gozetta

Yes, that's it. For those interested, here's the email I received today (12/4) on the issue. No phone call. Apparently this is the "Assistant GM" I spoke to to no avail on the day of departure. She must have referenced that as "closing the ticket" even though the formal complaint was filed days later. Note she does not address the main issues of my complaint--only the lack of upgrade which was not really the point to my post:

Dear Mr. X,

It was a pleasure to speak with you recently regarding your stay at the St. Regis Hotel, Houston on the evening of November 13, 2006. This hotel is pleased to upgrade the accommodation of valued SPG Platinum members subject to availability. On this evening unfortunately due to our sold-out status, the upgrade to a deluxe king or grand luxe (junior suite) was not available, and we regret that the only room available on your check-in was Room 215 on our smoking floor. There was an amenity order for your special SPG Platinum guest amenity of a Texas chocolate box, and I apologize profusely if this was not received by you. Upgrades for SPG Platinum guests are not available to Astor floor rooms, Astor Grand Luxes or Astor St. Regis suites as these are specialty rooms and floors with the special services of a butler. Upgrades to this type of accommodation are available at an additional cost of $60.00 (from the rate for the same category of room) subject to availabilty.

Mr. X, I have fully noted your concerns in your guest history profile to ensure that your next stay at our hotel is more pleasant. Please feel free to contact this office directly when planning your next trip to Houston.

Sandy Bertram l Executive Office I St. Regis Hotel, Houston
1919 Briar Oaks Lane, Houston, TX 77027 I Tel: 713.403.2624 I Fax: 713.840.7547 I stregis.com/houston

jayzee9

The thing I'm suprised about is no one on this thread mentioned the train. My wife and I stayed in this property 9 months or so ago and this hotel is very close to a train track, where freight trains speed by and blow their horns several times between midnight at 5 AM. I did not sleep at all when we were staying at this hotel for 2 nights..

DCBob

I have read every post in this thread and it appears obvious to me that from the front desk up to the general manager, the hotel staff participates in a culture of lying and seems to take pleasure in denying SPG Plats upgrades and other legitimate benefits. Starwood should be sending a team of mystery shoppers to this hotel and stop this customer service atrocity for good.

bkarampelas

I spoke with Sandy Bertram when I had my issues, to say it was a combative discussion was an understatement. My colleagues sitting next to me at the trading desk were aghast (and believe me, things can get emotional on the trading floor). Needless to say, none of them stay at the St R. By comparison, I had a not so great stay at Westin Oaks and got a call within hours from the manager, who comped me 7000 points no questions asked.

bkarampelas

What's interesting is that the train noise is something that Houstonians take for granted. Just on the other side of the tracks from the St. Regis is River Oaks, the most expensive real estate in the city. Houses are 10,000 SF plus, on lots that are at least an acre. Numerous ex-Enroners live (or lived) there and their homes are worth sometimes $5 million plus and some of them have lots right up against the tracks.

Austin99

WOW, after staying at this hotel several times in the past I took some disagreement with most of the posts. That was until I checked my reservation online today for a stay this Saturday. It was canceled, which I thought was odd because I never canceled it. I called SPG and was told the hotel canceled the reservation and she would call to see why. She came back on the line after talking to the front desk manager and was told he talked to me on the phone on Nov. 30th and I had canceled it. In the four or five years I have been with SPG the only time I have ever called a hotel for reservations is when I am staying at the Aladdin.

She called him back and reinstated the reservation but I am not very happy with this hotel. I plan on calling him and letting him know that he never talked to me on the phone. Has anyone else had this happen to them.

DFWFlier

My 2 cents worth...I've stayed at the SR Houston twice in the last year or so and found it very average, but certainly not what I'd expect of the brand. The rooms were worn and no upgrade as a Plat. - didn't push it because they were just one night stays. Unfortunately, I've also found the two Westins in the Galleria to also be very average and somewhat pricey, and have never gotten an upgrade at either of those. I have found the InterContinental near the Galleria to be very good.

psalflyer

Wow! The consistency of these experiences is incredible. Since my move from Houston to Boston earlier this year, I have been returning to Houston frequently and have stayed at the SR on several occasions. My opinion echos those here. Though the place always seems like a ghost town, they always claim it is near sold out. My experience with upgrade requests have been similar to others here. Bottom line: the SR Houston is clearly a sub par hotel under the SR banner. The property is tired and the service is lackadaisical. However, as my mother always says: you get what you pay for. They consistently have cheap rates, many times less than the nearby Westin, so what can we really expect?

The only surprising fact is that given the SR image that Starwood is trying to develop (i.e. on par with Four Seasons and Ritz Carlton), it's shocking that they would allow the SR banner to continue to fly here! The service levels and property condition would never be tolerated by either Four Seasons or Ritz Carlton. For those who do not remember (or do not know), the reason why this property was deflagged from the Ritz Carlton in the 90s was because Ritz Carlton felt the property and its owner were not up to their standards. Plus ca change, plus ca reste la meme! The St. Regis organization is apparently less exacting.

DCBob

As I stated earlier, there is a culture of lying at this hotel. Starwood needs to clean house..

shuuy

They passed a city ordinance which has gotten rid of the train horn blowing.

I'll hear the vibrations of a train go by (like a 6am when I'm getting up for my workout in the cramped workout space that's an afterthought), but no horns.

This was for stays between August and last week.

hammond2003

Has anyone been to this spa? I'm trying to put together a day for my girlfriend, and want to know if I should bother with the spa at this hotel or plan it at another one. I've seen a lot of complaints about the hotel on here. Also, if anyone knows if it's possible to use points to pay for spa services, that would be helpful, too. Thanks.

hammond2003

I recently stayed at this hotel, and while the style was a bit too country estate for me, the staff was nice, my room upgrade went fine, my request for a late checkout was accepted, I didn't hear a train, and had an overall good experience. Maybe I'm just lucky...

Anglo Large Clawed Otter

OMG, This Crapulent excuse for a St. Regis is now a Cat. 5

This is now, quite possibly, the worst value for SPG points anywhere in the system.

DrivingRain

Because of this thread I have done the following:

1. Cancelled my reservation at te STR Houston for this weekend

2. Sent a note to the GM referencing this thread in FT

I last stayed here a couple of years ago and considered it the best in the city by default (the FS/Omni/other new downtown spots just arent that good). I guess that is not so anymore.

Too bad...this was going to be my last stay as an SPG Plat.

Houston Cowboy

I have some colleagues visiting from out of town and I decided to book them into the Four Seasons rather than the St. Regis following these postings. There are good bars and restaurants down town and the Four Seasons is only $170 per night.