EXPLAT

Anyone have a recent experience here?

UKTraveller4Fun

We stayed here many years ago before the rebrand but were in Florence a week ago and picked the Westin across the square as it was a lot cheaper and we didnt plan on spending much time in the hotel.

We did however go across the the St. Regis one night as the weather was terrible that day and just fancied being nosey. Went in for a drink and ended up staying for dinner, it was very quiet but food was excellent and service at the bar and restuarant was equally as good.

The lobby area all looked very nice and bar was really well done, it is safe to say we wished we had booked the St. Regis rather than the Westin and next time we are visiting Florence we shall certainly do just that!

MoreMiles!

Just returned from a 3 nights stay at the St Regis. What a fantastic property ! I stay in 5* hotels 100-200 nights every year, and this has got to be one of the top 3 I've ever been to. Staff genuinely caring and very knowledgeable, suite had great view of the river and well appointed with lots of attention to details, food was great and location was obviously great. We were upgraded ahead of time to a suite. Highly recommended, especially when 3-for-2 rate is available for much of the year

DP81

Has anyone had experience here recently booking two rooms as a SPG platinum and getting breakfast for both rooms? I think the policy sometimes depends on the property. Also, I may have another friend meeting me there but she's not sure yet (work load dependent). I currently just booked for two people, will it be a problem to get a roll away for the 3rd person should she decide to come? Thanks for your help!

NoVA guy

I would like to start out by saying that this is one of my favorite Starwood properties in the world. I have stayed here on many occassions and have been treated to wonderful upgrades (as both a Gold and Platinum member).

I did book two rooms (parents were my other guest) as a Platinum and we all did receive the full breakfast. We also had two side by side suites facing the Arno River with double balconies. The cavaet that I will add is I wrote (in Italian with some help) the property in advance requesting as "special of an treatment" as it was my parents first time to Europe and wanted as special experience as the hotel could help provide. So without this extra effort, would my parents have been given the free Platinum breakfast? I can't say for certain. At other properties, my guests have also been given the Platinum amenities without asking for it. I hope this helps.

I hope you enjoy this hotel and city and it should be a wonderful experience.

BluHorseshoe

I don't have experience with booking two rooms, but I just wanted to echo what the other poster said - this is an excellent property. I had a great stay there in October, received an upgrade to a suite and received all around great service from the staff there. Enjoy your stay!

spgplat21

We had this exact treatment in a similar situaton, and I did not request any special treatment. I was traveling with my parents and booked two rooms. Both rooms were upgraded to a suite and breakfast was included for four. We were also given a rollaway for one night when we had a third guest. There was an extra charge for the 3rd person on an award stay (not sure if the charge was for the 3rd person or the rollaway, but I think it was around 80 Eur), but we were very upfront with the hotel about it and gave them that person's passport when they arrived. The staff all knew our names on the first day, so I would have felt weird about trying to sneak in an additional guest.

And as others have said, this is one of the best hotels in the SPG system. We loved everything about it during our stay.

DP81

Thanks all for your very prompt responses. It's so nice to have a forum where you can ask such specific questions and get responses so quickly! I'm really looking forward to visiting the St. Regis' in Italy after reading your responses!

spgplat21

Hopefully you're visiting Florence after Rome. Otherwise, the St. Regis Rome is going to be a let down. Service was fine, but the hotel itself in Florence is on a different level.

NoVA guy

Wow. I guess I must have missed another message on this thread that discussed the order of this Italian trip. I could not agree more with SPGPLAT21. The trip that I referenced with my parents, for the Italy portion, started in Venice, Florence, Siena, Pisa and then Rome. By the time my parents had seen all those other magical cities, Rome was a downer. If you been to all these cities, this post should be clear. In retrospect, I would have reversed the journey starting with Rome and finishing in one of those other cities. Finally, this trip I keep referencing also included the St Regis in Rome. I was given great rooms, but not as spectacular as the ones in Florence (or Venice). The full breakfast was provided to all 5 of us at the St Regis in Rome as well.

DP81

Thanks for all of the tremondous advice. Luckily, the order is Rome (St. Regis), Florence (St. Regis), Venice (Gritti Palace), Milan (Park Hyatt). The rooms in Venice look rather gaudy but with a 4.9 rating on SPG, seems like a no brainer.

spgplat21

It sounds almost exactly like my trip except we adding a few nights in Paris to the end and unfortunately, the Gritti Palace was closed during my trip so I stayed at the Danieli in Venice. I have nothing but good things to say about the other hotels you're visiting. Rome was the worst, but it still wasn't a bad stay just nothing to "wow" you like the other properties you mention.

A couple we met in Florence highly recommended eating breakfsat over at the Westin, which I believe the hotel still allows you to do with your platinum breakfast. If you're there for a few days it may be worth checking out one morning for a change of scenery. They preferred the spread there.

slidergirl

go across the piazza and have a drink up on the rooftop at the Westin. A beautiful view from there. Pricy drinks, but heck, you're on vacation! They gave me a nice selection of bar munchies to the point that I didn't have to order anything else. I had their Blackberry Shiraz Martini - yummy!!!!!!
For gelato, go across the bridge and head toward the Rialto - there is a fantastic gelato shop in between - La Carraia.

damon88

This thread is getting me excited about our upcoming trip in November to Rome (Cavalieri then St. Regis) and Florence (St.Regis)

We have visited both cities before but never at the St. Regis- we stayed at the Excelsior Rome & Excelsior Florence on those trips. In Rome they upgraded us to a beautiful suite and gave us the nicest Plat gift we've ever received at any hotel- a beautiful coffee table book on Rome with overlays showing the archeological changes- they also had cheese and champagne waiting in the room when we arrived. In Florence they gave us an amazing suite with a huge private patio overlooking the Duomo. I thought the concierge staff in Florence was the finest we've found anywhere. If the St. Regis exceeds our last experience we will be extremely impressed !

I'm sad we won't make it to Venice on this trip. We spent 2 weeks there for our 30th wedding anniversary- 1 week at the Gritti Palace and 1 week at the Danieli. Perhaps because it was our 4th visit to the Danieli they blew us away by putting us in the a Royal Suite- a magnificent suite with gorgeous parquet floors , view balconies & Murano chandeliers. It was our first visit to the Gritti and we thought the hotel was lovely though our room was nothing special-
We will definitely choose the Danieli when we return to Venice.

BTW- all stays were booked on points (with Platinum status). I've always been amazed at the stellar treatment we've received on award stays in Europe. It's one of the main reasons SPG gets almost all of our business.

Upgraded!

How militant is this property about enforcing the up charge for a double vs. single occupancy room? I can get a pretty good rate for an upcoming trip, but it's almost 200 euro/night more if I say it's a double occupancy. If I just book as single and then show up with a second person, will I have an issue?