Maybe my timings are off. When I was there I had driven from BKK to Khao Lak, then my partner had to fly from HKT back to BKK for the weekend. During that time I stayed at the Westin.
I came north from Khao Lak and after the airport it was further down south and on the eastern side but I didn't perceive the drive from the airport to the Westin after dropping her off as a 45 minute trip.
Anyway I just realized you were quoted 3500 *return* so that's a bit more realistic. I initially mis-read it as 3500 one-way so I freaked out.
One suggestion to avoid all the taxi hassles of Phuket- rent a car- it is quite easy to drive around the island, parking is plentiful in most places, and weekly rental prices are very reasonable compared to even a few rides with the taxi services of the Island. I don't think you can really blame the hotel for the "taxi mafia" of Phuket- it is a well known and documented problem of the entire island, which hopefully one day TAT will recognize and actually target for reform.
I had booked a car in advance and picked it up at the airport (Master Car Rental); they came to pick it up at the hotel, when we checked out, as we took a boat to go south, for the rest of our vacation.
Originally Posted by m0hamed
I've booked no less than 6 transfers in advance dealing with the sales/reservations staff at the hotel.
They have honoured the original rate. CC'ing Starwood Corporate Care probably helped.
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Originally Posted by TRAVELSIG
One suggestion to avoid all the taxi hassles of Phuket- rent a car- it is quite easy to drive around the island, parking is plentiful in most places, and weekly rental prices are very reasonable compared to even a few rides with the taxi services of the Island. I don't think you can really blame the hotel for the "taxi mafia" of Phuket- it is a well known and documented problem of the entire island, which hopefully one day TAT will recognize and actually target for reform.
Checked into the property two days ago. Organised Fast track at the airport and was literally met at the gate of plane upon disembarkation, whisked into an elevator, through the diplomatic queue for immigration, porter collected our bags and shown straight to the Mercedes E Class to take us to the hotel. The E Class is about 10 years old, even though I drive and love Mercs, the hotel's Toyota Camry as we discovered was far superior.
Walked towards the check-in desk and was told to sit in the lobby and they would come to check me in. Check in was pleasant, though took about 20 mins. I asked for a list of Platinum benefits because I have read these are above expectation in Thailand, however there was no written information.
Driven in a buggy to our One Bedroom Sala Pool Villa which is truly beautiful. The living room is the size of a large hotel room, the bathroom is amazing with a huge tub, walk in wardrobe is great and the balcony with private pool has 2 sun loungers and a couch.
Went to bed and tried to sleep but the sound of the jets and the filter of the pool was immensely loud. Called Service Express and somehow they managed to turn it off remotely. Impressive!
Woke up in the middle of night as we didn't leave the aircon on. You MUST leave the aircon on in all areas, otherwise the room fills with heat, humidity and you will be gasping for air.
The breakfast offerings are extremely impressive and they will cook several things to order. Even the selection of juices and smoothies is superior.
Due to the private pool we decided not to use the main pools, as happens in some countried, guests lay claim early by placing a book or a towel on them.
Platinum cocktail hour is literally an hour where you can order any cocktail off the menu including Lychee Martinis, Passionfruit Magaritas, Cosmos and Mojitos.
We chose the location to be away from Patong beach which is a plus, but 45 mins every time you want to take a boat trip, or head to a sight can be a bit wearing. Some of the English skills off the staff is limited, but my Thai language skills are poor apart from greetings and thank you so I take more time to explain what I want, and am patient. This seems to work.
The main negative we have experienced is the hotel shuttle to Phuket Town. The outsourced mini van drops you on a street, with nothing recognisable around it. Despite the hotel stating that the van drops you off near Central Festival, we were actually 10 Km away. Decided to cab to there, and from there back to the hotel.
The build quality isn't exceptional, but notasbad as others have mentioned.
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Originally Posted by gleff
where were you flying in from? and did you organize it through the hotel or an outside company?
Flew from Sydney, organised the fast track through the hotel reservation department. It cost 600THB each.
I should mention that the beach, as others have said, is completely unswimmable. I was amazed that others were brave to enter the water, I'm certain they will get incredibly ill.
Returned back to the hotel after leaving the W Samui after 2 full days of rain and a short detour to Bangkok. I now understand others' comments on the build quality. I requested a different One Bedroom Sala Pool Villa because villa 3009's pool jacuzzi couldn't be switched off without engineering's assistance.
The light switch labels in the villa are ALL upside down, and many are actually mislabelled. The light for the closet is in fact the living room. The sliding door lock and secondary lock to the pool are both broken. The blinds are not completely straight and my partner literally just got locked inside the bathroom because the lock broke. There is no phone inside so had I not been here he would have been trapped until I returned.
We just decided to overlook the issues, but obviously the locks are a security issue.
Forgot to mention in my last review that the Cocktail Hour for Platinums features live music which really made the stay. Their repertoire is the same every day, but they played some Kylie including All the Lovers which we danced to.
Will certainly return, but it's a shame the resort building is not of higher quality.
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Have you considered asking to speak with the GM in your room so you can point out these issues? I wouldn't see it as a complaint but merely as an attempt to ensure that your next stay is better than this one.
Have you considered asking to speak with the GM in your room so you can point out these issues? I wouldn't see it as a complaint but merely as an attempt to ensure that your next stay is better than this one.
Probably not gonna happen. I recall from my stay there that it's the opposite of LM Khao Lak in terms of management interaction.
There'd be someone running this place from a corner office somewhere behind a 3-layer firewall of staff.
Probably not gonna happen. I recall from my stay there that it's the opposite of LM Khao Lak in terms of management interaction.
There'd be someone running this place from a corner office somewhere behind a 3-layer firewall of staff.
Not my impression at all.. The management are very visible and want to know concerns. That said, the light switch thing has been like that since day 1.. seems odd they haven't fixed it yet.
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Originally Posted by mtacchi
Not my impression at all.. The management are very visible and want to know concerns. That said, the light switch thing has been like that since day 1.. seems odd they haven't fixed it yet.
At the W Samui we met all the management. Not once at Platinum Cocktail hour at the Westin did I see or witness any management. I would have that it sensible that they attend at least one day a week to meet their elite guests.
The wait staff, more than make up for it.
As for mentioning the building issues. It should be clear after calling every night for 4 nights that the jacuzzi could not be turned off by the button and it needed replacing. When we returned we saw that the room was occupied and the jacuzzi running 24 hours. IT seems these issues matter not to the hotel. And do I really need to point out that the light labels are upside down and misplaced?