Sofitel Beirut
Anyone have recent experiences with this property? The pictures don't look that great - but Tripadvisor reviews are very positive (currently highest ranked hotel in Beirut). Looking into this hotel (plus a few others like the Four Points) to book a meeting there
Thanks :) |
No-one with experience at this property?
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Was considering a trip there too (once I have a new passport due to stamps of a certain neighbouring country in mine). Anyone? :)
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Decided not to go ahead with the Sofitel - read some negative reviews on their meeting facilities, so booked the Crowne Plaza instead.
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Review of Sofitel Le Gabriel Beirut
Introduction A new Sofitel for me : Beirut Le Gabriel, where I had a very pleasant 3 nights stay. This hotel is of medium size and is a kind of boutique hotel with charm and a nice atmosphere as you can see on the lobby pictures below. It is located in one of the Christian neighborhood of Beirut called Achrafieh, very close to downtown (15 to 30 min walking depending where you go). I had booked transportation (taxi) from the airport with the hotel. It costs USD28 and they bill it to your room, which is convenient and avoid hard discussion with the driver (taxi rates must often need to be negociated in Lebanon). Check In I was awaited by the front desk agent. I had booked a luxury/king room and was "upgraded" to "Luxury/king with balcony" which is indeed a different (slightly more expensive) room category. Could have been better for that upgrade but I liked the room and the balcony was definitely something pleasant to enjoy the nice Beirut weather when working in my room or just having a morning coffee. So I decided to not push further. I am sure Starflyergold will be happy to know about the balcony ;-)I was given plenty of information about what to visit in Beirut during the little free time I had while being there. Room It was a corner room which means plenty of sun and this was really great. No real desk but a table which allowed me to work properly. 2 big closets with drawers, safety box, mini bar and kettle for tea/instant coffee. A Bose sound station.Sofitel MyBed was very comfortable as usual.On the weak points to be mentioned:- no espresso machine - small bathroom- poor soundproofing for outside noise (car traffic in the street). It becomes "noisy" from about 6 am. Before is OK. It is not horribly bad but still.Welcome gift was a bit basic and consisted in a plate of fruits and a plate of oriental pastries.Water was replenished regularly.There was a turndown service every evening. Dining The bar and restaurant are located on the ground floor. There is an outdoor terrace at the back where it was pleasant to have lunch. There is no Club Lounge in this Sofitel.The drink voucher usable at the bar was valid for everything including Champagne.The restaurant is very good, but serves mostly Western (French) cuisine and not enough Lebanese dishes in my opinion. I had several meals at the hotel and they were of very good quality.If you want to go out for dinner, there are plenty of great restaurants at walking distance (10 min) in the rue Monot area. Other amenities In the basement, you have the fitness room and a swimming pool of decent size. One can of course regret it is not outdoor, but it has the merit to exist. I enjoyed having a swim in. Overall The staff was nice. I needed to delay my check-out to 1 pm which was granted immediately.Overall, a very pleasant stay. I would certainly return if I had to return to BEY.
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Thank you Goldorak. The property looks nice, something to consider when I visit Lebanon :)
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Very interesting ! Thank you. It doesn't hit the picture count, but you're forgiven :D
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Originally Posted by gilbertaue
(Post 29563728)
Very interesting ! Thank you. It doesn't hit the picture count, but you're forgiven :D
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Seems Lanvin is becoming ever more common instead of Hermes amenities.
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Originally Posted by tris06
(Post 29564170)
Seems Lanvin is becoming ever more common instead of Hermes amenities.
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I stayed there 2 years ago and your room looks remarkably identical(down to views out the windows) to the one I had.
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Originally Posted by tris06
(Post 29564170)
Seems Lanvin is becoming ever more common instead of Hermes amenities.
In the ones where status recognition is poor, someone will eventually hear: 'thank you for being a Platinum, we upgraded your shampoo to Hermes.' |
Originally Posted by savonarola
(Post 29574721)
I guess it is a matter of room category in some Sofitels: Lanvin to regular rooms, Hermes to the suites. I remember seeing this in Warsaw and Lisbon.
In the ones where status recognition is poor, someone will eventually hear: 'thank you for being a Platinum, we upgraded your shampoo to Hermes.' Well while Lanvin is not bad it is screaming luxury. Maybe they should set a price point that one pays and should expect say Hermes over say Lanvin amenities. Well it is now non existent to get Hermes in China even if you book the presidential suite. It is not end of the world but it does make your stay feel a little less special. |
Originally Posted by Goldorak
(Post 29563157)
Introduction A new Sofitel for me : Beirut Le Gabriel, where I had a very pleasant 3 nights stay. This hotel is of medium size and is a kind of boutique hotel with charm and a nice atmosphere as you can see on the lobby pictures below. It is located in one of the Christian neighborhood of Beirut called Achrafieh, very close to downtown (15 to 30 min walking depending where you go). I had booked transportation (taxi) from the airport with the hotel. It costs USD28 and they bill it to your room, which is convenient and avoid hard discussion with the driver (taxi rates must often need to be negociated in Lebanon). Check In I was awaited by the front desk agent. I had booked a luxury/king room and was "upgraded" to "Luxury/king with balcony" which is indeed a different (slightly more expensive) room category. Could have been better for that upgrade but I liked the room and the balcony was definitely something pleasant to enjoy the nice Beirut weather when working in my room or just having a morning coffee. So I decided to not push further. I am sure Starflyergold will be happy to know about the balcony ;-)I was given plenty of information about what to visit in Beirut during the little free time I had while being there. Room It was a corner room which means plenty of sun and this was really great. No real desk but a table which allowed me to work properly. 2 big closets with drawers, safety box, mini bar and kettle for tea/instant coffee. A Bose sound station.Sofitel MyBed was very comfortable as usual.On the weak points to be mentioned:- no espresso machine - small bathroom- poor soundproofing for outside noise (car traffic in the street). It becomes "noisy" from about 6 am. Before is OK. It is not horribly bad but still.Welcome gift was a bit basic and consisted in a plate of fruits and a plate of oriental pastries.Water was replenished regularly.There was a turndown service every evening. Dining The bar and restaurant are located on the ground floor. There is an outdoor terrace at the back where it was pleasant to have lunch. There is no Club Lounge in this Sofitel.The drink voucher usable at the bar was valid for everything including Champagne.The restaurant is very good, but serves mostly Western (French) cuisine and not enough Lebanese dishes in my opinion. I had several meals at the hotel and they were of very good quality.If you want to go out for dinner, there are plenty of great restaurants at walking distance (10 min) in the rue Monot area. Other amenities In the basement, you have the fitness room and a swimming pool of decent size. One can of course regret it is not outdoor, but it has the merit to exist. I enjoyed having a swim in. Overall The staff was nice. I needed to delay my check-out to 1 pm which was granted immediately.Overall, a very pleasant stay. I would certainly return if I had to return to BEY.
I will delay the 2nd review until this solved... PS : I strongly suspect a coup from gilbertaue, as he said above my review didn't hit our "own rule" for minimum number of pictures so now for sure it's true :p :D |
You got me there :p
Actually it's a plot to keep you at Lifetime Silver! |
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