Also (can't speak about MR) at the Sheraton Manila Bay, I had been a quarantine and non-quarantine guest. The check in process/procedure for quarantine people is on a separate floor AND separate hotel entrance AND separate elevator at the SH Manila Bay. You don't interact with quarantine people and don't breath the same air that they do. So basically no chance of interaction with those unvaccinated quarantined people nor breath the same air.

The Manila Marriott Hotel charges PhP 1,980 for the short little ride from NAIA Terminal 3. :eek: :rolleyes:

And they don't tell you the price in advance, and charge a 100% cancellation fee if you back out of the ride within 24 hours of arrival.

The free Resorts World shuttle does not resume until Monday, 18 April 2022.

Fortunately, that turned out to be the only shortcoming of my one-night stay. If Mrs. SPN Lifer & I didn't have four heavy seabags, we could have walked over to the Manila Marriott Hotel west wing, as we did two years ago to dine in their excellent restaurant.

The Manila Marriott Hotel is not a quarantine hotel. My wife & I just spent a very nice night there.

It is important to note that there are two entrances: main entrance and west wing entrance (especially if you have someone dropping you off or picking you up).

As a Titanium Elite, I was upgraded to a room on the 12th floor of the West Wing, with an extraordinarily beautiful view of the golf course and city in the background.

I did not go up to the rooftop pool, but the second-floor Executive Lounge (directly below where we were staying) was great. There was a delicious buffet breakfast available from 06:00 to 10:30.

The Executive Lounge also has "All-day snacks" from 10:30 to 24:00, "Afternoon Tea" from 14:00 to 17:00, "Hors D'oeuvres" from 17:30 to 19:30, and "Evening Cocktails and Snacks" from 17:30 to 21:30.

I arrived from GUM to MNL (NAIA, Nonoy Aquino International Airport) around 21:00, but the "free wi-fi" offered at NAIA is only available if one has a cell phone number, so we were delayed buying a local SIM card so I could access the e-mail with the hotel driver's contact information.

We did visit the Executive Lounge between 23:30 and 24:00, enjoying some charcuterie (brie, cheddar, gouda, prosciutto, salami, olives, walnuts, figs) grapes, strawberries, and mango juice before some well-needed sleep.

Half of this large "Executive Lounge" is really like a restaurant. One's room key card only works in the elevator for the floor of the room, the roof, and (if eligible) the second floor for lounge access.

I look forward to staying there after or before future flights to or from MNL, with (separate reservation) overnight "connections" to or from elsewhere in the Philippines.

Is the lounge self-service? or do they require that staff service you things like food, wine, bottled water, etc?

Just spent a night there. I'm Titanium Elite.

The Quick Review:

I'd only give it 1-2 stars because my bed was absolutely terrible. The rest is about as you'd expect from a 5-Star Marriott

Suite Upgrade:

Suite Upgrade was denied. I had also another booking last month and the suite upgrade was denied (I ended up canceling). On arrival I was told it was full because it was a weekend but I saw suites available online the morning I checked in. I was upgraded to quite a nice room on the 11th floor that was really big and had a couch, desk, and table and still space to spare, but no balcony. It was in the Executive Wing and included the lounge access I can't complain about the room but didn't seem like much of an upgrade

The Bed:

I thought it was a bit hard when I checked in but didn't think much of it. I was quite tired when I went to bed so didn't notice much, around midnight. Until I woke up at 530am and couldn't get back to sleep. The bed was too hard. All 4 pillows were of the ultra-soft variety, I had to pretty much stack two of them on top of each other. Usually they have 2 soft and 2 firm pillows. As I lay there trying to get back to sleep, rolling around, not feeling comfy, the only thing I could think of is that someone requested an extra firm mattress with extra soft pillows (the app even has pillow preferences). So I picked up the phone and called and asked if perhaps my bed had been misconfigured. With the typical Filipino politeness (Filipinos are the best in the world at nicely telling you wither "no" or "you don't know what you're talking about") but without looking more into it, the person said "All beds in the hotel are identical." It was such a quick and trained response that I had nothing else to say. Suffice to say, maybe they're used to that question and the beds are firm? I had a bad bed? Suffice to say I couldn't get back to sleep and ended up heading early-ish to the breakfast buffet.

Anyway, as most of us here know, the beds at the Marriott and Hiltons are usually so soft and luxurious that you just kinda want to lay in bed all day. I stayed at a Meridien in Thailand about 2 months ago and it was sooooo nice and soft.

Exec Lounge:
On floor 2 is the exec lounge. I didn't try breakfast but was there for afternoon tea (mostly tea, soft drinks and one snack), then down for the 530-730 happy hour dinner service. Cocktails/drinks are served I think till 930 and the lounge is open till midnight. The food was good enough for me for dinner. They had a great salad bar loaded with fresh veggies so I endulged in that. As well as cold cuts, they had some other meat dishes in the buffet that I didn't try, a soup, and a "chicken paella" that was pretty tasty. Most of the things including drinks are self-serve, although you can certainly ask for them to bring you something. They had 1-2 types of soft drinks like coke in the fridge but the selection wasn't much. I had to ask for soda water. I saw others drinking Perregrino not sure if that was an extra or not. All in all I'd give the lounge a solid grade

Facilities:
The rooftop pool was pretty amazing. Great warm temperature for a sunset swim. It's got a jacuzzi that's actually warm (seems in Thailand their idea of a jacuzzi is blowing air to make bubbles). Gym looked nice and there was a steam and sauna that I didn't try but I assume worked.

Check-In:

This was a little weird. There was no "Bonvoy" check-in so I just had to wait as only 2 people were working. After check-in I walk to my room which is quite a ways over in the West Wing. I usually just carry my luggage but it was long enuf that I might have wanted someone to help for once. Anyway you get to the West Wing and they've got 4 people working in the lobby there and no one is there. Wish I'd read the Wiki page for this hotel (I see now it says to go directly there). I also wish upon booking someone would have reached out to me as an Elite and said "Hi sir please go to the West Wing for Elite checkin

Gifts:
I got a bottle of wine upon check-in. I thought it said it was a half bottle but it turned out to be a full one. They didn't have my preferred white so I went with the red. I also always write the hotel and say that I like a sunset drink of white wine and fruit as a reward for my loyalty as a Titanium. Lo and behold at 5pm another bottle showed up, again red. Nice touch, thanks!

Breakfast:
Was quite busy on a Saturday and didn't seem very relaxed. Its so crowded that they put me at a cramped 2-top table and were helping me pour my tea and stuff, taking my plates almost before I was done, and indeed took my glass once before I was done. They def seemed in a hurry to get people thru as it was busy! As for the food, it was a very nice selection. They had a whole ham that you could get freshly sliced. A nice selection of fresh juices. Everything else about as you would expect. It was prob 60/40 Western food / filipino food and I'm not really too excited by filipino breakfast fare.

All-in-all it was oh so nice except the bed was borderline rock hard and I couldn't sleep which usually is the #1 thing I expect from Marriott. I'm glad I wasn't there for a week of business, perhaps they could have sorted it out.

I walked from the hotel to the airport T3 afterwards at around 5pm. Somehow walking is just as fast as taking a taxi (tho much hotter as you'd imagine) but it was almost 5pm which is a nice time for a little walk. I read if the hotel arranges transport its quite expensive, so best to get your own its prob only $2-$3 max (100-150p)

This was my exact experience. The staff was lovely, beds were hard, rooms smelled like sewage, loved the showers but toiletries were missing, lounge was AMAZING in the offering, rooftop pool was exceptional.

My question is when you ask for that white wine in advance, do they still offer you another amenity? I usually take the points when there's a club lounge. But, if they might double bonus a Titanium, why not?;)

Airport to Resorts World Manila bridgeway now open
 

Runway Manila, the bridgeway from NAIA Terminal 3 to Resorts World Manila has just reopened and the complimentary hotel shuttle service is now operating.

The Sheraton Manila also has a Toyota Vios for 800 nett per way (billed to room), they don't offer it upfront since they push their Volkswagen Passat as their default transport service. I presume Marriott Manila would offer the same since they are under the same management.

As a local, I'm used to just booking a GrabCar when I arrive Manila, but I was caught off guard by the surge of travellers that also had the same idea. I called the hotel and was directed to the helpful concierge for a last minute airport pick-up. I was in the car within 15 minutes from the request.

Thanks for this info. I was looking into booking Klook for car service (35 CAD) but I'll maybe take the Toyota for cheaper since it's just me and my luggages. Anyone know if you book in advance that they'll wait for you in the arrival area with some sort of signage?

My latest stay was early April and they specifically told me they don't have personnel assigned at the airport due to restrictions, but Shangri-La hotels personnel were present and there aren't restrictions anymore to enter the temrinal as a greeter.

I Suggest taking the complimentary hotel shuttle service at Runway Manila, it's a stress free experience compared to the hectic arrivals Bay at Terminal 3.

I highly suggest also entering the airport through Runway Manila since it's rarely used by the public. You also get to ride the buggy for free. 😁

Thanks for this info Giovan! I have 6 more months to decide hopefully they assign personnel at the airport by then. I would totally take the bridge but with the amount of luggages I'll have with me I won't be able to make it unless I grow an extra set of hands lol

I just had a one night stay there and have to say the comments on the hardness of the beds is spot on. I had stayed there a couple of years ago and don't remember thinking the beds were very hard but this time wow yes it was very hard.

Took the Manila runway and courtesy bus was very quick and easy. Got dropped at the West Wing entrance and check in was quick and efficient. No suite upgrade but for one night the standard room was fine. Looked over the golf course. Have to agree that the food offerings in the lounge are great. I got into trouble with the wife as I am supposed to be losing weight and I told her as I was going to eat on the lounge it would only be a light snack. But there was so many tasty dishes on offer I had a huge meal.

I had a very early flight so the complimentary shuttle busses had not started, So I decided to walk to the Manila Runway as I only had one bag and it has wheels, It was very easy to walk there and took less that 5 minutes. Walking accross the bridge I could see the queues to get into the terminal at the main entrances and there were massive (a friend said he and he wife had queued for over an hour to get into the terminal the other week). Although you have to go through two security checks using the bridge there was no queue at either of them.

I read on a blog to write and ask for whatever you want in the chat in the app. I think it was Prince of Travel. Anyway he suggested to write and ask for what you want regarding upgrades, and it seems he has great success. So now I always ask for a welcome sunset wine. When I stayed at the JW Marriott in Phuket for Thanksgiving in 2020, being proactive got me upgraded to their Private Pool Villa with 2 separate rooms, as well as wine and quite a spread of food.

It seems whoever makes the "sunset drink" reservation uses a different system than the welcome gift as I seem to get both.

Here's Prince of Travel on how to "Suite Talk" your way into upgrades. He suggests having a reason, although I just say I'm on vacation and never have a problem. I seem to always get great upgrades and more at Marriotts.

https://princeoftravel.com/blog/anot...uite-upgrades/

Aside: Despite being Diamond with Hilton (in fact even earning it of late, not just from the card), the only upgrade I've gotten in 6 years is to a "king room" or "pool view," thanks guys!

I stayed here for 4 nights last week. I find this hotel exceptional. My impression is much better compared to the review from ryandelmundo.

Room

I used Suite Night Awards and got upgraded to a suite. I was surprised because they could have upgraded me to a lower category. The view of the golf course and Makati/BCG in the background is nice. Very quiet.

I found the bed to be soft and comfortable.

The room is nice, clean and modern. There's a bathtub with bath salts

Lounge

The lounge is exceptional. I've been to nice lounges before (e.g. Marriott Berlin) but I'd say this was the best or definitely one of the best.

The selection is huge. Many cold cuts, many different hot dishes. They do a good job at serving both international and Filipino dishes. Everything tasted nice.

Some of the imported food is very expensive in the Philippines (e.g. salmon, various cold cuts, cheeses).

Huge selection of alcohol in the evening. There was a bar tender mixing drinks but you can also get your own.

It's true that soft drinks are a bit limited.

The service in the lounge was exceptional. They addressed you with your name, remembered your name, were very attentive, etc.

You can have breakfast in the lounge or the restaurant. The restaurant has a larger selection but it's actually not a huge difference since the selection in the lounge is huge. The lounge is much more quiet.

Pool area

The water temperate was nice. I usually feel cold but not there.

Unlike a previous report, I found the jacuzzi to be only lukewarm though. (Then again, maybe that's good given the hot temperatures.)

My biggest complaints:

1) Not enough loungers on the roof deck. There are many more at the pain pool

2) Not enough umbrellas. There are only 4 umbrellas for ~40 loungers at the main pool.

Transportation

I didn't know about the shuttle bus. It runs but connects several hotels so not sure how long it takes.

I paid 210 peso for a taxi from the airport. This is around $4 so not a lot, but I was expecting to pay only around 100 peso for this short journey. I later paid a similar amount for a much larger distance so I think it's higher if you start at the airport.

Location

The location is not ideal in my view. It's close to the airport, but it's not near any attractions. I didn't mind since I just wanted to relax and for that it was pretty perfect.