Le Meridien Delfina Santa Monica CA [Master Thread]
Mar 31, 2016, 9:50 am
#91
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Apr 2008
Location: LGA/JFK/EWR
Programs: UA 1K1.75MM, Hyatt Globalist, abandoned Marriott LTT (RIP SPG), Hertz PC
Posts: 21,166
The two glasses of sparkling are just a "welcome to the LM" thing there...the two free drinks is different.
Mar 31, 2016, 1:29 pm
#92
Join Date: Mar 2010
Programs: DL PM, Bonvoy Gold
Posts: 8,412
I don't think the lobby level continental was bad. Actually it was pretty nice, and certainly better than others I've seen (Parker Meridian in nyc is just a croissant and coffee). And to be honest, if you have more than two people, you may be able to get away with taking enough items from the continental for the kids without anyone saying anything, since it is an open buffet. When I was there it included fresh (and good) scones and muffins, fruit (berries and melon), yogurt, and bagels/breads for toasting, plus juice and coffee.
Sep 4, 2016, 7:56 pm
#93
Join Date: Aug 2007
Programs: Marriott Lifetime Gold and Current Platinum, Hilton Gold
Posts: 280
Review and Detailed Explainer for Le Meridien Santa Monica Sept 2016
Currently staying at this hotel and want to give a detailed explainer and review for all who have questions. SPG Gold.
First of all to address the complaints about service. In general I found the employees here to be friendly, helpful, and genuinely interested in solving problems we encountered. The bell hops, bartenders, etc were all very friendly and put a great face on the hotel. The front desk dealt with me numerous times (see below) and though I was not always happy with their results I felt as though they were always trying to solve the issues at hand.
But - the issues.
1. Room was not ready until 5pm on check in date. Checked in at 2:30pm and was informed room was not ready so we left to drop off our rental car, knowing that it wasn't yet check in time. But upon return at ~4pm it was still not ready. There were no exaggeration probably two dozen people in the lobby in the same situation. They comped us 5 drinks at the lobby bar while we waited but we were not pleased at what was clearly a housekeeping failure.
2. The room was a old, smelly, tired excuse for a Le Meridien room. See below picture that explains how to handle requesting rooms at this hotel but the initial room we received felt like a [albeit large] converted Four Points Sheraton that had been smoked in for 20 years. After ~30 hotel nights this year this is the only time I've asked to be moved rooms. The room reeked of old, musty cigarette smoke and it only got worse when turning on the bathroom fan. It was very, very unpleasant. I will say that the furniture itself and the bed were nice and new, but it couldn't make up for the tired structure and disgusting odor.
3. The solution (which took awhile). We slept in the room night one because we were in a hurry to get to dinner and couldn't deal with it because we didn't have time. So woke up the next morning and made our concerns known to the front desk. They were nice, offered to move us by having us leave our bags while gone for the day and the bellmen would move them to a new room for us. Seemed easy enough. That was at 10:30am. We came back at 5:15pm and, sure enough, they didn't have a room for us. After making my unhappiness very known to the front desk attendant he offered a room on the 6th floor and said the bags would be delivered in ten minutes. So we went to the new room which was perfect, so nice, fresh and clean with no smell. But no bags 20 minutes later. Sure enough they sent them to the wrong room and only after I went downstairs and was waiting in line at the desk to complain did they finally show up. The bellman apologized profusely to my girlfriend saying he'd been given the wrong room number.
So - the summary on this hotel. Many have noted it was a 4Points, then a Sheraton, now a Le Meridien, which is true. But the reason for the mixture of complaints and compliments on this thread is lately due to this fact:
There are two buildings in this hotel, one old and one new, and they are "seamlessly" joined so that unless you know your room number you wouldn't know which building, old or new, you were in.
Our first room which was old, smelly, and disgusting, was in the old building. Our second room was in the new building. It was perfect. If we'd gotten this room to start you wouldn't have heard a single complaint from us about this hotel. So the key is to ensure that you are booked in the new section which can be done as follows:
- Ensure your room number is above 25 aka 325 would be on the third floor but in the old building but 326 would be in the new building. X26 and above are all in the new building. See attached picture for explainer (taken from the fire escape plan in our room).
Bottom line, if you stay here, make sure you're in the new building and you probably won't have any complaints (as long as you know the property is a 5 minute walk from the beach).
First of all to address the complaints about service. In general I found the employees here to be friendly, helpful, and genuinely interested in solving problems we encountered. The bell hops, bartenders, etc were all very friendly and put a great face on the hotel. The front desk dealt with me numerous times (see below) and though I was not always happy with their results I felt as though they were always trying to solve the issues at hand.
But - the issues.
1. Room was not ready until 5pm on check in date. Checked in at 2:30pm and was informed room was not ready so we left to drop off our rental car, knowing that it wasn't yet check in time. But upon return at ~4pm it was still not ready. There were no exaggeration probably two dozen people in the lobby in the same situation. They comped us 5 drinks at the lobby bar while we waited but we were not pleased at what was clearly a housekeeping failure.
2. The room was a old, smelly, tired excuse for a Le Meridien room. See below picture that explains how to handle requesting rooms at this hotel but the initial room we received felt like a [albeit large] converted Four Points Sheraton that had been smoked in for 20 years. After ~30 hotel nights this year this is the only time I've asked to be moved rooms. The room reeked of old, musty cigarette smoke and it only got worse when turning on the bathroom fan. It was very, very unpleasant. I will say that the furniture itself and the bed were nice and new, but it couldn't make up for the tired structure and disgusting odor.
3. The solution (which took awhile). We slept in the room night one because we were in a hurry to get to dinner and couldn't deal with it because we didn't have time. So woke up the next morning and made our concerns known to the front desk. They were nice, offered to move us by having us leave our bags while gone for the day and the bellmen would move them to a new room for us. Seemed easy enough. That was at 10:30am. We came back at 5:15pm and, sure enough, they didn't have a room for us. After making my unhappiness very known to the front desk attendant he offered a room on the 6th floor and said the bags would be delivered in ten minutes. So we went to the new room which was perfect, so nice, fresh and clean with no smell. But no bags 20 minutes later. Sure enough they sent them to the wrong room and only after I went downstairs and was waiting in line at the desk to complain did they finally show up. The bellman apologized profusely to my girlfriend saying he'd been given the wrong room number.
So - the summary on this hotel. Many have noted it was a 4Points, then a Sheraton, now a Le Meridien, which is true. But the reason for the mixture of complaints and compliments on this thread is lately due to this fact:
There are two buildings in this hotel, one old and one new, and they are "seamlessly" joined so that unless you know your room number you wouldn't know which building, old or new, you were in.
Our first room which was old, smelly, and disgusting, was in the old building. Our second room was in the new building. It was perfect. If we'd gotten this room to start you wouldn't have heard a single complaint from us about this hotel. So the key is to ensure that you are booked in the new section which can be done as follows:
- Ensure your room number is above 25 aka 325 would be on the third floor but in the old building but 326 would be in the new building. X26 and above are all in the new building. See attached picture for explainer (taken from the fire escape plan in our room).
Bottom line, if you stay here, make sure you're in the new building and you probably won't have any complaints (as long as you know the property is a 5 minute walk from the beach).
Nov 7, 2016, 3:48 am
#94
Join Date: Mar 2012
Location: Munich, DE / Abu Dhabi, UAE
Programs: LH Senator / AF Plat / QR Plat / HH Diamond Life / MR Plat
Posts: 25
Currently staying at this hotel and want to give a detailed explainer and review for all who have questions. SPG Gold.
First of all to address the complaints about service. In general I found the employees here to be friendly, helpful, and genuinely interested in solving problems we encountered. The bell hops, bartenders, etc were all very friendly and put a great face on the hotel. The front desk dealt with me numerous times (see below) and though I was not always happy with their results I felt as though they were always trying to solve the issues at hand.
But - the issues.
1. Room was not ready until 5pm on check in date. Checked in at 2:30pm and was informed room was not ready so we left to drop off our rental car, knowing that it wasn't yet check in time. But upon return at ~4pm it was still not ready. There were no exaggeration probably two dozen people in the lobby in the same situation. They comped us 5 drinks at the lobby bar while we waited but we were not pleased at what was clearly a housekeeping failure.
2. The room was a old, smelly, tired excuse for a Le Meridien room. See below picture that explains how to handle requesting rooms at this hotel but the initial room we received felt like a [albeit large] converted Four Points Sheraton that had been smoked in for 20 years. After ~30 hotel nights this year this is the only time I've asked to be moved rooms. The room reeked of old, musty cigarette smoke and it only got worse when turning on the bathroom fan. It was very, very unpleasant. I will say that the furniture itself and the bed were nice and new, but it couldn't make up for the tired structure and disgusting odor.
3. The solution (which took awhile). We slept in the room night one because we were in a hurry to get to dinner and couldn't deal with it because we didn't have time. So woke up the next morning and made our concerns known to the front desk. They were nice, offered to move us by having us leave our bags while gone for the day and the bellmen would move them to a new room for us. Seemed easy enough. That was at 10:30am. We came back at 5:15pm and, sure enough, they didn't have a room for us. After making my unhappiness very known to the front desk attendant he offered a room on the 6th floor and said the bags would be delivered in ten minutes. So we went to the new room which was perfect, so nice, fresh and clean with no smell. But no bags 20 minutes later. Sure enough they sent them to the wrong room and only after I went downstairs and was waiting in line at the desk to complain did they finally show up. The bellman apologized profusely to my girlfriend saying he'd been given the wrong room number.
So - the summary on this hotel. Many have noted it was a 4Points, then a Sheraton, now a Le Meridien, which is true. But the reason for the mixture of complaints and compliments on this thread is lately due to this fact:
There are two buildings in this hotel, one old and one new, and they are "seamlessly" joined so that unless you know your room number you wouldn't know which building, old or new, you were in.
Our first room which was old, smelly, and disgusting, was in the old building. Our second room was in the new building. It was perfect. If we'd gotten this room to start you wouldn't have heard a single complaint from us about this hotel. So the key is to ensure that you are booked in the new section which can be done as follows:
- Ensure your room number is above 25 aka 325 would be on the third floor but in the old building but 326 would be in the new building. X26 and above are all in the new building. See attached picture for explainer (taken from the fire escape plan in our room).
Bottom line, if you stay here, make sure you're in the new building and you probably won't have any complaints (as long as you know the property is a 5 minute walk from the beach).
First of all to address the complaints about service. In general I found the employees here to be friendly, helpful, and genuinely interested in solving problems we encountered. The bell hops, bartenders, etc were all very friendly and put a great face on the hotel. The front desk dealt with me numerous times (see below) and though I was not always happy with their results I felt as though they were always trying to solve the issues at hand.
But - the issues.
1. Room was not ready until 5pm on check in date. Checked in at 2:30pm and was informed room was not ready so we left to drop off our rental car, knowing that it wasn't yet check in time. But upon return at ~4pm it was still not ready. There were no exaggeration probably two dozen people in the lobby in the same situation. They comped us 5 drinks at the lobby bar while we waited but we were not pleased at what was clearly a housekeeping failure.
2. The room was a old, smelly, tired excuse for a Le Meridien room. See below picture that explains how to handle requesting rooms at this hotel but the initial room we received felt like a [albeit large] converted Four Points Sheraton that had been smoked in for 20 years. After ~30 hotel nights this year this is the only time I've asked to be moved rooms. The room reeked of old, musty cigarette smoke and it only got worse when turning on the bathroom fan. It was very, very unpleasant. I will say that the furniture itself and the bed were nice and new, but it couldn't make up for the tired structure and disgusting odor.
3. The solution (which took awhile). We slept in the room night one because we were in a hurry to get to dinner and couldn't deal with it because we didn't have time. So woke up the next morning and made our concerns known to the front desk. They were nice, offered to move us by having us leave our bags while gone for the day and the bellmen would move them to a new room for us. Seemed easy enough. That was at 10:30am. We came back at 5:15pm and, sure enough, they didn't have a room for us. After making my unhappiness very known to the front desk attendant he offered a room on the 6th floor and said the bags would be delivered in ten minutes. So we went to the new room which was perfect, so nice, fresh and clean with no smell. But no bags 20 minutes later. Sure enough they sent them to the wrong room and only after I went downstairs and was waiting in line at the desk to complain did they finally show up. The bellman apologized profusely to my girlfriend saying he'd been given the wrong room number.
So - the summary on this hotel. Many have noted it was a 4Points, then a Sheraton, now a Le Meridien, which is true. But the reason for the mixture of complaints and compliments on this thread is lately due to this fact:
There are two buildings in this hotel, one old and one new, and they are "seamlessly" joined so that unless you know your room number you wouldn't know which building, old or new, you were in.
Our first room which was old, smelly, and disgusting, was in the old building. Our second room was in the new building. It was perfect. If we'd gotten this room to start you wouldn't have heard a single complaint from us about this hotel. So the key is to ensure that you are booked in the new section which can be done as follows:
- Ensure your room number is above 25 aka 325 would be on the third floor but in the old building but 326 would be in the new building. X26 and above are all in the new building. See attached picture for explainer (taken from the fire escape plan in our room).
Bottom line, if you stay here, make sure you're in the new building and you probably won't have any complaints (as long as you know the property is a 5 minute walk from the beach).
Dec 2, 2016, 2:26 pm
#95
Join Date: Mar 2016
Location: New York City
Programs: SPG Platinum, Marriott Platinum, UA Platinum
Posts: 141
Thinking of staying by Santa Monica beach over MLK weekend 2017.. looks like comments on this forum and the SPG reviews seem to suggest this property is perhaps not the most ideal.
Do people have suggestions on where else to stay by Santa Monica beach? I tried looking up Marriott properties too to take advantage of SPG/MR platinum status but looks like their rooms probably need some renovations too.
Open to non-loyalty program hotels unless people have differing views on this SPG hotel based on a recent stay?
Do people have suggestions on where else to stay by Santa Monica beach? I tried looking up Marriott properties too to take advantage of SPG/MR platinum status but looks like their rooms probably need some renovations too.
Open to non-loyalty program hotels unless people have differing views on this SPG hotel based on a recent stay?
Dec 2, 2016, 3:25 pm
#96
Suspended
Join Date: Oct 2003
Location: New York, NY
Programs: Delta - Gold; Starwood - Platinum; HHonors - Diamond & Avis Preferred
Posts: 10,869
Thinking of staying by Santa Monica beach over MLK weekend 2017.. looks like comments on this forum and the SPG reviews seem to suggest this property is perhaps not the most ideal.
Do people have suggestions on where else to stay by Santa Monica beach? I tried looking up Marriott properties too to take advantage of SPG/MR platinum status but looks like their rooms probably need some renovations too.
Open to non-loyalty program hotels unless people have differing views on this SPG hotel based on a recent stay?
Do people have suggestions on where else to stay by Santa Monica beach? I tried looking up Marriott properties too to take advantage of SPG/MR platinum status but looks like their rooms probably need some renovations too.
Open to non-loyalty program hotels unless people have differing views on this SPG hotel based on a recent stay?
Dec 2, 2016, 3:51 pm
#97
Join Date: Mar 2010
Programs: DL PM, Bonvoy Gold
Posts: 8,412
Unless you specifically want to stay in Santa Monica or near the beach, consider staying at the SLS Beverly Hills or either W property. They are are in good locations for doing a lot of the fun stuff to do in LA.
Dec 2, 2016, 5:23 pm
#99
Join Date: Mar 2016
Location: New York City
Programs: SPG Platinum, Marriott Platinum, UA Platinum
Posts: 141
Dec 26, 2016, 11:09 pm
#100
Join Date: Apr 2009
Posts: 287
Where can I get a better ocean view, at this hotel, or at the JW Marriott Santa Monica?
At this hotel, are there any specific rooms to ask for, to try the get the most spot-on ocean view.
I noticed that the hot tub suite is a bit to the side and not directly facing the ocean. Do they have any suites that are direct ocean front, or is it just regular rooms?
At this hotel, are there any specific rooms to ask for, to try the get the most spot-on ocean view.
I noticed that the hot tub suite is a bit to the side and not directly facing the ocean. Do they have any suites that are direct ocean front, or is it just regular rooms?
Dec 28, 2016, 9:36 am
#103
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Apr 2008
Location: LGA/JFK/EWR
Programs: UA 1K1.75MM, Hyatt Globalist, abandoned Marriott LTT (RIP SPG), Hertz PC
Posts: 21,166
Dec 29, 2016, 2:57 pm
#104
Join Date: Mar 2010
Programs: DL PM, Bonvoy Gold
Posts: 8,412
Where can I get a better ocean view, at this hotel, or at the JW Marriott Santa Monica?
At this hotel, are there any specific rooms to ask for, to try the get the most spot-on ocean view.
I noticed that the hot tub suite is a bit to the side and not directly facing the ocean. Do they have any suites that are direct ocean front, or is it just regular rooms?
At this hotel, are there any specific rooms to ask for, to try the get the most spot-on ocean view.
I noticed that the hot tub suite is a bit to the side and not directly facing the ocean. Do they have any suites that are direct ocean front, or is it just regular rooms?
Only the top few floors have ocean views, but the views they have are fantastic. The rooms are small. This is a dressed up Sheraton, but IMO the views from those upper level rooms make those particular rooms special.
Jan 1, 2017, 9:37 am
#105
Join Date: Nov 2013
Programs: AS Gold, Hyatt Diamond, Starriott LTPP
Posts: 341
Rare upgrade
Platinum tried to use SNAs that were denied, but was upgraded on check-in for 2 nights to 1-bedroom suite on lower floor over new years weekend. It's not a bad room (2 balconies, nice furnishings), but the ocean view isn't as great as from higher floors.
Valet parking has been slow to retrieve vehicle, but most staff seems quite friendly.
Valet parking has been slow to retrieve vehicle, but most staff seems quite friendly.
