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Great Wall Sheraton, Beijing, China [Master Thread]

Old Nov 10, 2014, 10:41 pm
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Great Wall Sheraton, Beijing, China [Master Thread]

Old May 14, 2002, 8:13 am
  #16  
 
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I also received the junior suite as Plat last September. The executive lounge was quite nice though during cocktail / high-tea time.

Next time you might want to stay some nights at a different *Wood property, the St. Regis Beijing, where you may get a Diplomat Ste (more than a Junior), much more modern facilities including a recently opened spa and pool complex.
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Old May 14, 2002, 8:22 am
  #17  
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I have never stay at the Great Wall Sheraton, but the SPG Plat upgrade policy excludes multi-room and specialty suites, so Jr Suites are what you are suppose to get for hotels follow it "by the book". Properties are going out of their way to accommondate Plat numbers if they upgrade you beyond that. Personally, I am happpy with Jr. Suite, and some properties don't even follow that.
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Old May 14, 2002, 8:36 am
  #18  
 
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Actually, the T&C state that:

1. Upgrade to the best available room, including Select Standard Suites... Presidential, Honeymoon, and multiple bedroom are excluded.

Multiple room suites are not really excluded, just multiple bedroom.


[This message has been edited by MarshKing (edited 05-14-2002).]
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Old May 14, 2002, 11:03 am
  #19  
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<font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="2">Originally posted by MarshKing:
Upgrade to the best available room, including Select Standard Suites... Presidential, Honeymoon, and multiple bedroom are excluded.</font>
Interesting! Does this mean Platinum upgrade "by the book" is to a one-bedroom suite? I always thought Jr. Suites are what Platinums are supposed to get. I wish lurker can confirm this.
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Old May 14, 2002, 11:15 am
  #20  
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The Lurker has posted two LENGTHY threads on upgrades- entitled "A word about upgrades" parts I and II.

The bottom line, if there is one, is this:

A hotel will upgrade you to what they see fit. The terms and conditions are that flexible. There are some hotels where no suite is exempt from the upgradeable list. There are other hotels where noone has ever reported getting a suite, and it seems as if all (or virtually all) suites are exempt from upgrades.

It stinks for us, since nowhere is it published how many upgradeable suites each hotel has. You just need to compile that information on your own and figure out which hotels are great about recognizing elite status, and which ones are not. It's be great if Starwood told us instead of us flying blind.
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Old May 16, 2002, 6:08 pm
  #21  
 
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Sheraton Great Wall China - What to Expect

I've read some other posts, but I'm staying at this property on a free award. As a Platinum, what should I expect. Junior Suite, real suite, no suite? Do you have to ask, beg or steal?

How about access to the Club lounge? Have you received it?

Also, how is the location? Is it really far out and is there any public transportation besides taxis?

Thanks.
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Old May 16, 2002, 6:47 pm
  #22  
 
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<font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="2">Originally posted by leiterk:
I've read some other posts, but I'm staying at this property on a free award. As a Platinum, what should I expect. Junior Suite, real suite, no suite? Do you have to ask, beg or steal?

How about access to the Club lounge? Have you received it?

Also, how is the location? Is it really far out and is there any public transportation besides taxis?

Thanks.
</font>
It's quite a nice Hotel; breakfast is excellent (I mean really good), and the atrium is pretty nifty.

It is a bit out of the way; unless you're a diplomat! However I never paid more than $3 for a cab ride (including tip); and I went right the way across town a few times.

The assistant manager's office is glass walled and right next to the check-in desk; if you're unhappy with your (lack of) upgrade - it's not hard to complain!

Regards,
Alex

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Old May 17, 2002, 8:37 am
  #23  
 
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Try going out to the road to hail a cab instead of getting one at the hotel. Often the cheaper priced caps don't pick up at the hotel.

Bus service is also pretty decent around there. Not many visitors seem to take advantage of it but I found it crowded but safe and cheap! The Beijing subway is rather good too.

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Old Jan 12, 2005, 3:41 pm
  #24  
 
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Arrow Beijing: Great Wall Sheraton (Master Thread)

I'm an SPG Gold headed to Beijing and I'd like to book a car to the Great Wall, but no services at my corp apartment. Do you think I would be able to go to the Sheraton down the road and use their concierge services to book a car even if I'm not staying there?
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Old Jan 12, 2005, 3:53 pm
  #25  
 
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Doesn't hurt to ask the concierge directly - I think you'll find most are very receptive helpful people to begin with. Besides, I tip the concierges directly for their services, and they've always been very appreciative.
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Old Jan 12, 2005, 4:20 pm
  #26  
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i can help you reserve a car. i know several taxi drivers that love to take people up there and charge a lot less than any of the hotel services. pm me if you're interested.
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Old Apr 10, 2007, 7:40 am
  #27  
 
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Beijing: Great Wall Sheraton (Master Thread)

I would love to ask my fellow FTers what you would think the term Elite rooms mean. If you think that Elite rooms are SPG Club Level rooms, you may be sorely misled at this hotel. Apparently, the Elite rooms are like those at Sheraton Hong Kong Tower rooms where platinum members will NOT be upgraded to if they only book a room at the regular section.

I booked a so-called Deluxe room at this hotel on the spg.com and thought that I would get an upgrade to a very contemporary Elite room. And while I got an upgrade to a junior suite upon check-in about 5 hours ago, it was relatively small and obviously outdated (given this is a 20+-yr old hotel). When I asked whether I could get an Elite room instead of the junior suite, the manager told me no because the Elite rooms are at a different pricing category. I called SPG Platinum Concierge (at an expensive international roaming rate) to try to straight it out and the rep told me that the price of a junior suite is very similar to that of an Elite room (~ 3000 RMB). I asked him whether the Elite rooms are classified as specialty rooms where I would not be entitled for the upgrade. He did a research (7 min on hold) to confirm with me that the Elite rooms are not specialty rooms. He said that the hotel should honor my request to get me an Elite room because its available at that time. I went back to talk to the manager and explained what the Plat Concierge Rep told me and again the manager kindly refused and reemphasized that they are two different categories. To give them some credits, the manager did tried really hard not to upset me by offering me a bottle of red wine (Im allergic to) and a fruit plate, which I gracefully declined.

Im really sick and tired of this hotel-within-a-hotel/tower rooms setup. I suggest that SPG should list out the plat upgrade restrictions on its website for those hotels with such setup so that plat members will know ahead what kind of upgrade they should expect (if the desired rooms/suites are available). Or at least in this case, let the SPG Platinum Concierge personnel know the Elite rooms are at a different category than the other regular rooms. Had I known for sure that I wont get that elite room upgrade with my so-called Deluxe room reservation, I would definitely choose another SPG property in the area. Also, please change the misnomer Elite rooms at this hotel to something more descriptive like Deluxe-and-expensive-but-not-for-regular-plat-upgrade-rooms.

*wood Lurker, am I being too harsh and asking too much? Should I make a call to the Corporate Services to file this trivial complaint? I wonder if other FTers have similar experience at this property.

Oh btw, Plat members are only allowed in the Platinum lounge, and only the Elite room guests are allowed in the Elite Lounge, which looks much nicer (since I was never allowed to get in, I didn't know what they served over there).
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Old Apr 10, 2007, 9:36 am
  #28  
 
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Originally Posted by ktjan
Oh btw, Plat members are only allowed in the Platinum lounge, and only the Elite room guests are allowed in the Elite Lounge, which looks much nicer (since I was never allowed to get in, I didn't know what they served over there).
I asked a similar question in another thread. From the hotel photo section, there are 2 lounges: elite & executive. Are you saying there is a 3rd lounge only for Plat?
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Old Apr 10, 2007, 9:52 am
  #29  
 
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Originally Posted by rdchen
I asked a similar question in another thread. From the hotel photo section, there are 2 lounges: elite & executive. Are you saying there is a 3rd lounge only for Plat?
Executive Lounge = Plat Lounge.
Plat can't enter the Elite Lounge or get an upgrade to the Elite Room. It just doesn't make sense. It sounds like Platinum members are not elite members!
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Old Apr 10, 2007, 11:10 am
  #30  
 
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While I agree in principle I understand the confusion around these special cases. I too wish it was more clear on both sides.

However, as I've posted before, I think the lounge at this hotel and free food/drink offerings are among the best in the world I've had - especially at the price range of the hotel. And the Junior Suites are relatively roomy and nice. Ms. and I rarely ate dinner after having lots of lovely appetizers at the hotel... although the Hard Rock cafe next door was tempting
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