GREAT stay at Sheraton Sand Key
Well folks, chalk up one more SPG Platinum member who was given red-carpet treatment at the Sheraton Sand Key. I chose this hotel for my family vacation largely based on the positive feedback from other Plats posted here at FT, and was not disappointed in the least.
I had booked two rooms for 5 nights each. The Sand Key is a Category 3 facility, so booking two rooms required 56,000 points. I had requested nonsmoking adjacent rooms, one with King & one with 2 Dbls; was advised that these could only be noted as a request, but that my Platinum status would make my requests very likely to be met.
Not only were the requests met, but we were given an ugrade to a top-floor suite, with a connecting standard-sized room with 2 Dbls. The setup was perfect, as the suite included a small refrigerator & microwave, and a lot more room for our two young children to spread out & play. The fridge was pre-stocked with beverages: 2 cans each of Coke, Diet Coke, Sprite, Bud, and Bud Light--all gratis.
Due to my SPG status, we were given access to the 9th-floor club room, which provided free continental breakfast each morning. This was very key for us; the breakfast spread nor the room were huge, but certainly sufficient for our needs.
This hotel isn't the most gilded upscale resort in the world, but it would seem to be one of the nicest hotel options in & around Clearwater Beach. Further, the consistent & pleasant service serve as a model for other Starwood hotels.
The location is nice, on the south end of the Clearwater Beach hotel strip on Sand Key, which is separated by a short bridge. Most of the other properties on Sand Key appear to be condos, with the exception of a downscale Radisson across the street. Most of the restaurants & bars are further north, and so a car is almost certainly necessary to get around. What's nice about the more remote location is that the beach isn't very crowded at all. The beach is a good hike (probably 150 yards) from the hotel, but nothing unmanageable.
The pool area is nice and well-groomed, but somewhat small. It gets a little bit crowded during the peak times of the day.
Housekeeping was consistent and managed most days to work around our schedule.
Thumbs-up:
- very helpful & pleasant bell service
- Platinum suite upgrade
- large uncrowded beach
- consistent, if unremarkable, room service
- very kid-friendly facility overall
Thumbs-down:
- Platinum amenity points (2 x 500) still have not posted, even though points for incidentals have. Suppose I need to call Starwood once more...
All in all, I would highly recommend the Sheraton Sand Key for Platinum members and/or families. The service & facilities, coupled with the relatively modest points-redemption category, added up to a very satisfying choice for me.