Sheraton Addis Ababa, Ethiopia [Master Thread]
Aug 9, 2008, 3:28 pm
#16
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: May 2002
Location: NC
Programs: AAConciergeKey/1MM, DL DM/2 MM, UA Gold,Hilton Diamond, IHG Plat, Hyatt Globalist, Marriott Titanium
Posts: 11,967
Does either the Hilton or Sheraton offer airport transfers for guests on the executive level or suite guests? If not, how far and expensive is the airport from the hotel?
Sep 2, 2008, 8:39 am
#17
Join Date: Apr 2002
Location: Munich, Germany
Posts: 726
that's what they told me 5 mins ago - will check it out tomorrow....
CL
Sep 3, 2008, 1:19 pm
#19
Join Date: Apr 2002
Location: Munich, Germany
Posts: 726
immigration was straight forward, including the visa on arrival "feature". just after the customs a large sheraton "room" is waiting, but it was actually closed and a receptionist adressed me asking for my name.
the complimentary transportation is done by a volvo strech limousine - including free drinks (ok - only water
).checkin straight foreward, as a platinum I got upgraded to a nice 2 room suite on the third floor with a nice balcony.
people are very nice and efficient, the food up to now very good (just tried some local dishes)...
the only problem is that it's quite cold here now (nights 15 celcius) - and after 3 month in dubai I completely forgot that there are colder places...
May 20, 2009, 3:02 pm
#20
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: May 2002
Location: NC
Programs: AAConciergeKey/1MM, DL DM/2 MM, UA Gold,Hilton Diamond, IHG Plat, Hyatt Globalist, Marriott Titanium
Posts: 11,967
here we go - i just arrived at the sheraton.
immigration was straight forward, including the visa on arrival "feature". just after the customs a large sheraton "room" is waiting, but it was actually closed and a receptionist adressed me asking for my name.
the complimentary transportation is done by a volvo strech limousine - including free drinks (ok - only water).
checkin straight foreward, as a platinum I got upgraded to a nice 2 room suite on the third floor with a nice balcony.
people are very nice and efficient, the food up to now very good (just tried some local dishes)...
the only problem is that it's quite cold here now (nights 15 celcius) - and after 3 month in dubai I completely forgot that there are colder places...
immigration was straight forward, including the visa on arrival "feature". just after the customs a large sheraton "room" is waiting, but it was actually closed and a receptionist adressed me asking for my name.
the complimentary transportation is done by a volvo strech limousine - including free drinks (ok - only water
).checkin straight foreward, as a platinum I got upgraded to a nice 2 room suite on the third floor with a nice balcony.
people are very nice and efficient, the food up to now very good (just tried some local dishes)...
the only problem is that it's quite cold here now (nights 15 celcius) - and after 3 month in dubai I completely forgot that there are colder places...
Is there a Hilton arrival service too? Or is there only one for the Sheraton. Im hoping to prebook a transfer to my hotel since Im arriving at 11.40pm...no one in the Hilton thread seems to be answering
Apr 25, 2010, 9:13 am
#21
Join Date: Oct 2001
Location: San Francisco
Programs: UA 1k, SPG/Marriott Plat, IHG Plat
Posts: 1,020
Stayed here for a 1 night transit stay in April 2010 and since this thread is pretty bare of commentary I wanted to add some points.
To answer the post above, the Hilton does have an office at the airport right next to the Sheraton arrival office (immediately visible after you exit customs). I'm sure they run some sort of shuttle from there.
- This is truly a luxury collection property with rooms of a standard that reminded me of a well kept older luxury hotel like the Hotel Eden in Rome (solid metal fittings, old but beautiful marble etc..) of course the surroundings are different.
- Complimentary limo transfer for Plats can be arranged in advance by emailing the hotel at the address on the website. It was prompt, flawless and comfortable both ways.
- Plat Amenity incl. 500 points was offered without prompting.
- Removal of the internet charge in line with new SPG plat amenity needed to be asked for, but was done without argument.
- As a Plat I was upgraded to a beautiful one bedroom suite at the end of a wing with a large balcony on the 3rd floor.
- Complimentary sweets and fruit plate in room. Bvulgari bath amenities.
- Room service prices are excellent for a luxury hotel. Mini bar was expensive ($10 for an orange juice).
- Unlike some of the other posts above, I didn't find the luxury element in Ethiopia too jarring. Maybe it was because I'd just flown in from N'Djamena which is another world entirely to Ethiopia, but my ride to the hotel was past some pretty prosperous areas and on excellent roads (for what is a developing country) and lots of people out enjoying a Friday night. Some of the impressions above are that the hotel is located next to a slum area or that the areas around the hotel in Addis feel like that. I did not find it that way. I got much more of a sense of that at the Maurya Sheraton in Delhi which overlooks some pretty decrepit buildings, despite how developed South Delhi is these days.
To answer the post above, the Hilton does have an office at the airport right next to the Sheraton arrival office (immediately visible after you exit customs). I'm sure they run some sort of shuttle from there.
- This is truly a luxury collection property with rooms of a standard that reminded me of a well kept older luxury hotel like the Hotel Eden in Rome (solid metal fittings, old but beautiful marble etc..) of course the surroundings are different.
- Complimentary limo transfer for Plats can be arranged in advance by emailing the hotel at the address on the website. It was prompt, flawless and comfortable both ways.
- Plat Amenity incl. 500 points was offered without prompting.
- Removal of the internet charge in line with new SPG plat amenity needed to be asked for, but was done without argument.
- As a Plat I was upgraded to a beautiful one bedroom suite at the end of a wing with a large balcony on the 3rd floor.
- Complimentary sweets and fruit plate in room. Bvulgari bath amenities.
- Room service prices are excellent for a luxury hotel. Mini bar was expensive ($10 for an orange juice).
- Unlike some of the other posts above, I didn't find the luxury element in Ethiopia too jarring. Maybe it was because I'd just flown in from N'Djamena which is another world entirely to Ethiopia, but my ride to the hotel was past some pretty prosperous areas and on excellent roads (for what is a developing country) and lots of people out enjoying a Friday night. Some of the impressions above are that the hotel is located next to a slum area or that the areas around the hotel in Addis feel like that. I did not find it that way. I got much more of a sense of that at the Maurya Sheraton in Delhi which overlooks some pretty decrepit buildings, despite how developed South Delhi is these days.
Sep 4, 2010, 7:12 pm
#22
Join Date: May 2006
Location: Tampa, FL
Programs: Delta DM, Marriott Plat, Hertz 5*
Posts: 119
I have two two-week trips coming up at this property. The first one is coming up in two weeks and the second trip follows in November. I'll be working at the UNECA headquarters which is supposedly not far.
Once I get finished with the first trip I'll post my observations. I'm currently a Marriott plat but should be a SPG plat by then via status match. I'm doing more international travel now and I'm a bit disappointed with Marriott's international coverage.
Once I get finished with the first trip I'll post my observations. I'm currently a Marriott plat but should be a SPG plat by then via status match. I'm doing more international travel now and I'm a bit disappointed with Marriott's international coverage.
Sep 11, 2012, 5:54 pm
#24
Join Date: Jan 2008
Location: SF Bay Area
Programs: UA 1K MM, Marriott Life Plat, various others of little note
Posts: 2,763
I stayed there as a gold in 2010 and they upgraded me to the club floor so I enjoyed free internet access and free breakfast in the lounge. Nice place. Beautiful pool, good spa facility, and a couple of decent restaurants.
Mar 23, 2017, 1:46 pm
#25
Join Date: Jan 2011
Location: usually somewhere between 30000 and 40000 feet...but actually the English countryside
Programs: BA GGL/Lifetime Gold, EK Gold, Lowly M&M, Marriott tit, Hhonors Diamond, numerous others
Posts: 1,156
Seeing as the last post was some 5 years back, I thought I would add a brief update.
I pre-booked the airport shuttle, I was the only one on it, no charge. Check in at 0200 with no issues. Breakfast is OK, not lavish but was complimentary as was the the wifi. This Sheraton is now a Luxury Collection hotel. (I can recall whether it was last time I was here or not). I was U/G to a suite on check in. Room service food was good and reasonably priced. We drank at the Officers bar most night and reasonably priced drinks too - currently 27 Birr to the GBP. Bar snacks are good but not huge portions.Pool looked good but no time for a dip. Hotel is actually Saudi owned, not Yemeni.
As has been mentioned up thread, one or two people mentioned the hotel being surrounded by abject poverty. Well, this slum area, as indeed much of the existing Addis slums, are being demolished and re-developed, so has pretty much gone. The area is changing. The security is a bit of a joke and for show rather than effectiveness, but is much the same elsewhere on the continent.
There is currently a fuel shortage in Addis with queues stretching out onto the surrounding roads and does nothing to help congestion at peak times.
I pre-booked the airport shuttle, I was the only one on it, no charge. Check in at 0200 with no issues. Breakfast is OK, not lavish but was complimentary as was the the wifi. This Sheraton is now a Luxury Collection hotel. (I can recall whether it was last time I was here or not). I was U/G to a suite on check in. Room service food was good and reasonably priced. We drank at the Officers bar most night and reasonably priced drinks too - currently 27 Birr to the GBP. Bar snacks are good but not huge portions.Pool looked good but no time for a dip. Hotel is actually Saudi owned, not Yemeni.
As has been mentioned up thread, one or two people mentioned the hotel being surrounded by abject poverty. Well, this slum area, as indeed much of the existing Addis slums, are being demolished and re-developed, so has pretty much gone. The area is changing. The security is a bit of a joke and for show rather than effectiveness, but is much the same elsewhere on the continent.
There is currently a fuel shortage in Addis with queues stretching out onto the surrounding roads and does nothing to help congestion at peak times.
Apr 18, 2018, 9:49 am
#28
Community Director Emerita
Join Date: Oct 2000
Location: Anywhere warm
Posts: 33,742
Four Points Addis Ababa is under construction. It is on a busy street closer to the airport than the Sheraton. I don't know when it is to open.
We had very pleasant stays at the Sheraton both at the start and end of the trip. Sheraton provides transportation from the airport to the hotel. They have a stand in Terminal 2 but we flew in and out of Terminal 1 so needed to arrange it in advance. Qatar uses Terminal 1; then we had domestic flights within the country. The trip is roughly 15 minutes in the middle of the night; longer during the day with heavy traffic.
3 of us were traveling. My room was upgraded to a suite; the other room was given executive lounge access. We were assigned rooms on the fourth floor adjacent to the executive lounge which was appreciated. Our suite had a very spacious living room and 1 1/2 baths. Both rooms had balconies overlooking the water feature below. There were three weddings in that area on the Saturday we were there. The hotel is luxurious though I think a freshening of the design is in order. It has beautiful landscaped grounds.
Two of us went souvenir shopping to an area about a 10 minute walk. Hotel staff suggested leaving phones and excess money/credit cards in our rooms. That was fortunate as there was an aggressive pick pocket group of 5 working that area. There was nothing stealthy about what they did. They were inserting hands into pockets very openly. Fortunately, nothing was taken but it took any pleasure in shopping away.
I was delighted to find an Indian restaurant in the hotel til we ate there. I do not recommend it. We've eaten Indian food all over the world, in India, UK, US, Sri Lanka, and more. Let's just say that the dishes were creatively prepared in ways we didn't recognize and enjoy. It was very expensive to boot.
We were very happy with our stays.
We had very pleasant stays at the Sheraton both at the start and end of the trip. Sheraton provides transportation from the airport to the hotel. They have a stand in Terminal 2 but we flew in and out of Terminal 1 so needed to arrange it in advance. Qatar uses Terminal 1; then we had domestic flights within the country. The trip is roughly 15 minutes in the middle of the night; longer during the day with heavy traffic.
3 of us were traveling. My room was upgraded to a suite; the other room was given executive lounge access. We were assigned rooms on the fourth floor adjacent to the executive lounge which was appreciated. Our suite had a very spacious living room and 1 1/2 baths. Both rooms had balconies overlooking the water feature below. There were three weddings in that area on the Saturday we were there. The hotel is luxurious though I think a freshening of the design is in order. It has beautiful landscaped grounds.
Two of us went souvenir shopping to an area about a 10 minute walk. Hotel staff suggested leaving phones and excess money/credit cards in our rooms. That was fortunate as there was an aggressive pick pocket group of 5 working that area. There was nothing stealthy about what they did. They were inserting hands into pockets very openly. Fortunately, nothing was taken but it took any pleasure in shopping away.
I was delighted to find an Indian restaurant in the hotel til we ate there. I do not recommend it. We've eaten Indian food all over the world, in India, UK, US, Sri Lanka, and more. Let's just say that the dishes were creatively prepared in ways we didn't recognize and enjoy. It was very expensive to boot.
We were very happy with our stays.
Jun 12, 2018, 4:44 am
#29
Join Date: Jan 2015
Location: Kuwait (KW)
Programs: Qatar Airways, Hyatt, Hilton, Marriott, IHG
Posts: 2,711
Just found this on, strangely enough, Marriott's master directory with the same address as the Sheraton. Could this be another LC dropping the Sheraton name? And if yes...
'Empower'?
khabah
'Empower'?
khabah
Aug 14, 2018, 5:34 pm
#30
Join Date: Oct 2009
Location: Los Angeles, CA
Posts: 932