The Ultimate Guide to Four Seasons Hotels & Resorts
Nov 4, 2018, 4:51 am
#511
Join Date: Aug 2016
Programs: SLH Indulged, M&M, SPG, IHG Elite, Hyatt Member
Posts: 130
This summer we stayed at our first Four Seasons hotel: the FS at Sultanahmet in Istanbul at the end of August. I have put a detailed review on my blog and a FT review will follow. The highlights:
We used their VIP transfer from IST airport which included a pickup at the gate, drive on a "golf cart" to the diplomat/crew immigration line and a chauffeur drive in a BMW 7 series to the hotel. Nice, because zero waiting time, and massaging seats while standing in traffic jam - but it comes at a price: about 200 EUR.
What I will take away from this stay above all is the service. I read about service hiccups at this hotel in reviews on FT, but we didn't have any of those - to the contrary. Just two examples:
Review summary
Good
I would recommend this FS especially for Istanbul sightseeing, while seasoned Istanbul-travellers might enjoy the FS Bosphorus more for its pool and accessible location, e.g. when returning from boat rides or shopping.
FS as a chain made a great impression on me and this was definitely not our last stay with them.
We used their VIP transfer from IST airport which included a pickup at the gate, drive on a "golf cart" to the diplomat/crew immigration line and a chauffeur drive in a BMW 7 series to the hotel. Nice, because zero waiting time, and massaging seats while standing in traffic jam - but it comes at a price: about 200 EUR.
What I will take away from this stay above all is the service. I read about service hiccups at this hotel in reviews on FT, but we didn't have any of those - to the contrary. Just two examples:
- We got great recommendations for tourist spots and also really valuable time-saving info, e.g. to skip the big lines at the museums we wanted to buy the museum card and got the tip to buy this at the mosaic museum, where no one wants to go (sorry), since you can buy this card at any participating museum. So we didnt have to wait in line to buy the line-skipping museum card valid for the famous spots. Perfect!
- On our last day at the pool my drink was spilled on my shirt by the wind (dont ask). It was no ones fault, but they turned it into their problem by offering to take it into dry cleaning. When I said that we have to catch a flight this evening he said we can make it. And he was right. They made it and we were not charged for it. This felt like genuine customer-centric service attitude.
Review summary
Good
- Fantastic service: they make your problem to their own
- Best location for sightseeing in Istanbul
- Rooftop bar with a great view
- Great breakfast
- Free shuttle service to sister FS at the Bosphorus
- Mattress was as good as advertised
- Not a great view from our room
- No spa on premise
- Bad wifi in our room
I would recommend this FS especially for Istanbul sightseeing, while seasoned Istanbul-travellers might enjoy the FS Bosphorus more for its pool and accessible location, e.g. when returning from boat rides or shopping.
FS as a chain made a great impression on me and this was definitely not our last stay with them.
Nov 4, 2018, 6:23 pm
#512
Join Date: Jul 2004
Programs: AA Platinum/Aadvantage Club
Posts: 93
Four Seasons in Africa?
I will be in Africa, specifically Morocco and Tunisia, over the holidays and when looking for places to stay, I did notice there are a few Four Seasons hotels between these two countries.
Nov 4, 2018, 6:35 pm
#513
Join Date: Aug 2015
Location: NY, NY & Long Island
Posts: 76
New Four Seasons Bangkok and Hanoi
Does anybody have a clue as to when these new Four Seasons might be opening and accepting reservations? Planning a trip to SE asia in Nov. 2019 and am hoping they might be operational by then
Last edited by CedarSwampThing; Nov 4, 2018 at 6:35 pm Reason: spell correct
Nov 5, 2018, 1:46 am
#514
Join Date: Sep 2009
Location: Europe
Posts: 2,600
Too early for Bangkok, most interior works are about to begin and recruiting also takes time. It's a gamble.
Nov 5, 2018, 6:40 am
#515
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Mar 2013
Location: Parts Unknown
Posts: 10,052
Nov 6, 2018, 5:54 am
#517
Join Date: Apr 2013
Location: MEL
Programs: QFF, AA, LM, EY
Posts: 762
Nov 6, 2018, 7:20 am
#519
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
For now, I'd suggest splitting your time in Bangkok between Mandarin Oriental or The Siam (if you have enough days in Bangkok)...I really love The Siam. It's a completely different feel than the central hotels and the GM/Team is just fantastic!
Dec 6, 2018, 4:45 pm
#521
Join Date: May 2016
Posts: 393
FS Lanai ended up serving my nut-allergic SO peanuts after insisting wasabi crusted nuts were in fact toasted edamame. Luckily, the SO has yet to have an anaphylactic reaction to nuts and didnt need to be airlifted to Maui (just hives and lots of vomiting). Needless to say, stay wreck.
FSs non-recovery recovery: comping the meal they sent to our room after this happened and not even acknowledging this happened at check-out. Insulting to say the least...
As an update, ultimately we were made whole but it took a week of pushing.
The resort itself is beautiful and some staff fantastic, but F&B FoH staff has serious issues and it wasnt just limited to our fateful meal.
That being said, we ended up using BESVISOR and I know he worked hard on helping get them to make this right. Not to make this an ad but if you need an new TA who works hard to provide good service...
Last edited by Cityflyer10; Dec 8, 2018 at 7:38 am
Dec 11, 2018, 10:50 am
#522
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Mar 2006
Location: Germany
Programs: Some
Posts: 11,519
To answer my own question on the FS Astir Athens opening date...I emailed them and they said March 2019.
Since the management of the hotels is talked about so much in this forum.... Sam Ioannidis will be the GM of the hotel. He was evidently the GM in Baku and most recently the GM that opened Four Seasons Hotel Abu Dhabi at Maryah Island.
Since the management of the hotels is talked about so much in this forum.... Sam Ioannidis will be the GM of the hotel. He was evidently the GM in Baku and most recently the GM that opened Four Seasons Hotel Abu Dhabi at Maryah Island.
Dec 23, 2018, 9:04 pm
#524
Join Date: Aug 2014
Location: Kirkland, WA, USA
Programs: Marriott Gold; LEGO VIP, Amex Platinum, HHonors Gold
Posts: 563
Replying to CityFlyer,
Well, this is annoying.
I have a trip planned for the end of January, and I was hoping this place didn't suck. I was not impressed with the FS Bora Bora soft product, and it sounds like the FS Lanai might be a similar experience.
I do have food sensitivities, but nothing that's immediately life threatening, so if they manage to not actually poison us, we'll survive the vacation, but at $1,000+ per night, "Didn't Die!" is not a great recommendation!
Thanks for providing the info. This time, we're booked through a FSPP agent - mostly because American Express FHR is in a state of flux (i.e. is completely sucking) for 2019 bookings. If this works out, I may use a TA more often!
Well, this is annoying.
I have a trip planned for the end of January, and I was hoping this place didn't suck. I was not impressed with the FS Bora Bora soft product, and it sounds like the FS Lanai might be a similar experience.
I do have food sensitivities, but nothing that's immediately life threatening, so if they manage to not actually poison us, we'll survive the vacation, but at $1,000+ per night, "Didn't Die!" is not a great recommendation!
Thanks for providing the info. This time, we're booked through a FSPP agent - mostly because American Express FHR is in a state of flux (i.e. is completely sucking) for 2019 bookings. If this works out, I may use a TA more often!
Dec 24, 2018, 4:43 am
#525
Join Date: Dec 2003
Location: YVR
Programs: Hilton*D, Marriott*LG, Hyatt*G
Posts: 6,268