of $28.

AirLokita

Amateur hour in Santa Fe:

Room Booked: Vista King

Upgraded To: Vista Grande -- maybe -- essentially the same room.

Early Checkin: N/A -- room was ready by 1PM though.

Late Checkout: 2PM, and had to sort of fight for that. Security knocked on the door promptly (the only prompt experience at this hotel) at 12PM wondering why we hadn't checked out. Called manager to confirm FHR benefit--response was essentially "our bad".

Wifi: Included but didn't really work; SSID dropped or couldn't resolve DNS across all of our devices. Calls to IT via front desk not returned.

$100 Property Credit: Maybe credited. Unclear. So disgusted by the end of the stay that didn't even bother to check. The bar/lounge tab was on the bill, so it didn't cover that.

Breakfast: 30 dollars per person/day. However: Room service breakfast calls went to voicemail or fast busy, needing multiple calls to get someone -- unanswered calls don't transfer to front desk, strangely. First day, order was late and missing food. They corrected that quickly. Stopping by the nearly empty Luminaria restaurant the next day and were told "give us 10 minutes". Nope. Third day used the door card, and clearly should have been doing that each day.

Room was very nice. Private balcony overlooking the entry. The room was unquestionably the best part of the stay.

In conclusion--sounds like there are way, way better FHR choices in Santa Fe. Location great, room great, but all the fundamentals just lacking. If you need the internet; have stuff to do in a timely manner; need your car (or anything for that matter) promptly; need a call back for whatever reason--look elsewhere.

reggie108

booked grand Victoria harbour view room(highest room category), upon check in at midnight was told they upgraded me to a corner room with the Victoria harbour view. I have stayed here before so i know the rooms well, at the same time the agent was trying to upsell me on the club package for an additional 1200 hkd. I asked the agent to throw in a harbour view 1 bedroom suite, then we would have a deal. he said yes,

we paid for a highest room category, paid more for club access, and got an additional room upgrade to a suite.

not bad, we paid a lot more than we were thinking of paying, but the suite is a lot more room, even though the layout of the suit is not ideal.

i was happy

reggie108

booked couple of hours before arrival, if i wanted to check in at 10am, they could accommodate me but i was still ok on a late check out at the ritz, so took a nap first and transferred over to the Langham. Pleasant arrival and check in, rooms are nothing to write home about.

assigned room on the top floor where there is no elevator service, have to walk 1 flight up via stairs. No big deal, but different.

overall comfortable 1 night stay accommodating front desk staff.

a bit lower than what i expected so might not stay here again.

zaf

Trump International Tower Hotel in Toronto

I stayed there for one night last weekend.

I booked the basic room through FHR (Online) received the following benefits:

1- Free Internet
2- Upgraded to a 1 bedroom suite
3- 100 CAD credit (i used in the spa but you could use it to any incidentals).
4- Daily breakfast for two (can be used for either room service or at the America Restaurant). The breakfast is valued at 32 CAD if I am not mistaken
5- Guaranteed late checkout till 4 pm, which I used.
6- They could not check me in at noon because the hotel was fully booked the night before.

Loved the hotel. The rooms are great and the service was very very good.