Originally Posted by
3rdworldresident
gonna check out tomorrow. (from a 3 night stay)
this hotel reminds me a lot of a (not too fancy or lower tier) W or a le meridien.
at check-in, no mention of spg benefits, no recognition of platinum status, no late check out offered. however, staff were nice and helpful.
i booked a waterfront sauna room. no upgrade as expected, no complain either (because it's not a published benefit for staying at a design hotel).
room was fine, the highlight were the in-room sauna and jacuzzi tub. i quite like their toiletries. there was an illy coffee maker machine which was nice. bed was comfortable like a sheraton sweet sleeper bed (IMO). no sofa and couch to sit, just an ottoman chair. no drawers can be found just a little wardrobe.
all tv channels were in HD (you also have another one in mirror in the bathroom). wifi was great. i downloaded some movies for the total of almost 50GB!!!
housekeeping service needs some improvement but acceptable.
breakfast buffet at restaurant downstairs was pretty good, over my expectation. nice spread and quality (both cold and hot items). there was an made-to-order cooking station (pancakes and eggs benedict also included). champange (or sparkling wine) also avialable for free. service was very good. my rate originally not included breakfast but i booked it in advance for 20 EUR/person (they sent me an offer via email 2 days before arrival). i though it was very reasonable and acceptable price.
had a look at a small gym and pool on 8th floor and found it was ok (shared pool with connected hotel - same owner i guess).
location was pretty good in my opinion. right on the tram and metro stop.
overall a pretty nice stay and most likely to return again.
p.s. sorry for my poor english
It sounds like you did get a one category room upgrade. Apparently you booked a harbor/waterfront sauna room (with a private sauna in the room/bathroom) and were given a much larger harbor/waterfront spa room (with private sauna in the bathroom and also a huge jacuzzi round tub in the room, by the window).
I booked the harbor room and was given the spa room, which was a nice two-category upgrade, where some properties would call the spa room a junior suite (but I wouldn't). Despite the email/reservation confirmation saying not to expect many SPG elite benefits, I was also offered (and accepted) 4 pm checkout, although the hotel didn't seem to be full for the next night. In addition, I was given my room upon arrival, a bit before 9 am. [For the record, my status was acknowledged at check in without any prompting.]
Overall the hotel went far above and beyond on elite benefits. Staff seemed happy and excited to be part of Starwood, although I didn't ask them about the Marriott merger.
I found the service to be very friendly and willing, but restaurant service (for a late dinner) was rather bad. Moreover, the front desk didn't know the correct hours for the restaurant and this information was not in the room.