My thoughts exactly before I started my stay. However, Austin is a pretty boring hotel market; besides the Four Seasons the W, St. Cecilia, and possibly the Driskill are the only other upmarket options. There's a Hilton, IC, and Sheraton downtown, but I hold no status while those besides SPG Gold and the negotiated rates I could get were pretty much comparable to the Four Seasons. What my stay lacked in "points," it made up for in genuine warmth, endless perks, and a wonderful overall experience.

I arrived on a Monday morning at 10am. The hotel was very responsive in advance, sending me both an email for my room preferences and having the concierge call me for any special arrangements. My requests for a minifridge and coffee maker were not a problem, and my room was ready upon arrival. Luckily, I was given what I consider to be the best room in the hotel, 722, classified as a City-View with Balcony. The hotel only has ten of these (two per floor from 3-7), and all of the x22 rooms border a conference room on one side and a non-connecting balcony room on the other. This means that they are exceptionally quiet. I had a slight problem with noise one afternoon (not the hotel's fault, just a loud board meeting next door) and they gracious provided me a suite to work in for the day. Otherwise, there's not much I can say about the rooms. They are small, they are outdated, and they are extremely comfortable. Every Four Seasons touch you would expect is present, and the decor strikes a balance between comfort and old-world taste.

I'll provide a brief run-down of the available facilities for everyone's reference.

Gym and Spa

The hotel has a very-well equipped fitness center on the lake level. It consists of approximately 30 machines, and the complimentary gatorade and homemade energy granola bars (a must try) are a nice touch. The spa, while small, is run well. The locker rooms have a steam, no sauna, and very high-pressure rain showers. The outdoor saltwater pool is very quiet in the Winter, and is evidently quite a scene in the warmer months.

Business Services

Two rooms with computer and printer. All services are free.

Concierge

Simply the best concierges I've ever had the pleasure of interacting with. No matter what the request was, it was done. Some particular instances that stand out to me include their insistence on arranging some flowers I had bought at Whole Foods into a stunning display, coordinating a limo pickup for a friend in Boston en route to visit when she had transport difficulties, and recommending a wonderfully trashy Italian joint well off the beaten path. Every single member really, really knows Austin and knows how to customize a trip to a guests' preference.

Food and Beverage

I only had a couple of drinks in the Lobby Lounge area, which I didn't particularly care for. Unfortunately it gets a more low-end crowd, especially on weekends, and tends to be very noisy. Having said that, it's certainly a nice place to sit, and they have complimentary coffee until 9 every morning. Two tips: They put out homemade blueberry muffins with the coffee, so if you're up early, go down and snag some. Also, if you miss the coffee, the front desk has coupons to the coffee shop located in the FS residences around the corner.

TRIO, the main restaurant, is fantastic. The 5-7pm daily happy hour is a real hit with locals and guests, and is a bargain by any relative standard; ~30 wines by the glass and $5 nibbles that rival any other dish on the regular menu. They recently got a new chef--Grant MacDonald--by way of YEW in the FS Vancouver. I've tried some of his new dishes and I'm confident that TRIO is going to maintain its high standard with him at the helm. The Sunday brunch, complete with unlimited champagne, is a steal at $48, though the food quality is not up to the standards of the prepared menu unfortunately. Service in the restaurant is great--it's a very tight team that (from my perspective, at least) really enjoys what they do, mixing professionalism with warmth.


Valet and Bell Staff

Consistently fast and professional--A really nice group of guys. The hotel also has a house car service, which is not heavily advertised, on Tues-Sat evenings. It has a three-mile radius, which covers most places of interest in Austin.


Downsides

For as much time as I spent in the hotel, I had very few complaints. My only major one would be that the housekeeping department is overall not up to the service standard of the rest of the property. It was very inconsistent and frankly lazy in responding to requests. My guests throughout the month echoed this same sentiment. Besides this, however, I can't think of any other things I was unimpressed by.



If you have any other questions, feel free to ask away. This was all I could recall on the top of my head, but if you have specific things you'd like to know I'm sure I can provide more input. Hope this was helpful.