I recently stayed at the St. Regis Doha and wanted to post a trip report. I booked the St. Regis Doha many months ago when it was available to book at an SPG50 rate of approximately 350USD/night. About a month before my visit, I was contacted by the hotel indicating that they were pushing their opening date, but that they were honoring my reservation and in fact, the stay would be complimentary. I was impressed with this gesture and would emphasize that I’ve been consistently impressed with the management at this hotel. They are proactive, intent on the hotel succeeding, and some of the nicest people I have met in the industry. It should also be noted from the outset, of course, that my view of the hotel was impacted by the fact that the rate was complimentary.
Rather than post a moment-to-moment description of my stay and for the sake of brevity and conciseness, I’ll highlight some of the main positives and negatives of the hotel in my opinion.
Positives:
1. I was immensely impressed with everyone that worked at the hotel. It seemed like everyone wanted to ensure I had a positive stay. Staff always greeted me (sometimes even to excess) and were more than happy to assist in any way. I was also impressed with the dedication of the staff. It appeared to me that staff simply enjoyed providing some of the finest service I have ever received. And the service here, in my opinion, far exceeded the 7* Burj Al-Arab in Dubai.
2. I also sensed a level of dedication and investment from the upper-level management that I have yet to see at other hotels (and I have also stayed at some fairly new properties as well—recall my early review of the St. Regis Punta Mita). There was a genuine desire on the part of the management to request feedback about the hotel (did I have comments, questions, concerns) and also a sense of pride in showing me the hotel, working there, and what the hotel might become. I believe this is single-handedly the most striking asset of the hotel which will significantly benefit from a leadership team that is dedicated to its success.
On numerous occasions at 10pm at night I observed the GM greeting guests in the lobby and assisting as needed. I also felt personally recognized, as a guest, SPG member, and platinum member. I think it’s also noteworthy that Yves is monitoring this thread and responding to feedback. This is yet another indication that the hotel values feedback.
3) I was recognized as a platinum member and upgraded to a suite. I appreciated this gesture. The room was beautiful.
4) The swimming pool and surrounding area are amazing. The pool is almost Olympic size and overlooks Doha. WOW.
5) If you get the chance to use the gym (which is very nice) several gym trainers are on-hand to work with you and enhance your workout. I spent several hours with, Duc, a young former rugby player who helped me with one of the best workouts I’ve had in a long time.
6. I was also impressed with the Butler service. Sarath, my main Butler, went out of his way to do anything I needed. At one point, I mentioned that I really liked the tea that they brought with the morning tea service. Before I left the hotel, Sarah, brought me a case of this same tea bag. It was a very nice gesture. Again, I had the impression that everyone at the hotel wanted to perform the best service possible. This was above-and-beyond that.
Negatives:
1. Perhaps the single biggest drawback is that the hotel is simply not ready in my opinion for prime-time. The hotel is full of workers. Construction continues non-stop and the interior of many floors is not complete. I believe levels 2-6 in the main building are not yet constructed. This was evident in my many elevator rides to my room in which workers got on the elevator, only to get off to a dust-filled, unlighted corridor on another floor. Other main features of the hotel also remain under construction. For example, the hotel has no working spa and is somewhat awkwardly using a few rooms near the gym for makeshift spa treatments. Across the grounds, tools, sawdust etc….are everywhere.
Several personal examples convey how much work/construction is left:
A) I elected to get a massage from an excellent massage therapist. While the massage was excellent, at numerous points during the therapy, workers were loudly shouting in and out of the hallways connected to the make-shift spa area. They were carrying materials back-and-forth and talking loudly. This significantly disrupted the massage.
B) I elected to have breakfast outside one day as it was beautiful and I figured it made sense to enjoy the weather. The patio area is amazing, overlooking the pool, grounds, and the ocean. Yet I quickly realized that all I could hear was construction noise---coming from work on the property. The noise was loud enough to be fairly unpleasant.
C) Heating did not work in my room. Only one telephone (of 3) worked in my room.
2. While the staff strives to meet every request, I felt that many staff struggled with command of the English language. This included check-in agents and some of the butlers.
3. There were also issues with “newness.” Several examples highlight the need for a bit more staff training:
A) I asked for a taxi one afternoon because I wanted to go to the Islamic Art museum in town. The Butler service (clearly understanding my request) had a car take me. I realized that the car was actually not a taxi, but someone who was assisting with transportation for a delegation staying at the hotel. This made for an awkward and bizarre experience as half-way through the ride the chauffeur realized that he should not be taking me anywhere and that the hotel had made a mistake. I felt uncomfortable because I simply wanted to pay for a taxi ride into town. . .
B) On another occasion, I decided to see if I could walk around outside the property. I left the main gates for literally about 1 minute before I realized that I simply couldn’t walk anywhere due to lack of sidewalks, darkness and construction. When I returned to the property, I waved to the entrance tower (same people who had seen me leave a moment earlier), at which point literally 4 different staff members came racing at me alarmed that I had “intruded” on the property. The panicked look on their faces led me to the impression I had committed some kind of crime or something… If I tall white gentleman with blonde hair and blue eyes wearing a Prada coat and Ferragamo shoes is what alarms staff then I think they need a retraining course.
I hope this review helps. I had a great stay and think this will be an absolutely amazing hotel once construction is finally completed. I look forward to another stay in the near future. Please feel free to PM me if you have any questions.