PaulH1

Don't hold your breath regarding Waldorf Dubai manager going above and beyond.

I emailed manager and asked as we were Diamond and celebrating our 19th wedding anniversary ( True ) would he kindly extend breakfast and lounge access to us.

I know it is not a Waldorf benefit as Diamond but hoped he would assist. He rejected this request with a no but i could pay as special discounted rate of 300 DHS per night for this.

He also stated room a room upgrade would be a strict one category from partial view to sea view ( around $20 a night value )

I actually found manager quite blunt and rude and obviously wasn't interested.

Most Hilton managers in my experience are very approachable and go above and beyond but not here.

Have stayed at Hilton Jumeirah beach and the Resedences and was treated very well at both.

In the end booked at Conrad Dubai.

Manager here was great he recognised loyalty and of course being a special occasion he has been really accommodating and has given us a lovely room and of course we get lounge access and breakfast.

I think if you are Gold or Diamond you would get much better treatment at another Hilton when staying in Dubai.

Chimmy31

The Waldorf Astoria Dubai Palm Jumeirah is a beautiful hotel but the service is awful!! The location isn't that great either. You'll be forced to either take the private car service from the hotel or a taxi because you're kind of in the middle of nowhere away from the Metro. FYI, the valets are dishonest and want you to use the private car service. I feel they're getting a bonus every time they get someone to use the service.

From my personal experience, I wanted to get from the hotel to the mall of Emirates. They informed of my 2 options. The taxi would take 30 minutes to get to the hotel vs the private car was ready to go. The taxi would cost about 65 Durham vs 75 Durham for the private car. So I accepted but then changed my mind. I felt the valets got upset about this and began to ignore me. I wanted them to call me a taxi asap because of the 30 minute wait but they continued to help other people. I thought this was total BS until a Bellboy saw me and helped me. In about 5 seconds, he flagged a parked taxi sitting in front of the hotel for me and the ride costed me about 35 Durham, that's with the meter starting at 10 Durham vs 3 or 3.5 Durham. BS!!

The front desk reps are idiots FYI. I didn't receive a decent welcome, I wasn't shown or told where anything was and I wasn't offered anything while waiting as a Diamond member. After waiting a few hours to checkin, they upgraded me to a better room and gave me free wifi. That's about it...

In conclusion, the awful service kills my experience at this hotel. The location doesn't help at all either. The Conrad Hilton is so much better in every way compared to this hotel!! The Conrad treats you like a god and the location is amazing with the metro station right in front of the hotel.

Good luck and stay away from this hotel,

Chimmy31

imniclas

I'm currently at the Hilton Jumeirah Resort and was very curious about the new Waldorf here in Dubai. After a nice dinner in the early palm we decided to head over to the Waldorf.

Was greeted by great respect and escorted to the only bar that was open by this time. A wonderful cigar bar with great drinks, staff and live band. We had an awesome time there.

By the time we were going to leave we took a walk outside in the pool area. We were met by a security member who was very happy to show us around and small chat with. Upon departure a nice front desk member asked if we wanted to see the rooms. And yes, rooms there are just wonderful! The best standard deluxe room I have even seen in a Hhonors property.

Upon departure back to Hilton JBR front desk wanted to help us with transportation on normal taxi rates but we declined as I always travel with Uber where it's possible.

I agree with "cjd" that the property is just wonderful and I'm pretty confused "chimmy31" didn't like the service there. Next stay in Dubai will by no doubts be a split stay by Hilton JBR and the new Waldorf.

imniclas

I can also add this about the location,
Yes, it's very far out on the palm, even after Atlantis. So if you want to be closer to the shopping malls and metro, yes, then other properties could be a better choice. However if you're here on holiday and want to enjoy a resort with lovely beach, nice restaurants and relaxed life, then Waldorf is a great choice.

To compare Conrad and the Waldorf is to compare apple and bananas. Conrad is a more of a business hotel and there is no beach there. For me that loves beach life on holiday Conrad is not an option.

DaveInLA

I don't have a lot of HH points, but I'm close to accumulating enough for 1 night here next March. That's probably all I need. My credit card gives me Silver status. Other than free breakfast, is there any major benefit to Gold status for 1 reward night here? Sounds like this property doesn't treat elite status members very well.

Also, how does it compare to the Atlantis?

arlflyer

With the exceptions of some properties that go above and beyond, no WA properties give free breakfast to gold, or diamond for that matter, members. It is not required by the T&Cs. And yes it peeves me. If you are looking for benefits I would suggest the Conrad or Jumeirah beach properties, depending on whether you prefer city or beach.

cjd

.
At Waldorf Astoria properties, there is no entitlement to complimentary breakfast. From the T & C, the My Way benefits for gold members are:
Space-available upgrade to a preferred room
1,000 HHonors Bonus Points per stay or one in-room movie per stay.
You might get an upgrade, but for one night, it's along way out on the Palm and wouldn't give you much time to spend there. Personally, I would go for the Conrad Dubai if only staying for one night and you would get the complimentary breakfast if you set your My Way preference to that benefit.
Did not stay at the Atlantis, but had a look around and it appeared to be a very busy family hotel, whereas the Waldorf was a lot quieter and more relaxing when we were there.

billygui

It seems they are stepping up their Diamond recognition...

I've got a booking in two weeks (Premium Room Redemption) and they already upgraded from KING DELUXE to KING PREMIER SUITE. Also, received an e-mail with the Diamond benefits, which include:

Complimentary Waldorf Astoria Lounge access, Lounge located on the 5th floor and available daily from 0700 to 2300hrs
Breakfast 0700-1100hrs
Afternoon Tea 1500-1700hrs
Cocktails 1700-2000hrs

Wozza2404

Hmmmm, that's interesting.

Does anyone know if children are allowed in the lounge?

arlflyer

Whoa. Breakfast and a lounge at a WA? That would be huge. Staying there late this year, so fingers crossed.

EDIT: Is there any way in the letter to disambiguate whether the lounge access is a Diamond benefit or a room type benefit? Because the room type that you have been upgraded to conveys lounge access in its own right. So I am wondering if this is a policy change for diamonds or not. There is discussion upthread of someone who thought they would get lounge access because they were going to be in a premier suite, but only ended up in a deluxe suite and did not get it. If you don't mind, it might be very helpful once on property if you could take one for the team and ask if this is a new diamond benefit.

billygui

Will ask, but their welcome e-mail suggests it's a Diamond benefit:

Greetings from your Personal Concierge!

Thank you very much for your email and as our valued Hilton HHonors Diamond member, you are entitled with the benefits below:

• Prioritize the upgrade to the next category upon availability at the time of check in
• Complimentary High speed internet during the stay
• Late check-out upon requested and subject to availability
• 1,000 points per stay
• 10% discount at the Mezzerie restaurant or Complimentary DVD player set up upon request and availability
• Complimentary Waldorf Astoria Lounge access, Lounge located on the 5th floor and available daily from 0700 to 2300hrs
Breakfast 0700-1100hrs
Afternoon Tea 1500-1700hrs
Cocktails 1700-2000hrs

To ensure your smooth and efficient arrival process, please allow us to ask for your estimated time of arrival so we can prepare your room accordingly.

May I ask if you are also celebrating a special occasion with us?

arlflyer

Oh wow, that's definitely a Diamond-focused one then. Great to see and hope that this sticks and isn't just a "trial run" or something. Would be about time for WA to start treating Diamonds decently.

Also, did you initiate contact? I see that the message says "Thank you very much for your email". If so, might I ask who you reached out to?

billygui

She initiated contact about 3 weeks before, introducing herself as my "personal concierge". Not sure how "personal" that is, because the e-mail address is generic... I replied to that e-mail asking about the Diamond benefits.

I usually stay at the Conrad in Dubai, where IMO they have one of the best Diamond recognitions in the world. Will comment here after my stay at the WA, let's see.

arlflyer

Ah OK great. Will be eager to hear, and also glad to hear about the Conrad. Staying mostly at US properties, I don't think I have gotten a single thing resembling Diamond recognition all year - it's basically indistinguishable from Gold. I have a leisure trip upcoming to Central Europe and another to the UAE (will be at both WA and Conrad). Those are going to be Hilton's chances to put on a decent show, or else I might be taking a long hard look at Hyatt next year...

Wozza2404

US recognition is awful as every second guest is Diamond. Mostly because you have properties like the Embassy Suites and Hamptons where a stay costs about the same as a mini-bar Coke would cost at a Middle East property.

I think you'll be fairly surprised at the difference in treatment at GCC Hitons.