troyb

Wirelessly posted (BlackBerry9530/4.7.0.113 Profile/MIDP-2.0 Configuration/CLDC-1.1 VendorID/105)

Nope and nope

Pizzaman

No, and breakfast at this property is painfully expensive. I love a good hotel breakfast, and have a good pain threshold. But, I think it was ~$40 a person for the buffet.

Quasiconvexity

Ouch. That is a bummer. Thanks, guys.

TimMeineke

No free breakfast for plats - they have a pretty decent buffet for $19.99 or $24.99 cant remember which, and kids under a certain age eat free. there is no platinum lounge. Heading out for thanskgiving as well - if you have kids, last year that had a tree-lighting party with smores and Santa

Pizzaman

I don't remember any buffet that was in that price range. It was a high quality buffet, but still overpriced.

Quasiconvexity

Had a 1 night stay over Thanksgiving. First visit to Palm Springs - really enjoyed the area; the Westin itself was just about OK. No Plat recognition at Front Desk - after the FD staff had assigned us a room (no upgrades - received room type booked, but it did look like the hotel was fairly full), I had to ask about the Plat amenity at which point she remarked "Oh are you a Platinum member?". This in spite of my key card being in the Plat jacket

Chose the in-room movie instead of the points as Plat amenity but was charged for it at checkout and had to talk to the manager to get it removed.

Room was fine - seemed clean and reasonably up to date. The AC was terrible - had to call someone to get it fixed. Parking was a huge Pain in the a@@ - seemed like there were more way more cars than parking spaces over the weekend...lots of people ended up parking in the fire lanes since there were no designated spots left.

Might try the Le Parker Meridien next time.

TimMeineke

I was there this weekend. The breakfast buffet was $24.99 for adults and free for kids 5 and under

If staying here please be aware that the cell phone reception is often spotty. the in-room wireless was pretty fast for a hotel

CO FF

I was there for a quick getaway between Christmas & New Years.

Building 12 - top floor; corner & adjacent rooms (connecting). HVAC was spotty - one room never got right, the other needed to run for a long time to get heat. Otherwise, the physical plant was typically "Westin comfortable" - I'm a BIG fan of the Heavenly Bed!

When we went to the Concierge for dinner suggestions (it was our 1st time in the Coachella Valley in many years), the "real" concierge was away, so we got helped by the SVO sales rep person. She really didn't know the restaurants too well (her "advice" was to give us their menu book) - but she did give us coupons for 20% off 2 spa treatments (that we used), a discount on golf (worthless to us) and a free appetizer at the hotel restaurant (didn't use). (FWIW, we really enjoyed Pacifica, a seafood place in El Paseo.)

My only negative was that, after having booked on C&P, I found a "better" deal (full cash rate) on the hotel website the night before arrival - it was after midnight, and the Plat line said I needed to talk to the hotel, and the hotel said I needed a manger, and none were available til morning. So, since I had to work that morning, I emailed the hotel requesting that they change the rate -- they never responded.

corky

I have booked a room there for 2 nights in Feb (using all points) for when my sister & 15 yr. old niece are visiting me from Michigan. I was (and still am) torn between this property & the Le Meridian in Palm Springs. Are the pools at the Mission Hills heated nice & warm? any comparisons on the 2 properties? We will be poolside all day so that needs to be top notch.

KevinS

If doing Palm Springs and want to stay Starwood and/or burn points/free nights, I'd recommend the Parker Meridien over the Westin.

They're not far from one another geographically, but in terms of level of quality and service and just general fabulousness, they are lightyears apart.

thomasro3

Yes, now that that you can use and receive points at the Le Parker Meridien is much nicer than the Westin Mission Hills unless you are traveling with young kids.

WestLA-FF

I stayed at the Westin Villas that same week, and also saw the rate drop the day before my stay started. But I was past the cancel date, so could not change. Also, I had already requested (by phone) and received an upgrade from a queen 1 bedroom suite to the king 1 bedroom suite. The difference is about 400 sq ft., and a better kitchen. And the new "lower" rate for the king was the same as for the queen that I had reserved, so I couldn't get too upset. Also, I rationalized not getting upset by the fact that my room reservation was locked in, and in other years, the hotel sold out during holiday week, and my still pretty-decent rate would have been good even in a sell out situation.

The stay was very relaxing, even though the weather wasn't all that warm. Only the kids went in the pool, though the pool was heated nicely. We really like this property, will several very nice markets (pavillions, Clarks) within a mile or so.

pkincy

I just completed a 2 nite stay. I can't recommend the property for business travels as there is little to no cell phone coverage available.

I have both T Mobile and Verizon cell phones and neither worked well.

In fact the hotel was nearly empty when I checked in Monday nite for a 2 nite stay. They gave me a room in Bldg 7 and there was no coverage at all. I than walked around the huge property and decided the Eastern edge of the property on the second floor was my best bet so moved to an upstairs room in Bldg 2. Again only 1 bar on either phone and sometimes none at all.

Great cell phone coverage a mile east however. So if you are willing to spend all your time at a nearby Starbucks it may be OK.

Likely a nice vacation stay however.

Perry

AB2BC

Stayed here in September for one of the timeshare offers. It was great.

First room we got the air conditioning was broken, the phone didn't work (lost luggage, needed to call United), fridge wasn't working. So we called the front desk and the manager moved us to a new room, which was an upgrade.
It was Building 16, overlooking the golf course 16th green/17th hole tee-box.
Great room.

The staff at the hotel were all very nice. My only complaint about this hotel was the lack (and expense) of the food services. Thankfully the River isn't far.

I think I may try out the villas next time.

WestLA-FF

Definately stay at the villas next time. Great suites with nice bathrooms, well accommodated kitchens, and decent lounging furniture, though TVs are huge tubes - way out of date.

And the River isn't THAT close. 4+ miles, and at least a 10 minute drive. For lunches, try the vegan cafe at Jensens, which is about a mile away. For a nice dinner, though, you pretty much do have to haul up to highway 111,the River or El Paseo.