gilbertaue

Has a similar issue at the Sofitel Singapore a couple of weeks back. They were very applogetic and bought in a machine that did the trick. Guess it depends on what the hotel invests in. But certainly not good.

kniesel

- Name of the hotel: Fairmont Dallas

- What is your Le Club status? Gold


- Were you (or for multi-stayers were you generally) happy with the hotel/stay? Yes. First time at a Fairmont Hotel and blown away by them!

- Which room did you book and which upgrade did you receive? King Fairmont Room, upgraded to 1 Bedroom suite - 3 level upgrade.

- How are the rooms? Decor is classic and dated, but in very good condition.

- What was good and what was bad?

Good: The staff were pleased to have had an Accor member book and stay at the property, all benefits were offered proactively including welcome drink, late checkout and room upgrade. I had missed my flight and the staff proactively offered an amenity kit and offered advice on where to spend the day whilst not baking in the hot Dallas summer heat. The staff were outstanding.

Bad: Not a single bad experience.

- Did you get club lounge access? How was the lounge? N/A

- What about welcome drinks, welcome amenities or any other special perks? Welcome drink offered and valid for any drink behind the bar. I had a very well mixed Vesper cocktail. As I had only booked 30 minutes prior to arrival a welcome amenity was not offered, however was given a voucher to cover the very comprehensive buffet breakfast the following morning.

- Value for $ or Vouchers? Would you return? The service and offering were outstanding and I would very much return or stay at a Fairmont in the future. Very happy.

kniesel

- Name of the hotel: Sevilla Havane Mercure

- What is your Le Club status? Gold

- Were you (or for multi-stayers were you generally) happy with the hotel/stay? Mostly

- Which room did you book and which upgrade did you receive? Booked 2 x standard room with single beds and both upgraded to Superior room with single beds on a high floor.

- How are the rooms? The rooms are dated and have not had any upgrades in many years. The air conditioning worked very well in one room, but poorly in the other. The rooms were both clean and the beds comfortable.

- What was good and what was bad?

Good: The lobby bar was very popular with live music from 11:00am to 23:00 pm, the bands were a very big highlight and we spent a lot of time drinking and watching the musicians. The pool was also a welcome relief from the oppressive Cuban summer. The food was much better than I was expecting and the drinks were outstanding and very reasonably priced.

Bad: The rooms are advertised in USD and I knew that my credit card was not going to work on site, so confirmed in advance with the hotel that I would be able to pay with cash on arrival. What the receptionist failed to mention is that whilst the official exchange rate for Cuban Convertible Pesos is 1 to 1 with the USD, the hotel has an exchange rate of 0.85 USD to the CUC, plus a 3% exchange tax, so in effect the hotel make an additional 21% on the advertised rates.
The service levels varied from good to very poor. The hotel also only seems to have offered credited status and rewards points based on the 'advertised' rather than paid USD rate for the room with the nearly $400 USD in food and drink not being credited to my account.

- Did you get club lounge access? How was the lounge? N/A

- What about welcome drinks, welcome amenities or any other special perks? A welcome drink was offered after prompting also no mention of loyalty or upgrade. A welcome amenity of a bottle of Anejo Club Havana Rum was in both rooms. The hotel does have WIFI and a one hour card was offered for the entire 5 day stay with great reluctance.

- Value for $ or Vouchers? Would you return? The lobby bar, pool and musicians at the hotel make this a very memorable hotel, but if you are wanting a high quality room and facilities, no.

Crofton138

- Name of the hotel: Sofitel Budapest

- What is your Le Club status? Platinum

- Were you (or for multi-stayers were you generally) happy with the hotel/stay? Yes

- Which room did you book and which upgrade did you receive? Booked Classic received Superior

- How are the rooms? My room was a good size on the Danube side of the hotel. Desk looking out through large windows with great views. All the usual Hermes toiletries provided in the bathroom and the shower was excellent - water pressure was superb.

- What was good and what was bad?

Good: Quick check-in up in the club lounge.
Platinum benefits were all supplied without having to ask.
Location of this hotel is great

Bad:
Welcome amenity in the room was just an unappetising small plate of fruit

- Did you get club lounge access? How was the lounge? Yes, lounge on the 8th Floor. Great views over the Danube and the Chain Bridge. Very quiet for breakfast but it was busy in the evenings. There was a reasonable selection of juices, fruit, yoghurt and pastries for breakfast which is adequate if you want a quick bite to eat. There were Formula 1 teams staying and then when they left mid-week, Seville FC checked-in so it was busy around the lobby and around the front of the hotel.

- What about welcome drinks, welcome amenities or any other special perks? One welcome drink voucher on arrival with a handwritten welcome letter in my room. Only a small plate of fruit also in the room. Early/late check-out wasn't requested.

- Value for $ or Vouchers? Would you return? The rate was around £140 per night which is good for this hotel. I would return when I am next in Budapest.

Goldorak

Kobetraveller

- Name of the hotel: Mercure Shaw Parade Kuala Lumpur

- What is your Le Club status? Platinum

- Were you (or for multi-stayers were you generally) happy with the hotel/stay? Yes. First time in this hotel. Two nights.

- Which room did you book and which upgrade did you receive? Booked Deluxe Room with Queen bed . . . one Category Upgrade to Executive Room with Queen bed (exactly the same type, size of room but on a very high, quiet floor) (No Executive Lounge in this hotel)

- How are the rooms? Hotel is less than one year old. My room was in excellent condition. Very comfortable for solo traveller. Not big but big enough. Empty mini bar.

- What was good and what was bad?

Good: Five minutes walk to big shopping mall. Twenty minutes walk to main shopping district. Still new. Reasonably priced restaurant menu available in restaurant, small Lobby Lounge and Room Service. Cheap and filling healthy sandwiches and other snacks available for take away at Lobby Lounge. Did mobile check in and received notification of room availability at 9 am. Easy check in with no cue. Breakfast buffet more than adequate.

Bad: Surprisingly slow wifi for KL. Never faster than 2 MBPS. I did speed checks at all hours of the day. Obviously capped. Sites such as Netflix may be throttled so as to be unworkable. No premium internet available for Platinum guests. May be available for Long Stay guests but FO staff did not know. Cheap looking toiletries.

- Did you get club lounge access? How was the lounge? N/A

- What about welcome drinks, welcome amenities or any other special perks? Two Welcome Drink Vouchers for one pax, one a la carte meal voucher . . . anything on the menu, two 600ml bottles of water in room. No Fruit Platter or Welcome Note waiting in room.

- Value for $ or Vouchers? Would you return? Would possibly return if internet was faster, and premium internet available. Many hotel choices in KL.

Crofton138

Goldorak - no sign of any renovations yet. The public areas are exactly the same as they have been for the last 3-4 years and my room was standard Sofitel fittings.

cowism

Kobetraveller

- Name of the hotel: Novotel Kuala Lumpur City Centre

- What is your Le Club status? Platinum

- Were you (or for multi-stayers were you generally) happy with the hotel/stay? Yes. First time in this hotel. Two nights. But not in a hurry to go back due to lack of staff and especially experienced staff, congestion in the lobby and at Reception. The building is old and in need of a good renovation.

- Which room did you book and which upgrade did you receive? Booked Superior Room and received double upgrade to Junior Suite.

- How are the rooms? Suite was fine but old. No power points on either side of the bed, for example. Nevertheless grateful for the Suite.

- What was good and what was bad?

Good: No online check in available at this hotel but I called the hotel and they invited me to check in early at around 11 am. Was offered late check out but did not need it. Excellent location for shopping in the centre of the city. About three minutes walk to Pavillon and other Shopping Malls, five minutes walk to Banyan Tree and Pullman KL City Centre, and about twenty minutes walk by covered walk ways to the Twin Towers, the Central Park, and another big Shopping Mall. Internet stable and around 12 Mbps at various times of the day. Breakfast buffet was quite adequate and sufficient seating providing one went early. Lobby Lounge looked ok but I did not use it.

Bad: Inexperienced and insufficient staff. No online check in. Was given wrong information on a couple of important features of the hotel by three inexperienced staff members. Very old lift system. Old slot type card reader rather than new card tapping reader. And only available on one side of the lifts so a bit difficult when lifts were full. Some guests had trouble having the card slot recognize their card. Had a difficult check in due to inexperienced FO staff. Check in and Check out not available at Club Lounge due to lack of staff.

- Did you get club lounge access? How was the lounge? Yes. There was a simple Club Lounge serving breakfast and rather simple but adequate Cocktails. Was not too busy for both my Cocktail sessions. Only one staff member there on both days, including during breakfast and Cocktails. On the first day this staff member was actually a young Trainee.

- What about welcome drinks, welcome amenities or any other special perks? One Welcome Drink voucher and one 20% off F&B Voucher for extent of Stay. Worked perfectly for a la carte lunch on first day, but was refused by inexperienced restaurant staff on second day. No Welcome Note or Amenity delivered to room.

- Value for $ or Vouchers? Would you return? Would return if they had more well-trained staff. Room rates reflect central shopping location which is not important to me. Not expensive but can be a bit too expensive (due to shopping location) for such an old building with insufficient and inexperienced staff.

Kobetraveller

- Name of the hotel: Ibis Kuala Lumpur City Centre (opened two weeks ago)

- What is your Le Club status? Platinum

- Were you (or for multi-stayers were you generally) happy with the hotel/stay? Yes. First time in this hotel. Two nights. Very modern and attractive decor in Lobby, Restaurant and Room.

- Which room did you book and which upgrade did you receive? Booked Standard Room with Queen sized bed and received upgrade to very high floor corner room. Very quiet.

- How are the rooms? Room was very comfortable and new. With iron and ironing board, hanging space and coat hanger, very modern lie down type of safe, coffee maker with two cups, combined soap/shampoo dispenser on shower wall, shaving kit, soap, toothbrush by sink, empty mini bar, power points on both sides of bed. Far more modern and clean than Ibis Styles Fraser Park, KL. Have not yet tried the other two Ibis Styles in Kuala Lumpur.

- What was good and what was bad?

Good: Early check in available with phone call to hotel. About twenty minutes walk to KLCC Shopping Mall and Twin Towers but no covered walk way. Very good buffet breakfast. Still new hotel so no big groups yet. Very quiet at breakfast. Separate area with food for for FIT guests but not yet operational. Restaurant has capacity of around 350 pax. City views. Sufficient staff when quiet. Small coffee shop with some seating in Lobby. Some restaurants/cafes in front of and beside the hotel. Internet stable at around 6 Mbps.

Bad: Inexperienced young staff still learning but extremely courteous and trying hard. No online check in yet. Still soft opening: pool, gym, Sky Bar not yet open. Restaurant not yet providing a la carte lunch and dinner. They say they will start in next week or two. Lobby coffee shop only selling pastries, no healthy food choices. Staff were still learning how to charge to room after two weeks in operation but got it done. No nearby Convenience Store.

- Did you get club lounge access? How was the lounge? N/A

- What about welcome drinks, welcome amenities or any other special perks? One Welcome Drink voucher for one type of drink only, and one attractive fruit platter delivered to room.

- Value for $ or Vouchers? Would you return? Will possibly return after a few months when they are fully up and running. Would like to see how the Managers handle large crowds at breakfast, and at check in and out. Would only consider this hotel for long stays in future if groups well managed. 684 rooms with a focus on tour groups could be very difficult to manage with a small staff.

Edit 3 September: Pool and gym now open. Spa also on same floor but only open on cash basis at this date. No room charge or credit card payment. Still no a la carte menu in restaurant. Breakfast buffet only. FIT area still not operational.

Kobetraveller

- Name of the hotel: Pullman Kuala Lumpur City Centre

- What is your Le Club status? Platinum

- Were you (or for multi-stayers were you generally) happy with the hotel/stay? Yes. First time in this hotel. Two nights. Excellent Club Lounge was the main feature of this hotel for me. Renovated 8 months ago. Better Club Lounge in terms of size, decor, staff and F&B than Sofitel Damansara, KL.

- Which room did you book and which upgrade did you receive? Booked Superior King Room and received one Category upgrade to very high floor corner room. Very quiet.

- How are the rooms? Excellent room condition. Very good for solo traveller. Bigelow brand toiletries looked very good.

- What was good and what was bad?

Good: Received Welcome email four days prior to check in asking about special requests which were granted. Early check in offered. Online check in available. Very attractive Lobby, pool and hotel generally. Located next door to Banyan Tree, five minutes walk to Pavilion Shopping Mall, other malls and hotels, and 20 minutes walk via covered walk way to Twin Towers and Central Park etc. Nice looking pool and Spa which I did not use.

Bad: Wifi capped at 6 Mbps and no Premium internet available for Platinum guests.

- Did you get club lounge access? How was the lounge? Yes. Very large. Excellent F&B for breakfast 6:30 am to 10:30 am (a la carte menu plus buffet), generous snacks from 12 pm to 5 pm, Cocktails from 6 pm to 8 pm. Good variety of drinks. Very courteous and proactive staff and Trainees. Very comfortable seating with attractive decor and artwork. Breakfast also available in Lobby buffet restaurant from 6 am.

- What about welcome drinks, welcome amenities or any other special perks? Welcome notes and bottles of sparkling water and small plate of fruit and cakes delivered both evenings. The Amenity was not great but was not really needed as so much food is available all day in the Club Lounge. But I felt appreciated. Received one Welcome drink voucher which I did not use.

- Value for $ or Vouchers? Would you return? Will definitely return. Slightly higher nightly rate for KL due to central shopping location which does not interest me, attractiveness of hotel generally, high quality of service and newly renovated Club Lounge.

gilbertaue

Thanks for the two KL reviews Kobetraveller. I was staying above Avenue K mall for several months wehn we moved here last year and had a view of the ibis being built. Glad to know it's open.
The Pullman KLCC was our home when we were visitors in KL and now it's our corporate hotel. Your upgrade was catagory to the new Deluxe Room as well? If it wasn't you may want to give that a try next time.

R2

Kobetraveller, thanks for your mini-review. I'll be travelling to KL later in the year and had been planning to stay at the Sofitel. Now your comments make me think if I should reconsider. Our three days in KL will be mostly to recover from jet-lag so priorities are nice quiet room, pleasant pool area and club lounge. Any further comparative comments much appreciated.

gilbertaue

The Pool at the Sofitel is very relaxing. Both properties have a large construction site next door (so if you're at the pool you may hear the works).
Pullman pool is very nice, can get crowded on weekends.

If money isn't too much of an issue, go for the Suite in the Pullman. Has a lovely living room with dining table and a kitchenette.

Even with 3 days to recoup, you will want to head out. There is really nothing within EASY walking distance from the Sofitel. The Pullman has much more to offer around. The Banyan tree next door has à wonderful rooftop bar to chill out as well.

Kobetraveller

I think Gilbertaue sums up the main differences very well. I actually really enjoyed both hotels. Both are great. I did post some comments on my Sofitel Damansara Stay in this thread on July 16. I don't think there is anything more I can say. The Pullman is certainly in a far more central location. It is right in the midst of the main KL shopping district. The Sofitel is about a ten minute walk from an MRT station and then about 5 stops to "Bukit Bintang" MRT Station . . . about 5 minutes walk from the Pullman. Sofitel's rates are lower probably because it is a little further out of town, however very cheap to get there by Grab. I was very lucky at the Sofitel to receive a double upgrade to a beautiful Junior Suite however that was just a matter of good luck and low occupancy etc etc etc.

The Sofitel's Club Lounge is extremely good but I would rate the Pullman's Lounge one rank higher in all areas, I think. That being said I did hear that the Sofitel has a new GM in the last month so improvements may already be underway. I am just guessing about that though. I would love to stay again at both hotels. I guess either would be fine for you unless you would prefer the Pullman's central location.

And if Banyan Tree ever joins Le Club or recognizes Platinum status in some way I would love to stay there too as it is right next door to the Pullman.