Opinions on the Amanjena?
Apr 24, 2019, 4:12 pm
#61
Join Date: Sep 2009
Location: Europe
Posts: 2,600
Thank you, dear Zephyrous for the wealth of details, which helped me tremendously to understand what you mean. I would love to say that this is uncharacteristic, sadly it is not. I know that Nicolas is an amazing GM and absolutely understands Aman (better than some recent hires...), so I am curious if he was off property during your stay or if he was there and checked in with you daily? Being Easter I suspect he must have been there as this is an important season in Marrakech, but with many Aman GMs now a lot on sales trips, Petar might have stood in for him?
I wanted to return again last year but didn't get a chance to yet, which I will do this year inchallah as they say, but it worries me that this inconsistency is dragging on. Jena can deliver amazing service and sheer quality, but has way too many off days in apparently quite a few departments. There is a level of professionalism at FS which translates into more consistent yet heartfelt service at the Four Seasons, which I miss at Jena, even though Jena (like all Amans) has more standards these days, compared to AZ times. I wonder why it is such a challenge for them to establish these standards with the young and well intentioned team.
In the recent and not so recent past (think 2 years) I was startled about some odd choices in recruiting in various departments, who did not seem Aman at all and frankly did not understand a thing about the DNA. This possibly can have an effect, because the very culture we are talking about here seems to be lacking in some instances. Nicolas has been fantastic in raising overall standards, especially F&B -- which is now lightyears ahead, especially compared to previous years (even Zecha tenure years). Nama and all have been wonderful additions to the property and I know how much he would love to launch new Spa et al.
In a way, the details you describe are the very essence of a great operation and you are right to feel this way, certainly worries me, as it shows a lack of care. In the end, it's all about the care and I am pretty sure they are looking at it very closely.
I wanted to return again last year but didn't get a chance to yet, which I will do this year inchallah as they say, but it worries me that this inconsistency is dragging on. Jena can deliver amazing service and sheer quality, but has way too many off days in apparently quite a few departments. There is a level of professionalism at FS which translates into more consistent yet heartfelt service at the Four Seasons, which I miss at Jena, even though Jena (like all Amans) has more standards these days, compared to AZ times. I wonder why it is such a challenge for them to establish these standards with the young and well intentioned team.
In the recent and not so recent past (think 2 years) I was startled about some odd choices in recruiting in various departments, who did not seem Aman at all and frankly did not understand a thing about the DNA. This possibly can have an effect, because the very culture we are talking about here seems to be lacking in some instances. Nicolas has been fantastic in raising overall standards, especially F&B -- which is now lightyears ahead, especially compared to previous years (even Zecha tenure years). Nama and all have been wonderful additions to the property and I know how much he would love to launch new Spa et al.
In a way, the details you describe are the very essence of a great operation and you are right to feel this way, certainly worries me, as it shows a lack of care. In the end, it's all about the care and I am pretty sure they are looking at it very closely.
Last edited by scented; Apr 24, 2019 at 4:29 pm
Apr 25, 2019, 12:26 am
#62
Join Date: Jan 2015
Location: England
Posts: 1,361
Sure! There was nothing catastrophic per se but what there was an undeniable absence of the soft product that *I* would expect from an Aman. It was a number of small annoying things, the sum of which made for a disappointing stay.
As I said, none of the above resulted in a castrophic stay - just not one that I am used to from an Aman. The grounds, the ambience, the musicians etc are of course second to none. But not sure that I’d rush back anytime soon.
As I said, none of the above resulted in a castrophic stay - just not one that I am used to from an Aman. The grounds, the ambience, the musicians etc are of course second to none. But not sure that I’d rush back anytime soon.
Apr 25, 2019, 8:09 am
#63
formerly htang333
Join Date: Apr 2014
Location: Wi-Fi
Programs: Virtuoso, Top Ranked: Four Seasons (Top 25 Advisor), AMAN (Top 50), Rosewood, Hyatt Prive, etc.
Posts: 1,455
Sorry to hear of the disappointing stay @Zephyrous ! Nicolas is a great GM and interested in making Jena the best he can, so I'm sure he would love to hear from you about the issues and would be more than happy to address it.
Sep 25, 2019, 12:48 pm
#64
Join Date: Apr 2017
Location: PVD, BOS
Programs: AA EXP
Posts: 1,664
Just completed a 4 night stay at Amanjena as part of our honeymoon and overall it was a pretty good experience. Not perfect by any means. As mentioned by others, the property is lovely and privacy was quite good.
Positives / Neutral:
The F&B was generally pretty good. Breakfast was a buffet on 3 of 4 mornings, but we ordered from the menu anyway. They happily accommodated off-menu breakfast requests as well. The quality of the breakfast was pretty good; no real complaints on that front.
We also had dinner at the property twice. Both times at the Moroccan / Italian restaurant, Arva. We ordered from both the Moroccan and Italian menus and the food was mostly good. We particularly liked the harira soup and the pollo diavola. The panzanella was a miss (mushy bread instead of grilled), but that was the only real miss. The prices were ridiculous and portions fairly small. We definitely had meals that were as good or better (and far cheaper) off-property.
The service was generally pretty good, though not overly personalized. I arranged for some flower arrangements for the room in advance and they handled that well. They also decorated the room with flower petals and left a small cake for us, which was a nice touch.
They did memorize our names quickly, but we never met the GM (saw him greeting and chatting up other guests, though). By comparison, I found the GM at Oberoi Rajvilas to be much more hands-on. Frankly, the service at Oberoi was a lot better too. Who knows if the new Oberoi property in Marrakech will perform similarly.
We did a day excursion to a Berber village, and it was a pretty nice time. Very pricey, but a good activity.
Negatives:
One thing that really stuck out was when it was time to settle the bill. The front desk staff automatically charged my card in USD without asking me. I told them that I wanted to be charged in MAD instead, at which point another staffer tried to sell me on the "benefits" of using their special negotiated conversion rate for Amanjena guests.... Right. I'm not an idiot, and the receipt clearly showed their (poor) rate plus a 3.5% surcharge on top.
When I insisted on charging it in MAD, they tried to dissuade me by saying the refund could take 2 weeks to come through (another lie). No problem, I can float that. Unsurprisingly, the original USD charge had been wiped from my Chase card within a day (or less).
In the end, they reversed the USD charge and redid it in MAD. The MAD charge came through immediately and the difference between the Chase rate and the "special Amanjena rate" was $125 USD (to my benefit) -- roughly 3.75% of my total bill. Frankly, I found the exchange to be a bit sleazy and wasn't really what I'd been expecting. This isn't the first time I'd been charged in USD instead of local currency, but it was the first time a hotel outright lied to get me to let them take advantage of me.
Positives / Neutral:
The F&B was generally pretty good. Breakfast was a buffet on 3 of 4 mornings, but we ordered from the menu anyway. They happily accommodated off-menu breakfast requests as well. The quality of the breakfast was pretty good; no real complaints on that front.
We also had dinner at the property twice. Both times at the Moroccan / Italian restaurant, Arva. We ordered from both the Moroccan and Italian menus and the food was mostly good. We particularly liked the harira soup and the pollo diavola. The panzanella was a miss (mushy bread instead of grilled), but that was the only real miss. The prices were ridiculous and portions fairly small. We definitely had meals that were as good or better (and far cheaper) off-property.
The service was generally pretty good, though not overly personalized. I arranged for some flower arrangements for the room in advance and they handled that well. They also decorated the room with flower petals and left a small cake for us, which was a nice touch.
They did memorize our names quickly, but we never met the GM (saw him greeting and chatting up other guests, though). By comparison, I found the GM at Oberoi Rajvilas to be much more hands-on. Frankly, the service at Oberoi was a lot better too. Who knows if the new Oberoi property in Marrakech will perform similarly.
We did a day excursion to a Berber village, and it was a pretty nice time. Very pricey, but a good activity.
Negatives:
One thing that really stuck out was when it was time to settle the bill. The front desk staff automatically charged my card in USD without asking me. I told them that I wanted to be charged in MAD instead, at which point another staffer tried to sell me on the "benefits" of using their special negotiated conversion rate for Amanjena guests.... Right. I'm not an idiot, and the receipt clearly showed their (poor) rate plus a 3.5% surcharge on top.
When I insisted on charging it in MAD, they tried to dissuade me by saying the refund could take 2 weeks to come through (another lie). No problem, I can float that. Unsurprisingly, the original USD charge had been wiped from my Chase card within a day (or less).
In the end, they reversed the USD charge and redid it in MAD. The MAD charge came through immediately and the difference between the Chase rate and the "special Amanjena rate" was $125 USD (to my benefit) -- roughly 3.75% of my total bill. Frankly, I found the exchange to be a bit sleazy and wasn't really what I'd been expecting. This isn't the first time I'd been charged in USD instead of local currency, but it was the first time a hotel outright lied to get me to let them take advantage of me.
Sep 25, 2019, 1:04 pm
#65
formerly htang333
Join Date: Apr 2014
Location: Wi-Fi
Programs: Virtuoso, Top Ranked: Four Seasons (Top 25 Advisor), AMAN (Top 50), Rosewood, Hyatt Prive, etc.
Posts: 1,455
Just completed a 4 night stay at Amanjena as part of our honeymoon and overall it was a pretty good experience. Not perfect by any means. As mentioned by others, the property is lovely and privacy was quite good.
Positives / Neutral:
The F&B was generally pretty good. Breakfast was a buffet on 3 of 4 mornings, but we ordered from the menu anyway. They happily accommodated off-menu breakfast requests as well. The quality of the breakfast was pretty good; no real complaints on that front.
We also had dinner at the property twice. Both times at the Moroccan / Italian restaurant, Arva. We ordered from both the Moroccan and Italian menus and the food was mostly good. We particularly liked the harira soup and the pollo diavola. The panzanella was a miss (mushy bread instead of grilled), but that was the only real miss. The prices were ridiculous and portions fairly small. We definitely had meals that were as good or better (and far cheaper) off-property.
The service was generally pretty good, though not overly personalized. I arranged for some flower arrangements for the room in advance and they handled that well. They also decorated the room with flower petals and left a small cake for us, which was a nice touch.
They did memorize our names quickly, but we never met the GM (saw him greeting and chatting up other guests, though). By comparison, I found the GM at Oberoi Rajvilas to be much more hands-on. Frankly, the service at Oberoi was a lot better too. Who knows if the new Oberoi property in Marrakech will perform similarly.
We did a day excursion to a Berber village, and it was a pretty nice time. Very pricey, but a good activity.
Negatives:
One thing that really stuck out was when it was time to settle the bill. The front desk staff automatically charged my card in USD without asking me. I told them that I wanted to be charged in MAD instead, at which point another staffer tried to sell me on the "benefits" of using their special negotiated conversion rate for Amanjena guests.... Right. I'm not an idiot, and the receipt clearly showed their (poor) rate plus a 3.5% surcharge on top.
When I insisted on charging it in MAD, they tried to dissuade me by saying the refund could take 2 weeks to come through (another lie). No problem, I can float that. Unsurprisingly, the original USD charge had been wiped from my Chase card within a day (or less).
In the end, they reversed the USD charge and redid it in MAD. The MAD charge came through immediately and the difference between the Chase rate and the "special Amanjena rate" was $125 USD (to my benefit) -- roughly 3.75% of my total bill. Frankly, I found the exchange to be a bit sleazy and wasn't really what I'd been expecting. This isn't the first time I'd been charged in USD instead of local currency, but it was the first time a hotel outright lied to get me to let them take advantage of me.
Positives / Neutral:
The F&B was generally pretty good. Breakfast was a buffet on 3 of 4 mornings, but we ordered from the menu anyway. They happily accommodated off-menu breakfast requests as well. The quality of the breakfast was pretty good; no real complaints on that front.
We also had dinner at the property twice. Both times at the Moroccan / Italian restaurant, Arva. We ordered from both the Moroccan and Italian menus and the food was mostly good. We particularly liked the harira soup and the pollo diavola. The panzanella was a miss (mushy bread instead of grilled), but that was the only real miss. The prices were ridiculous and portions fairly small. We definitely had meals that were as good or better (and far cheaper) off-property.
The service was generally pretty good, though not overly personalized. I arranged for some flower arrangements for the room in advance and they handled that well. They also decorated the room with flower petals and left a small cake for us, which was a nice touch.
They did memorize our names quickly, but we never met the GM (saw him greeting and chatting up other guests, though). By comparison, I found the GM at Oberoi Rajvilas to be much more hands-on. Frankly, the service at Oberoi was a lot better too. Who knows if the new Oberoi property in Marrakech will perform similarly.
We did a day excursion to a Berber village, and it was a pretty nice time. Very pricey, but a good activity.
Negatives:
One thing that really stuck out was when it was time to settle the bill. The front desk staff automatically charged my card in USD without asking me. I told them that I wanted to be charged in MAD instead, at which point another staffer tried to sell me on the "benefits" of using their special negotiated conversion rate for Amanjena guests.... Right. I'm not an idiot, and the receipt clearly showed their (poor) rate plus a 3.5% surcharge on top.
When I insisted on charging it in MAD, they tried to dissuade me by saying the refund could take 2 weeks to come through (another lie). No problem, I can float that. Unsurprisingly, the original USD charge had been wiped from my Chase card within a day (or less).
In the end, they reversed the USD charge and redid it in MAD. The MAD charge came through immediately and the difference between the Chase rate and the "special Amanjena rate" was $125 USD (to my benefit) -- roughly 3.75% of my total bill. Frankly, I found the exchange to be a bit sleazy and wasn't really what I'd been expecting. This isn't the first time I'd been charged in USD instead of local currency, but it was the first time a hotel outright lied to get me to let them take advantage of me.
But yikes! Sorry to hear about the crazy check out experience.
I would be pretty irritated as well.
Hate that Nicolas didn't get to meet and speak to you guys as he is one of my favorite Aman GMs and just a great guy in general.
I usually see him walking around at breakfast and going from table to table to check up on guests.
We did love that staff at Jena remembered our names quickly. Which is no longer a sure thing these days at an Aman.
F&B was one of the main improvements Nicolas was focused on. So, good to hear that's coming along nicely.
Same suggestion as I made above. I would maybe write to Nicolas. I bet he would want to know of the check out issue. I'm sure he'll feel apologetic about it and deal with/train his team accordingly.
Sep 26, 2019, 9:57 pm
#66
formerly known as deathscar
Join Date: Jul 2007
Location: Hong Kong
Programs: Virtuoso | Four Seasons Preferred Partner | Rosewood Elite | Hyatt Prive - and more
Posts: 2,096
Negatives:
hen I insisted on charging it in MAD, they tried to dissuade me by saying the refund could take 2 weeks to come through (another lie). No problem, I can float that. Unsurprisingly, the original USD charge had been wiped from my Chase card within a day (or less).
hen I insisted on charging it in MAD, they tried to dissuade me by saying the refund could take 2 weeks to come through (another lie). No problem, I can float that. Unsurprisingly, the original USD charge had been wiped from my Chase card within a day (or less).
That's just from my personal experience running an e-commerce store in the past (and any customer service rep is usually trained to propose the longest time it would take in such an instance), but I'll let someone else confirm that too. You'll hear the same thing at any place when a refund is requested I think.