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Embassy Suites Walnut Creek {US-CA}

Embassy Suites Walnut Creek {US-CA}

Old Mar 30, 2005, 7:21 am
  #16  
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It's more like 20-25 miles from Walnut Creek to Marine World in Vallejo. Count on 30 minutes going and possibly longer returning via car. You can take BART and a bus from there to Marine World, but it will be a much longer trip as it requires some bus connections.

Last edited by l etoile; Mar 30, 2005 at 7:25 am
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Old Oct 15, 2006, 10:39 pm
  #17  
 
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Thumbs down Embassy Suites Walnut Creek, CA Trip Report (avoid this place at all costs)

I'm not usually one to complain about hotels unless something seriously whacky goes on, but.. after this stay last night well I can't be silenced on this one. So we were in Walnut Creek for one night to attend a friend's party, and we arrived at the Embassy Suites around 6:30 pm. We pulled into the parking garage to find it full (there can't have been more than 40-50 spots). Fortunately there is a connected garage for some nearby offices and we were able to park there. So we wander in to check in, and as we enter into the lobby the first thing we notice is the sweet smell of vomit wafting about. Specifically vomit tinged with floor cleaner. Yum! I'm sure this was adding to the ambience in the hotel restaurant, which was right across from the vomit scented hallway.

We were in a hurry so we checked in and went up to the room to change. We get to our room and its the second room from the elevator and second one down from the ice and vending machines. Our profile (we're diamond - its a mutual fund account, hence the we) requests a room as far as possible from ice/vending/elevators. We didn't really have time to complain (we were late) and we were only going to be in the room for a few hours so we figured it wasn't worth complaining. So we go into our room and the decor is like mid-1950s motel 6. Heinous bright colored furniture (with dated floral patterns), a horrendous bathroom, etc. Its easily the ugliest Hilton room I've ever been in.

We come back to the hotel at like 11:30. The first thing we notice is the vomit smell is still there. We quickly sprint towards the elevators only to be greated by three adolescent males, probably 15-16 riding up and down in the elevator. They'd come down on it and proceeded to ride back up with us .They got out on the floor before us, whooping it up, but we assumed they were kids of guests. Anyway, while trying to track down some late night snacks I hear people running down the hall and screaming loudly. I look out the window into the hall and its the same kids. I exited the room a few minutes later to go down to the bar to get some drinks I saw security escorting these three out (apparently they'd just been roaming the halls and weren't staying there). On the way back to the room, I noticed that there were several other groups of young males roaming the hotel (each floor is open to the center of the building so you can see the hall of every floor). Apparently this is a popular place for roaving gangs of young males to hang out.

Anyway, the final surprise came the next morning. The wife and I were jarred into consciousness way too early by a huge racket outside our window. I looked out the window and noticed for the first time that our room was 12 feet from the BART tracks. I think this was around 6 or 7 am. I assume we missed the last train of the previous night when we were out seeking food. I don't know how full the hotel was, but this had to be one of the worst rooms on site. Apparently being diamond doesn't get you much at this property.

So anyway.. avoid this place.. at all costs. What. a. nightmare!

Last edited by RNOHoosier; Oct 16, 2006 at 1:26 am
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Old Oct 16, 2006, 1:54 pm
  #18  
 
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Thanks for the report...And sorry for your miserable stay. I have driven by this property, but have never stayed there. FYI...There is a decent Hilton down the road in Concord.
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Old May 16, 2007, 10:09 pm
  #19  
 
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embassy suites walnut creek via BART

can anyone provide directions to the embassy suites in walnut creek from OAK via BART???
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Old May 17, 2007, 12:32 am
  #20  
 
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Take the Pittsburg/Bay Point train to the Pleasant Hill station (one stop past the Walnut Creek station). The hotel is right across the parking lot at Pleasant Hill. If you get off at Walnut Creek you'll be a couple of miles away.
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Old May 17, 2007, 7:34 am
  #21  
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As an additional point, you will need to catch a bus from OAK to the BART station. The bus runs fairly frequently and it is a short ride. Look for the AirBART signs when you exit the terminal. They are in the process of redoing the roadways in front of the terminals at OAK but it should be easy to find.
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Old May 17, 2007, 9:35 am
  #22  
 
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thanks for the info...any idea approx how long it takes to get to the embassy from Oak and the cost??
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Old May 17, 2007, 9:48 am
  #23  
 
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Originally Posted by gatemando
thanks for the info...any idea approx how long it takes to get to the embassy from Oak and the cost??
Oddly enough, BART has its own website that has things such as schedules and fare information:

http://www.bart.gov/

Mike
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Old Dec 25, 2008, 2:32 pm
  #24  
 
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This place is quite cheap for award stays. I wondered whether anyone had a more recent experience?

Thanks a lot.
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Old Mar 28, 2009, 6:43 am
  #25  
 
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Well, we stayed a week in February (award stay) and it really isn't bad if what you want (which we did) is space, room to relax and not much else. My diamond benefit was set to free internet access, which saved a lot of money.

We were on an award stay. We got a fourth floor room on the opposite side of the building from BART. It was quiet and clean. Diamond recognition is not great - I could not get them to give me a late checkouy (4pm) and had in the end to pay them a half day rate to stay until 6. But we weren't exactly making an enormous profit for them so I am not really complaining.

It is quite pleasant drinking late in the atrium. But don't rely on the wine from the manager's reception! It is, shall we say, worth what you paid for it

Last edited by hsmall; Mar 28, 2009 at 6:50 am
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Old Mar 28, 2009, 8:46 am
  #26  
 
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Parking is still somewhat of a problem.

Also: If you're a light sleeper you can specifically ask for a room in the hotel that is opposite of the tracks/line.
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Old Mar 29, 2009, 1:03 am
  #27  
 
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But if you're not facing the BART tracks, aren't you then facing the freeway?
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Old Jun 9, 2009, 4:48 pm
  #28  
 
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Originally Posted by Billiken
If you're a light sleeper you can specifically ask for a room in the hotel that is opposite of the tracks/line.
Originally Posted by kevino
But if you're not facing the BART tracks, aren't you then facing the freeway?
We have a reservation for an "Executive" room. I started the OLCI to see which rooms it was offering: one per floor. I called the hotel to ask about the rooms, and they said the "executive" rooms all face the BART and that a regular room will be quieter. They also said the only difference between them is that the "executive" room is a bit larger.

Any views on the merits of the different rooms/floors at this property?
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Old Aug 30, 2009, 4:27 pm
  #29  
 
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Broken mattress

On our last stay here, I was upset by how poor the mattress was in the bedroom. It was worn out, literally broken down, sagging and slanting. I was under the impression (obviously false) that all Hilton family hotels now had the Suite Dreams bed -- even the Hilton Garden Inns that I've stayed at have them. I never expected such an awful mattress in an Embassy Suites, especially in a King Executive Room.

I complained to the front desk, who promised to check with engineering about replacing the mattress, but I never heard back. After my stay I used the post-stay web form to complain about it. All I wanted was some explanation for why they gave us a room with a mattress in such bad shape, and why my next stay would be better. I didn't ask for nor care about any compensation, just some assurance that my next stay would be better. All I got was a form letter from the manager saying "Our goal is to not only meet the needs of each and every guest we serve, but to exceed your expectations to make your stay as pleasant and comfortable as possible." I wrote back but never got a reply. So, on our next trip to Walnut Creek we stayed at the Renaissance Club Sport, which is catty-corner to the Embassy Suites.

For the Embassy Suites Walnut Creek, I'd say the positives are:
  • Convenient to BART.
  • Full hot breakfast included.
  • Large rooms with separate bedroom and living/dining room.
  • Wet bar with coffee maker in dining room, hence coffee maker not in bathroom.

Negatives:
  • The BART tracks a few feet outside the window of the King Executive rooms is noisy
  • Some rooms have broken mattresses
  • Staff not always responsive to problems
  • No safe in room
  • Pool way too small to swim laps
  • Breakfast can be unpleasantly crowded and chaotic

Last edited by anabolism; Aug 30, 2009 at 4:59 pm Reason: add link to Renaissance Club Sport post
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Old Dec 31, 2011, 10:47 pm
  #30  
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Finished a 4 night reduced point stay there this week. Upgraded to one of the King Executive Rooms on the 2nd floor. BART tracks 100 feet away. Unlike the previous poster, we were not bothered. The windows looked like they had been beefed up and the curtains were very thick and clearly sound-absorbing.

The best thing about the hotel is the staff (with one notable exception, below). They were simply great - polite, helpful, enthusiastic. EXCEPT: the first night, about 8:30pm I went to the restaurant wanting a cup of coffee to go. The person in the restaurant sighed one of those Dramatic Sighs and said she'd "have to go back inside" (whatever that means) and that coffee wasn't available and there was a little bit left in one of the pots from earlier in the day and she'd be glad to "nuke" it for me. I went to the front desk, explained the transaction to the manger on duty, said that I didn't expect to be treated like that at an Embassy Suites. She said that she would have a pot of coffee sent up to the room. 15 minutes later it appeared, with a nice handwritten note of apology and one of those little two-truffle boxes.

But we won't be staying there again.

The mattress was indeed soft and lumpy. (This stay was bookended by stays at two different SFO HGIs. What a huge difference those beds were -- in a good sense!)

The breakfast area is tiny and, as seems endemic to Embassy Suites, was a cattle car setup. The made-to-order line stretched well into the lobby one morning and the place was a mess (spilled food on the floors and the counters. Ugh). The furniture is arranged so that if there are a lot of people in that line, it is almost impossible to get to the again much-too-tiny alcove where the coffee, cereal, etc., are. There is only one coffee urn in that alcove and virtually no room, again, if there are more than half a dozen people in the room. It would not take a lot of remodeling to fix some of these issues. There is a conference room immediately adjacent the tiny breakfast area that could be added on to that breakfast area. And the lobby is awash in ferns and very wasted space. More so than any other ES I've ever seen.

The hot tub was dirty one morning. Ugh.

The "high speed" internet was atrocious. Dial-up would have been faster.

One day, when leaving at 10am for a couple of hours, asked to have the room cleaned during that two hours. Came back at 2pm and it still hadn't been done.

A small but repeatedly annoying thing. On the corridor from the lobby area to the breakfast area there are Really Giant Ferns. It is not possible for for two people to pass one another without getting whacked in the face with a fern.
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