monitor

This is being written from a very large full suite at the "new" WPB Marriott, which until a few weeks ago was a Sheraton, albeit apparently a very poorly managed Sheraton. The physical plant here has been allowed to fall into quite a bit of disrepair, with little attention having been paid to some of the easier cosmetic tasks, and none whatever to the more difficult ones. This property is in substantial need of renewal, and Marriott has stated that a thorough renovation will start shortly. According to the sources I have listened to, it is to start in "July or August" in one case, and in another "sometime in September." Your guess is as good as mine, but it is clear that the Marriott people cannot let this property go very long as it is while carrying their name.

This hotel is very well located, being right off I-95 (construction on which is bound to be finished sometime during our lifetimes) adjacent to the Kravis Center (and the now under construction Opera House) and a few blocks from City Place (the "MainStreet" type of new downtown that was built a few years ago and which seems to draw the crowds).

Under any circumstances, my stay here has as of this writing (into my third day of five) been eminently satisfactory, with due regard to the extremely reasonable rate that I am paying. The suite that I nailed simply by asking is on the concierge level and consists of a good-sized bedroom, a full kitchen with a serving counter into a full dining room with a large dining/conference table, and a living room with what must be a convertible sofa, a couple of plush chairs, a coffee table and another TV. I have noticed that there seem to be quite a few suites here. Actually, the fellow registering in front of me flashed his gold card and asked for the concierge level, which was given to him. So I decided to flash my plat card and said "If he can ask for the concierge level, I guess I can ask for a suite." A smile, a nod, and we were on our way to this suite, which has old-fashioned furniture, except for the very good bed, but what appears to be fairly new carpet. The threadbare nature of the hallways was somewhat off-putting as we went to the room, but it appeared to be quite clean, even tho sombody had left the front door open a crack. One note of caution - as we got off the elevator, the man who had checked in ahead of me was getting back on, toting all of his luggage with a very dissatisfied look on his face. We subsequently have observed that the housekeeping staff is for the large part very inexperienced, and mistakes are being made that will only come with more training.
The big mistake in our room was a Domino's box with two slices that had been left in the oven by the last guest. Two housekeepers immediately came to remove the box and scrub down the whole kitchen, which did not need this treatment since it was otherwise very clean to start with.

Details:
1 - There is a bar with a large TV always tuned to baseball and a typical Marriott bar menu.

2 - There is no restaurant open for dinner, although there is one called something like Keys which has a sign claiming to be open for lunch, but I cannot vouch for that because I am never around at lunchtime and this room has always looked dark and deserted to me anytime I have passed it.

3 - The concierge lounge is open standard Marriott weekday hours and has very standard food and drink. Be warned to make your coffee in your room, because the regular brew here is weak as water, only rivaled by that at the lounge in Louisville.

4 - The television in the bedroom showed the legend "unlocked" each time the channel was changed, and when we got up to the higher numbers, it appears that this referred to the fact that all of the pay movies (including some hardcore) were available simply by scrolling up the register. This actually came in hady because we caught up on a few movies we had missed during the worst week of June weather in Palm Beach County for many years. It has rained, and rained, and rained some more, day after day.

My guess is that the renovation will take the best part of the last quarter of this year and the info that I have says that the concierge lounge will be relocated into one of the suites, but the others will not be broken up. Before the renovation starts, if you have status this might for the money be a place to try, since it seems relatively easy to upgrade and the current rates are rock bottom. During the renovation it's back to Boca or Gardens for all, but afterward, this could be one of the primo Marriott destinations in So Fla for cardholders if they Marriott does in fact leave all those suites intact.

socrates

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[This message has been edited by socrates (edited Mar 23, 2004).]

LAXGreg

I just stayed at the West Palm Beach over part of the 4th of July Weekend. I too was upgraded to a full suite as a Platinum. I will reiterate that the property needs the renovation, but I wouldn't complain for the rate. The staff were exceptionally nice, although they didn't deliver my platinum amenity after two calls. The good news: they honored the platinum guarantee with no problems.

One other note: the suites are strange. There is a bedroom that is essentially a standard concierge level room. Then the "living room" contains a conference table, a couch and 2 comfy chairs. Lastly there is a bed. The bed is odd, as it is directly next to the conference table, but has no nightstand, phone, lamp, etc.

There is also a space that obviously used to be a kitchen (completely devoid of furniture) and a second standard bathroom.

The overall space is eclectic, but if you want extra space you certainly get it.

fmkgb

West Palm Beach FL Full Service Marriott: Any recent reviews for this property? Particularly if it gives breakfast coupons to Platinums on weekends. And how many minutes walk is it actually to downtown West Palm shopping area? thanks

username

The property is going through renovation - make sure you ask for a renovated level. The renovated lounge is open. No breakfast coupons on weekends.

The walk to City Place is probably 15 minutes - the hotel shuttle can take you there.

BKKLEE

which one is City Place.............the one just around the corner from the gas station or the larger shopping Mall to the east??

SkiAdcock

Thanks for the info - I'll update the exec lounge sticky.

Cheers.

DCA13

I just spent 15 days there. The hotel is undergoing renovation, but it's limited to 9-5 and not on weekends. I was out of the hotel for work most of that time anyways, and I never heard a thing. The concierge lounge is temporarily moved to a room off the restaraunt. For breakfast, rather than the usual lounge food, you can help yourself to the omellete bar, buffett, and other offerings. There's coffee and juice in the lounge room itself.

Rooms are standard Marriott. Nothing special, nothing bad. The workout facility is nice - open room, new equipment, and I never had a problem finding open machines. I didn't try the pool area, but my wife reported it was nice to sit outside and read there.

You can walk to City Place (large, open air mall area with lots of bars/restaraunts/shops) in about 10 minutes. I'd say it's about 2 big blocks, but you have to walk around the commuter train tracks. "Downtown" WPB is farther, and you'd best take the shuttle. To get to the beach, take the shuttle. Shuttle drivers were friendly, took us anywhere (and picked us up), and we never waited more than 5 minutes outbound or inbound.

What I noticed most was the service seems to have improved over past visits. Mona in the conceirge lounge, Rudy at the omelette station, and the front desk crew as a whole were excellent. Service was very slow in the restaraunt, however. The service was good once it arrived, but it took forever to get menus, order, etc. once you sat down. The food and drink selections are much improved over past visits - fresh fish, salads, and decent beers on tap as well.

While there, Obama and Biden were in town, so the hotel was full of press types. There was also a diplomat of some sort staying with a modest Secret Service detail. He forgot his ID and room key, and needed a spare key - the front desk wouldn't give it to him without ID until the Secret Service stepped in and identifited themselves, vouching for his ID. Funny to see and a good indicator that the staff is properly trained.

As mentioned above, no certs for platinums - I specifically asked and the desk said they follow standard Marriott terms on that point.

fishernrex

I just recently stayed there (last week) and overall I have to agree with the most recent posts that the hotel is in good shape overall and a pleasant place to stay.

My issues revolved around security

1) The battery died on the doorlock and my room was left unlocked.

2) The "do not disturb" sign was ignored and my room was entered by hotel employees in an attempt to apologize for the the door being left unlocked. (gotta tell you, that was the final straw).

I contacted the GM regarding issue #2 and she seemed concerned enough and promised a few things. Unfortunately, I have not seen the promised points (will give that until my next statement).

flying_donkeys12