PointWeasel

I got the distinct feeling that Marriott is wholly disconnected from Protea other than purchasing them on paper.

My recent Johannesburg/Pretoria stays were below average, with one stay not bad (no clue about Platinum benefits at all) and one was terrible with old everything and a street fight outside the closed gates where no one was around to let me in, which could have ended rather badly. At this same older propert the wifi did not connect at all which took 2 people to troubleshoot and they then stated "you are leaving tomorrow, so its not a big inconvenience."

sdsearch

Well, I think that may be a slight overstatement, but I think the point you're trying to make is that Marriott doesn't seem to have quality control people (independent-of-Protea) checking their properties on site. It feels like Marriott thinks they can integrate this brand just via mail, phone, emails, and Skype.

I have had Protea front desks mention upgrades to their property that Marriott is demanding, so there is some interaction going on, but I fear it's all via telecommunication, nothing in person (given the distance).

Your problem, OTOH, requires in-person quality control people, and I'm not sure how Marriott arranges that in a world where they never had any of their other brands before. There's a lot of Protea properties, so an occasional visit to one or two of them isn't go to do the job, Marriott needs someone rotating through all the Protea properties periodically.

needtoescape

Hi, I am planning my first trip to South Africa for December, and I am trying to decide about where to stay in Stellenbosch. I am choosing between the Protea Hotel Stellenbosch and the Protea Hotel Stellenbosch Dorpshuis & Spa.

I was wondering which of the two people would recommend. In particular, I was wondering about the room quality, which seems to vary a lot across Protea properties and among individuals rooms within a property. I assume that booking with points (as only a Marriott Rewards silver member) and traveling in December, that I would get a standard/basic room, so if one of the hotels has significantly better standard rooms, I probably would choose it. FYI, I am not expecting a luxury room or a large room. I only am trying to avoid a room that is in need of repair or updates to the extent that it would make a short stay unpleasant. If there is not a big difference in room quality, I prefer the location on Dorp Street to give me the option of walking to restaurants for dinner, although I will have a car. Also, if either location is not suitable (i.e., safe) for a solo female traveler, that is another factor for me.

Thanks!

Roger

I've stayed at both, though about 3 years apart.

- Protea Stellenbosch at the Techno Park - it's out of town, so you will need your car or Uber It's quite a modern hotel, similar to chain hotels in the USA and Europe. Ours was a paid stay before the Marriott purchase. We didn't look for nearby restaurants so I have no view as to suitability for you. The hotel is fine. It is category 1.

- Protea Hotel Stellenbosch Dorpshuis & Spa - this is closer to the city centre. Much will depend on which room they allocate. I made some comments on our stay in post #90 . Ours was an award stay as Marriott gold. No Marriott benefits. I'd say walking to local restaurants wouldn't offer much. We used Uber extensively to get to shops, restaurants and attractions. It was category 1 when I booked but is now category 2.

I'm not qualified to advise on suitability for a single female, other than to say be aware of potential security hazards, especially at night. You're probably aware of these, but if not, it's worth reading up.

Having said that, most attacks are not directed at visitors. I'm sure you will enjoy Stellenbosch and Western Cape as much as we did.

Happy

Has anyone stayed at the Crystal Towers used to be African Pride, now rebranded to be a Marriott?

Given it is regranded to a Marriott, it should be governed by the Marriott elite benefits as Marriott is a participating brand, such as the breakfast for Gold/Plat.

I have read many Protea hotels the management replied to complaints made on Trip Advisor reviews about no free Continental breakfasts for Marriott Elites, they all cited the language on the official Marriott site as their "excuse" on why they dont provide free breakfasts to Marriott elites.

Other than the low Cat 1 to 2 redemption value, the Protea group in Africa is not really geared up to Marriott's standard in many aspects, even 2 or 3 years after full integration.

Beware if you booked a Point Saver award, Proteas do not know how to use the cert already attached. They would pull additional points at normal level again. Had that happened at Protea JNB (outside, not the transit area). Took a lot of back and forth emails between hotel, marriott custumer service and me, to sort it out and get back the additional reduction of 10K pts.

needtoescape

Thanks Roger. I did read your previous post but did not realize that it was an award stay. For the dates I am considering, I only see "standard" room awards for MR point stays, so I did not realize you could book other room types as an award stay at that property. That hotel definitely has a lot of comments in TripAdvisor reviews indicating that there is a big difference among the different rooms. The two level rooms seem like they are pretty modern, but I don't expect to get one of those if I book a standard room using points.

Maybe I should go with the category 1 Protea and save 2,500 points per night, especially if the rooms are more consistent.

Happy

While we have never stayed at either property in Stellenbosch, I can offer you some observation just from the outside look as we have passed by a few times during our 2 previous trips to South Africa, plus the impression I got from reading various sites on the "spa" property.

1) The one by Techno Park is very modern, built for conference type and business travellers. You will definitely need a car or uber/taxi to get around.

2) The "spa" is a "quaint" "boutique" property - quite old, and a bit run down in some areas. No sound proof at all according to many complaints. Much depending on your luck on which room you got, for the experiences you would have on your stay, as many rooms are fairly small.
Forget about walking to restaurants as such. You would still need transportation, as the "spa" property is not anywhere near the real city center.

3) The town is a college town. Lodging could be very tough if there are events in the local universities such as Open Day or whatever. We learned this last year.

Weekends in warmer months can also be tough to book.

My take is, for the comfort of the room, the Cat 1 by Techno Park would beat the "spa", despite it is out of town.

needtoescape

Thanks, Happy! No problem with transportation, as I will have a car. I'm not a big fan of "quaint" hotels when it really means run down, so I now am leaning towards the Techno Park property. I am planning a trip for December, and the Protea in Franschhoek is not available for my dates, so I am planning to reserve one of the Stellenbosch hotels soon.

Roger

Happy has it right!

If I were going again, of these two I'd choose the Techno Park.

I'd also be looking at bed-and-breakfasts, which are of a generally high standard in SA - we had some good stays in Stellenbosch and elsewhere - but that's a different discussion.

Good luck with your choice!

Happy

Agree on the quality of independent lodging options in South Africa.

I actually held a reservation at the "spa" property on the pre-March rate but decided it was not a property we would be happy to stay in.

Am looking at the Arabella Hotel at Kleinmond now but think we would do better to find something in either Strand or Gordon Bay instead. Very mixed reviews everywhere I read, many claimed it had fallen to disarray ever since reflagged from SPG to Protea.

I agree with a poster upthread - Marriott needs to more actively manage the Protea group to at least assure a certain standard that is required being in the Marriott family.

Happy

It is a hassle to get an email address to reach this property. The general reservation has to contact help desk which in turn actually called the hotel to get an email address of an employee worked at the concierge desk.

Got an email confirmation that a complementary continental breakfast will be provided at the restaurant for the golds and plats.

stephenpieper

Hi everyone,

I am planning to stay in Johannesburg in October. I am currently considering either the African Pride at Melrose Arch or the Fire & Ice at Melrose Arch.

Does anyone have experience with those two Hotels with regards to Marriot platinum benefits and which hotel you would prefer?

thanks and best regards
Stephen

LASNRT

I booked 2 award rooms on points at the Techno Park location last November, and got upgraded for both rooms to executive king suites without even asking. I only have silver status, and that's only through the Marriott card.

I arrived at the hotel around 11 am, dropped off my bags at the front desk, and my wine tour guide pulled into the parking lot the same time I did. When we returned from our day of wine tasting the bags were already in the rooms - we stopped at the front desk to pick up our keys, and the incredibly friendly staff let us know we had been upgraded. I stayed on a Thursday, and only for one night, which may have helped get the upgrade.

The rooms were very nice, with great views (http://i.imgur.com/DzHphw3.jpg), and a small kitchenette area. I didn't eat at the hotel, so I can't comment on that. It *is* about a 8-10 minute drive out of the center of town, but I didn't find that inconvenient at all. After wine tasting all day, I came back to the hotel, took a half hour nap, walked around the grounds a bit, and drove into town for dinner. Went back to town for breakfast in the morning and enjoyed walking around.

I think my mistake was only spending one night in Stellenbosch. The wine tasting is great, but the town is also a great place to spend time in, and rather historical.

If you're interested in a tour guide for wine tastings (or anything else in that area), I'd be glad to pass on a recommendation - I'm really a do-it-yourself traveler but obviously can't drive myself to wine tastings, so I had to have someone take me and my 2 traveling companions. I honestly felt like I started the day with a tour guide and ended the day with a friend. (PM me if you'd like for contact info.)

needtoescape

Thanks for the feedback; I booked the Techno Park property, and once I got beyond the idea of being able to walk to shops/restaurants in town from the "Spa" property, Techno Park seemed like a better choice for me. I was able to book a "Deluxe" room for the same number of points as the "standard" room.

Happy

Has anyone booked the Protea Arabella Hotel and Spa at Kleinmond (West of Hermanus) before?

An hour or so ago I made a 100% point booking in my husband's account while did not have enough pts in the account at the Protea Arabella.

Have made lots of reward bookings recently before transferring SPG pts to the account - never have any problem so far. We all know that we need to order the e-cert latest a week before check in.

In fact several weeks ago did the similar reward booking but on different date with this very same property and only canceled the booking last week from my own account. I never receive an email from Protea wanting a cash deposit.

However today about an hour or so after the new booking made in my husband's account, we got an email from Protea group requesting a Cash Deposit for the award booking and the deposit is due tomorrow July 9th!

The cancellation policy of this property is ONE WEEK BEFORE ARRIVAL. The arrival date is Aug 15th. They want a cash deposit on July 9th?!

I am so pissed I cancel the booking right away.

Like some posters said up thread - Marriott really has some disconnect with Protea Group which does its own thing that is totally outside Marriott program rules.