escape4

Do you mean elite treatment as part of a loyalty program, so you mean Diamond benefits vs Platinum/Titanium/Ambassador benefits at St.Regis for example? Or you mean your overall experience?

I don't know of any elite benefits at Rosewood so even the small 1000 THB at WA would be better, not to mention breakfast. I have not stayed at Rosewood but the rooms look very bland whereas WA has very nice hardware.

StR gives more generous elite benefits than WA via room upgrades and marginally better for drink vouchers. But the hardware is not in the same league as WA and prices reflect that. Breakfast at StR is unimpressive and WA far superior.

I have not stayed at Kempinski but I could believe a statement that it beats WA for elite benefits. Regarding the property itself it does seem to be of the caliber of WA and therefore above StR.

thbe

Can be any treatment, which make me enjoy my stay more. That includes upgrades, late check-out, other special benefits.

Yes, Rosewood don't have an elite program - as far as I know, but thy gave me a double upgrade. The welcome present was better than everything I've seen at any WA so far. Another example: They offer Evian as free water. No big deal, but it's a difference.

I don't agree, that breakfast at WA is better than at STR. I think, it depends on if you prefer buffet or order by menu. STR offers a wider range at the buffet. Another point: STR belongs to the very few hotels, where I was asked, where I want to seat before I've got seated, At WA they let me follow around the breakfast, even many tables were free an the way. Excellence means, that you guess right, what the guest want or that you ask the guest, what he wants. In that meaning, WA wasn't excellent in any way. They do or don't do,

At Siam Kempinski they take 1 upgrade level from the FHR rate and added the 2 upgrade level for me being a Black member and so I got an upgrade by three levels. No discussion about it, just asking, if that is ok or me. I never got less upgrades there than the "upgrades depending on availability". At WA, they don't even upgrade, if there is availability. They use to break their own rules and promises.

At WA they've planed to give me no upgrade. I've booked a 4-day stay even I staid 3 nights and took the fourth night as a kind of guarented late check out, because I know, that WA is not reliable when it comes to late check-outs. That plus DIA should have made it possible, to think about an upgrade, especially after they know, that I leave after 3 nights. But WA didn't. They are not big talker, asker or thinker. AT STR, Siam and Rosewood they did talk, ask and think.

All in all Siam offered a much more heartful service, STR offered a higher standard of service and Rosewood offered a much more individual service. Each of them gave me more upgrades for one night than I've got on my last ten stays at Hilton properties in Thailand in total. OK, I've booked suites at the Hiltons most of the time, which made it for difficult for them to upgrade me. But especially in that case I expect an excellent treatment, when it's about late check-out or an upgrade for the booking, when I didn't book the upper range of rooms.

The only excellent experience at WA for me was, that they let me cancel a not refundable rate with full refund after I've requested that, after I could foresee, that they will screw it up.

I didn't blacklist Hilton brands in Thailand, but I try to avoid them, when possible.

Kacee

I'm not really a fan of W/A, but the breakfast buffet is far superior to StR, in both quality and selection. I mean it's really not close.

I've never been asked where I want to sit at StR (though they do always give me one of the private tables by the windows). W/A I agree they tend to seat based on their convenience, rather than the guest's desires.

thbe

My stay at the STR was close to the recent ASEAN summit. STR - like Rosewood - was secured by police and military inside and outside the hotel. Maybe the breakfast offer was wider because of that.

Anyway, for me the STR is nothing to write home about. But they've tried harder to satisfy me than the WA did.

My next stay at a Hilton property will be at the Conrad Tokyo. That hotel is so much better than any WA I've staid at. They get 200% performance out of the hardware, while the WA BKK is somewhere below 25%. YMMV

escape4

Thanks for the detailed feedback. I guess the main area where I disagree is about breakfast. Similar to @Kacee I think WA's breakfast is far superior to StR, in fact I think other lower brand hotels in the Marriott chain have a better breakfast than StR which should not be happening (Athenee, SGS, Ren, maybe also W). Fruits are more varied at WA, the quality of dishes is higher at WA and there are more protein choices in the hot dishes at WA for example some mornings fried rice with scallops not just vegetarian at StR every day.

Also at StR I am not a fan of the cramped seating arrangement which makes for an unpleasant breakfast if you are squeezed in the middle of many guests. If I have the small room in the back then it's great, otherwise people bang other guests' chairs frequently. At WA it's the complete opposite, several tables are such that you don't even have a neighbor close to you, or maximum one or two.

Regarding upgrades it's clear that you can go farther at StR than WA. I am surprised that a first time guest at Rosewood would get a double upgrade - I cannot see this as sustainable otherwise it means everybody is getting upgraded? Out of curiosity, what room type did you book at WA?

thbe

The Rosewood booking was a FHR rate as well, so it includes one level upgrade, based on availability. Booked Deluxe, got Premier.

At WA I‘ve booked a King Deluxe room.

escape4

I am surprised that WA did not upgrade you as Diamond if you booked the entry level room, unless the hotel was fairly full. I have never NOT been upgraded.

Kacee

Well now you've touched on an interesting point . . . my last stay, I asked for fresh mango (they had unpeeled mangos sitting out for display, but none sliced.). Server pulls a chilled, pre-cut plate out of the refrigerator for me. Better than canned, I suppose, but not as good as SGS where they peel and cut them fresh. Then I asked for pineapple. Server looks stricken, and flees into the back without a word. About 20 minutes later, a staff member brings a plate of pineapple to the table. A F&B manager later confirmed they had to send someone out to buy it. Now I appreciate that kind of service, but how do you run out of pineapple at a 5 star Thai breakfast buffet???

escape4

I order mangoes almost every morning at WA (and SGS). Sometimes at WA they peel one right away in front of me, and other times indeed they just take a plate from the fridge - I think their purpose is to avoid customers having to wait so they peel them ahead of time. I never had the impression that the mangoes from the fridge had been peeled a long time ago - they always look and taste fresh and juicy.

At SGS we sometimes have to wait for the mangoes, not that it bothers me for the extra 30 seconds to be honest.

I am surprised about running out of pineapples! Poor planning by the kitchen.

Kacee

The ones they gave me were chilled as was the plate. That kills the flavor. Their juices are not fresh squeezed, either.

Don't get me wrong, the quality of the breakfast overall is very very high. Just a couple odd quirks.

tomwhom

One more thing I like WA breakfast is free flow of blueberry and blackberry. They used to have raspberry but not in my last stay 3 weeks ago.

Agree WA breakfast is far better than St Regis', no comparison indeed. IMO it's even a little better than Rossini's due to the berries.

alanslegal

Whilst we are talking about cut fruit, once upon a time whilst staying at the St Regis there was no cut papaya on the buffet but I can clearly see it in the fridge, I asked for it and it was declined. A few moments later another guest was given that said cut papaya. There was no offer to get/cut some more which was pretty average response in that situation.

EGW1

WA breakfast is possibly the best breakfast I’ve ever had in a hotel in Asia...and I don’t much like breakfast! I typically like toasted bread, grilled tomatoes, feta, anchovies, beetroot, avocado. French blue earl grey tea. Not many places can accommodate that!

yerffej201

I'm used to standard suite upgrades at Hyatt and Marriott. At Hilton, I know it's 'may'. so does this property not give an upgrade to a standard suite here if you're diamond? i.e. a suite with separation between living room and bedroom

antipest

Well what do you expect when drinking an afternoon tea for breakfast?