I plan on being at the Fairmont Orchid in early November.We are celebrating our 25th wedding anniversary and am looking for a write up on this property from a FT'er.
Thanks
I plan on being at the Fairmont Orchid in early November.We are celebrating our 25th wedding anniversary and am looking for a write up on this property from a FT'er.
Thanks
I posted the following last fall after a stay in September. It was part of a longer thread on the Fairmont Orchid that had other people's comments as well: Fairmont Orchid
I'd add that as you're celebrating your anniversary, be sure to book massages in one of the oceanside cabanas. Worth doing ahead of time cause they do book up.
I was just there a few weeks ago, first time to the property. Um, wow. Where to start: Basically, heaven on earth. Four hours after I arrived in Kona I had already snorkeled with sea turtles and watched the sunset from a lava rock jacuzzi that sits just off the pool. Hard to top. I spent much of the rest of the trip trying to decide whether this or the Banff Springs were the most perfect hotel I've ever been too.
I should say -- I didn't eat in any of the restaurants. I'm not a foodie, so I was fine with the club floor buffet, the on-property deli and in-town food as I traveled around the island. The location of Brown's is very cool -- but you can also sit in basically the same place w/o eating there, so go only if you're into good food.
I'm more of a beach girl, and I loved the Fairmont's. It sounds like you've been there before, so I won't go into the description. The hotel room itself was wonderfully lush and I loved that they gave us full-size toiletries (that might just be the club floor, though.) Most comfortable bed I've ever slept in.
The lushness extended around the property -- but so did a nice island informality. Everyone was very tidy, but I didn't feel like I had to deck out in full "resortwear" everytime I left my room -- nice change from the Four Seasons. Service was also a nice mix of a lush hotel and island informality. One woman I spoke with said she came to work there because her father did as well -- I thought that said a lot about how well the hotel treats its staff. (The woman who drove the shuttle from Blue Hawaiian also commented, unprompted, that the Fairmont staff seemed the happiest of the hotels in the area.)
There was construction visible on the way to the hotel, but I forgot about it after that -- not visible or hearable from the property itself. People have also griped about the views and I think that's probably fair -- really only the top floors or the north side of North tower have "partial ocean views" that deserve the name. On the other hand, the south side of North tower you get to fall asleep to the sound of waterfalls, which is awesome, and the South Tower is about 4 feet from the beach.
Things are much closer together than they look from the maps I had seen. I was staying in the North Tower and was concerned I might be too far from the beach, but no problems at all (I'm somewhat mobility impaired, though not in the water.) At the same time, however, the design of the property is so well done that you never feel like you're surrounded by people. I assumed the occupancy was low -- but it turned out it was almost full.
My only disappointment, and it was very very minor, is that the spa has kind of cramped pre-treatment facilities. I mean, the massage on the beach was great, and the waterfall huts looked cool, too, but there's a very limited number of treatments you can get in them and otherwise you're in the very small main building. And things like facials and pedicures are relegated to a small "salon" that could be in any shopping mall. I was told there were plans to turn it into a Willow Stream, which would be awesome, but they were shelved over the summer.
But anyway, awesome property. You'll have a great time. Happy to answer any specific questions.
Thank-you,although Mrs.acysb87 deserves all the credit.
TeaAddict has some good points on the messages.We have a suite reserved using the coupons(newly renovated ,garden view ),and am using some of the free night coupons.
We are visiting Oahu 1st and saving the Orchid for the 2nd half of our stay.Appreciate the comments.
I'm celebrating my fist anniversary there later this month and an quite excited (especially since all four nights are free and in the "romance" suite).
I spent 3 days in Bermuda in Feb '05 this year, 2 nights at the Hamilton Princess and 1 at Southampton - personally, I MUCH preferred the Southampton. Not that there was anything really 'wrong' with the HP, the Southampton was just a plusher, newer, more luxurious hotel overall.
The Southampton is a gorgeous property, with terrific staff and beautiful rooms that I found more modern than the Hamilton Princess. In both cases I'd used a free night and suite upgrade cert. I checked in early at the Southampton (11am) and didn't expect a room at that time and stated as much. However, I was told my room was ready - unfortunately, when we went up, the room wasn't made up yet! (Though it looked like the previous guests had departed, and it was certainly an amazing, huge, beautiful room with a great view). Not a great start, however, after MUCH apologizing, we were offered a room on the Gold Floor (oh, darn!) - very happy with that. The Willow Stream facility is totally awesome, especially the gym, what a terrific view from there. Pool(s) are great, and I used my 'free massage cert' - also great. The Willow Stream front-desk staff were a bit cold and disorganized, but once you're past them it really is wonderful. We had dinner at...ummm...don't recall the name, but it is the more casual Italian place with the antipasto 'bar', and the antipasto was very good, the rest of the meal wasn't quite up to Fairmont standards, but certainly wasn't bad. Overall, I would go back in a heartbeat, it was a very relaxing, wonderful stay, and my best wishes for an equally terrific time!
Oh, and we didn't do the 'beach thing' because it was Feb (brrrr....), though we did go for a walk down there and it looked wonderful too.
Keeping in mind that you're a long way from "town", or if you're headed anywhere other than Hamilton (free Fairmont shuttle for that if I recall correctly), don't hesitate to use the public bus system. Very simple, frequent service, and cheap - though they drive like maniacs! (you get there fast, though )
I'm celebrating my fist anniversary there later this month and an quite excited (especially since all four nights are free and in the "romance" suite).
I hope you had a typo for your 1st anniversary vs fist anniversary
About ten days from now, I have to go to Chicago and will be booking a hotel downtown, either on the Magnificient Mile or in the Loop area. Does anyone have any opinions regarding the Fairmont Chicago?
I am an FPC Premier member and will be booking through the conceirge, so any tips regarding the likelihood of suite upgrades or deluxe upgrades are appreciated. Should I shoot for any one type of upgrade over another? Is there anything in particular for which I should ask the conceirge? Has anyone used the dining credits?
I will also be combining the upgrade with the third night free certificate as I don't travel very often and need to economise on this trip.
This is an old hotel (1914) with a new wing(1992). It is a great place to read a book,eat good food and be treated very well by an attentive staff.It has golf and a spa and is a few blocks away from the Bay of Fundy.There are whale sighting tours and other marine related activities in the very small town of St Andrews.
The environment in the hotel and town is very laid back. It seems to me a be a great getaway if you didn't want to hear the phone ring and enjoyed quite walks by the ocean.I think as a club member, you could expect some personal attention. It is not a business type hotel.
The old wing is not updated. The furniture is pretty old as are televisions.The new wing rooms are nice and have the feel of a modern hotel.We were upgraded to a suite in the older section. We had water views from the two rooms.
I was looking for "quite" and got it. There were lots of couples there who appeared to be in fifties and sixties and families with young children. I don't think this hotel would appeal to people looking for excitement and I believe most teens would find the place boring.
It is about one hundred and twenty miles from Bangor ,Maine. I think it is four or five hours from Prince Edward Island and three or four hours from Nova Scotia.
Location: MSP (and will only fly NWA in re-routes if I HAVE to)
Programs: AA EXP (4.5MM), hotel programs as needed
Posts: 5,802
Fairmont Vancouver Waterfront
Stayed there over the US 4th July and the Canadian Canada Day (1 July).
Used Suite Upgrade (confirmed) and was given a Terrace suite on the 3rd Floor facing Canada Place and the waterfront. Technically this is the rooftop garden area above the restaurant and connects to the fabulous pool. Each suite has double doors leading to a small patio with teak chairs and small table. The larger 'full suites' also had a dining table with four chairs. Tho kind of wierd setup, the doors lead from the living room .. to a 'room wall sized' patio. Then the bedroom area did not have a patio door (again another room size terrace outside) had its own walled off patio (low shrub filled wall) and on the larger suites the dining table. Mine wasted the space in front of the bedroom with nothing! They do need a more fanatical gardener to manage this area .. there was a lot of cleanup needed .. but with rain every other day would be hard to keep perfect.
The hotel is fabulous. Tho it is newish and modern (compared to many former CP hotels). I found NO fault with the wonderful staff .. or facilities.. nor the resident dog (who lives by the front door).
The only issue I had was something the hotel could not adjust .. construction kitty corner to the hotel of the new Vancouver Convention Center. While I was there was mainly holiday and weekend, I was told the builders would be driving pilings into the harbour for another six months. NO hotel in the area will be quiet during the weekday construction hours. Least of all my wonderful terrace suite!
Am off to Boston and Calgary Fairmonts in the next weekends . and the Savoy mid-August.
The following is a review I posted on tripadvisor.com after a stay this past winter at the Chateau Lake Louise:
My husband and I stayed at the Fairmont Chateau Lake Louise during the last week of February 2005, while my husband attended a conference in the hotel. We paid a special conference rate of $370.00 per night (all prices in Canadian dollars) for a deluxe room (275 sq. ft.) with two double beds. Our rate included breakfast, lunch and dinner each day of our stay for both of us. Since the dining here is quite expensive, I feel we got an excellent deal. My husband had just joined the President's Club, so we did not get any upgrades or benefits from this.
The hotel is about a 2 hour drive from the Calgary Airport, but if you are going to stay at the resort and not travel anywhere else, I would recommend that you not rent a car. Instead, you can take a shuttle from the airport to the hotel. The hotel also provides a free shuttle to the Lake Louise Ski Resort and Lake Louise Village (or you can walk), so you don't really need a car. Parking, both self and valet, cost $20.00 a day during our stay.
Our room was in the new Mount Temple Wing (Room #4942), which was completed in June 2004. This wing of the hotel houses the new Conference Center, which is fabulous. Our room had what the hotel said was a mountain view. Actually the view was of a stand of spruce trees, an access road for hotel deliveries, and if you looked to the right, you could see mountains. No complaints though, the view was fine. I have read reviews complaining about small run down rooms at this hotel. If you want to avoid these and stay in a newer and larger room, ask for a room in this wing of the hotel.
Our room was quite large and clean, with a separate sitting area with a chair, footstool and lamp, and a desk with a lamp and high speed internet access (using the internet cost about $14.00 daily). The room also had a mini bar stocked with drinks and goodies (we had an erroneous $9.00 charge on our bill for drinks at check-out). The bathroom was marbled, with a big tub/shower and two terry cloth robes. The beds were comfortable with nice down duvets and lots of pillows. Our room was the last one at the end of a side hall, and was very quiet until near the end of our stay when a family with children checked in next door. We could clearly hear telephone conversations and kids yelling through the door between our rooms.
When we called the hotel to confirm our reservation, we mentioned that we would be celebrating our wedding anniversary during our stay, and we found two small bottles of champagne on ice with a card from the manager in our room when we checked in.
We ate all of our meals at special buffets for conference attendees, so I cannot rate any of the restaurants except the Chateau Deli, open 24 hours a day. They had very good, reasonably priced sandwiches and specialty coffees.
I don't ski, but my husband and I had a great time participating in the Mountain Winter Adventures Program. All activities (all cost additional fees) can be booked in advance by telephoning the Concierge Desk, or you can sign up at the hotel. We went on two snowshoeing hikes, one during the day for 3 hours and one at night, both led by Bruce Bembridge, one of the hotel's Mountain Heritage Guides. Bruce is a great guide, teacher and storyteller; I highly recommend him! We had a cross country skiing class/tour (also taught by Bruce), where we skied on a trail which led to the far end of the lake, then came back to the hotel by skiing across the length of the frozen lake. It was absolutely beautiful. We also went on a 20k dog sledding trip up to the Continental Divide and across the border into British Columbia. On the way back, my husband got to mush the dogs.
There is a rental shop in the hotel run by Monod Sports, where you can rent everything you need for alpine and cross country skiing, hockey, ice skating and snowshoeing. It cost us $16.00 each to rent cross country skis, boots and poles for a half day.
The staff and service at the Chateau Lake Louise are all outstanding. We did not encounter one hotel employee who was not friendly and helpful. I have heard that the hotel gets extremely crowded in the summer with tourists cruising the grounds; I would probably avoid staying here then.
Last edited by lost*in*cyberspace; Jul 21, 05 at 5:50 pm.
Programs: AC, NW Silver, Fairmont Prem., *Wood G, HH G, Pri Pass, Nat'l EC, Hertz G
Posts: 940
Orchid - KONA, my 2 cents
Great reviews here ... I was there for 7 days both in Feb '04 and Feb '05. Kona is great - it's on the "sunshine" coast, not sure why ayone would fly for 11 hours to be on the "cloudy/rainy" coast.
What I loved:
1. Size of room - had exec suites both times, one garden view, one ocean view. 1,100 sq feet is incredible!
2. Golf - I love golf. Played both courses a few times and would recommend the "lava" course. Think it's the south course? It hugs the coast and there are some beauty sights.
3. Sunsets - grab a couple of drinks and watch the sun drop. Of 15 nights there, only 3 clear sunsets though. If it's clear, drop all plans and relax witht a view!
4. Pool - the pool is the perfect temp! I could not get out of it!
5. Kona's not crowded. A few days after arriving in '04, I said to myself, "I need to get back here before this place gets more crowded" When I returned a year later, there was a significant increase in people. good for the city, bad for the tourists / locals.
Recommendation - Get the direct flight!!!! The hassle in HNL is brutal. Especially for the honeymooner. Drop a little extra ca$h and use DEN, SEA, LAX, ORD, or YVR nonstop to KOA.
Have fun, it's very hard not to.
Last edited by CloudsBelow; Jul 22, 05 at 12:07 pm.
[quote=CloudsBelow]Great reviews here ...
1. Size of room - had exec suites both times, one garden view, one ocean view. 1,100 sq feet is incredible!.....
Which would you prefer?We are booked into the garden view suite.( all I could get on the upgrade cert )
,garden view 
),and am using some of the free night coupons. 
)
Fairmont Chicago
Fairmont Chateau Lake Louise
