FlyerTalk Forums - View Single Post - GONE : Westin Aruba (Leaving Starwood February 27, 2014) [Master Thread]
Old Dec 9, 2007, 3:30 pm
  #54  
JS0720
 
Join Date: Jun 2004
Programs: AA EXP, United Platinum, SPG Platinum, HHonors Gold
Posts: 31
I'm just winding up a stay here. Many of the concerns posted are valid, but I've tried to give the hotel some leeway since its still a work-in-progress. The staff is very friendly, and they really try to make your stay go smoothly. Unlike many posters, I didnt have to wait forever at the desk to check in, and I got an upgrade to a Junior Suite-type accomodation (from the website, it looks like the Family Room description). For me the price was the ultimate selling point of the hotel, it was $119 before taxes... far cheaper than the other options on Palm Beach. On that note, make sure to check out the special deals/packages before you book, it was totally a fluke that I didnt book the $185 or so they posted as the best available rate on spg.com.

There are some nice touches, like ice pops they pass out mid-afternoon by the pool, and 1/2 price drinks from 5-6 PM. I didnt eat in any of the dinner restaurants, but the Terrace, the beachside restaurant, is a reasonably-priced choice for lunch, and the service and food were excellent. The casino is pretty bleak, not much in the way of table games at all, so if that's your main focus for evening entertainment probably you'd be better off at the Radisson.

To make a long story short, its hard to say whether this place will ever be worthy of the category 5 status. Right now its a solid 3, but when the dust settles I'd stay here again to reevaluate.
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