Excelsior

Hi William. I've got to take a little issue with this... The reason I didn't ask Kristen is that at that time, I was taking the front desk on their word, that all suites were laid out like mine. Are you suggesting that the front desk staff may not have been straight forward with me? If so, then that's troubling.

My issue was with the suite and not the meeting space that Kristen was showing me. For some reason I disassociated the two (probably because, I was so pleased with the meeting space and food layout).... In any event, my expectations of the suite, which were established by the Charlotte Westin website weren't met. I didn't feel as though I had gotten what I had paid for (especially with the maintenance issues) and wouldn't want to have a repeat performance when I'm trying to put on a meeting / entertain our newest and largest client.

Starwood Lurker

I have no idea if the front desk people have seen every suite in the hotel, but it seems unlikely. They may have access to something that describes every suite as being the same, however, so I don't know if they were being disengenuous or not.

I'm pretty sure that Kristen can find out for you though. Especially if it means the difference between them getting the meeting or not.

Sincerely,


William R. Sanders
Customer Service Coordinator
Starwood Preferred Services

[email protected]

dingo

I held a small meeting at this hotel earlier this year. Some short points:
1. I do like this hotel.
2. I like the bar area.
3. I like the location.
4. I was not impressed with the small groups sales person that I worked with to organize the meeting. Several calls unreturned, and the website would have given me cheaper room rates than what I was offered through the sales office.
5. We had our meeting room until 12:00; promptly at 12:00 the doors opened and a crew was looking to set up a new group. I know we had our end time, but scheduling should permit for a little over run.
6. I was pleased with the staff that took care of the food and meals for my small group.
7. I have stayed here several times and generally like the rooms; the corner rooms are nice but have never been upgraded despite numerous requests.

I did not communicate my issues to the hotel. I did call once toward the start of our discussions and ask if I could have a different sales rep...nope. My choices were down to the Hyatt and the Westin, and I wanted the Westin. The points for the meeting were a pitance for what I paid for, but the meetings went well once I bulldogged the sales agent.

Would I go back again? Hmmm....the Marriott is closer to bars and places to eat.

ldsant

Stayed at the Westin Charlotte last week for business. Checked in on a Sunday, out on Wednesday. Checking in I was never recognized for Plat status nor was I offered a Plat amenity. When I asked if I had been upgraded, I was told "oh no, we only upgrade people who are with groups or conventions." They are our VIPs. Huh? I went on to ask her why they don't upgrade Platinums since it's a published benefit and were there any suites available? She said "oh well. . .you should have made your reservation in advance." I said, "well, I made it well over a month ago." Oh yes, so you did. . .well. . here - I'll move somebody out of a suite and put you in it." OK.

The room was nice with one Heavenly bed (King size) in the bedroom, two bathrooms, and a sitting/living area. The view was very nice (21st floor). There wasn't any bottled water provided or anything else in the room. Amenities were small bottles of the Heavenly Bath products. Turn down service was offered the first day but not any other day.

I ordered room service the second night (after being sick with the flu all day). Ordered an English muffin and a small bowl of sherbet along with iced tea. Cost was $19.

The fitness center looked nice but costs $5 per day for hotel guests. Wireless was not working in my room at least. The lobby was nice as well decor wise. The parking attendants in the garage were very friendly and helpful.

The hotel didn't impress me in any way - it is a good location in that you can walk to various places throughout the city. The concierge did not have a clue about where anything was located and just kept looking in the phone book when I asked for a restaurant suggestion and where a bakery might be located.

dingo

Just my personal opinion, but you will NEVER get an upgrade. A few times at check in I was told "we've got you in a nice upgraded corner room"..."that was what I booked, is there a room upgrade available"...without even batting an eye or missing a beat "sorry." I am beginning to think that there is in fact a policy at this hotel not to upgrade under any circumstances. I had a small meeting there and dished the hotel a moderate 25 room nights plus meals and didn't see so much as a thank you card. It's a nice hotel, somewhat ok location, but you get what you pay for regardless of status...that's my opinion but I'd welcome contrarian views.

uschpr

I booked an extremely discounted rate at this hotel over the NASCAR race weekend this year. The hotel ended up being sold out due to the race, but despite this, we were still upgraded to a suite without even asking. The gentleman who checked us in was exceptional. He came out from behind the desk to shake our hands and to thank us for being SPG platinum. What a nice touch!!

jimcoddington

I have been told this hotel does not have a Starwood lounge, other than sleep is there anything to do in the hotel?

My dad and I will staying at this hotel, for we will be walking down to the stadium to hopefully watch our STL Rams beat the Panthers on 12/12. Is there anything exciting to do around the hotel?

dingo

There's a nice enough bar in the hotel right off the lobby, and another bar in the restaurant as well. I'd recommend Ri Ra's for a little Irish flavor.

ldsant

If you walk about 2 blocks away from the hotel, there are lots of restaurants and bars as well as shopping. I found the hotel to be pricey and not all that great food wise. You'll do better off walking outside the hotel.

seawolf

Nice hotel but too expensive.....more than twice the price at the sheraton....however they do have a T-1 connection.

dingo

The prices are absolutely high here...no doubt about it. And upgrades just don't happen. I usually get told at check in that they see I'm a plat and have upgraded me to a BLANK room. I ask what I booked and of course it was BLANK. Or sometimes it will be BLANK on a high floor or BLANK on the Starwood floor which means nothing here. The one time I got upgraded I was put in someone else's suite. My wife was crushed when the chocolate strawberries were removed after we called them....they can have the bubbly, but leave the fruit!

The Sheraton is on the opposite end of the spectrum. Any hotel with a pool in the lobby has issues! And the club floor....oh my. Three stays in the last two months and I have got all of two bottles of water out of the club. And when I did, I had to go in and turn on the lights myself to get them out of the fridge. Never pay for the club floor b/c there is not a club at all, at least whenever I'm there. The bartenders are friendly at the Sheraton, but some of the rooms have an odd smell to them. My one upgrade there was to the presidential suite...that freaked me out. Way too big for one person for one night and I had to beg to get it.

Sam P. Goodman

Had a nice stay while there for a conference in March. I was in a standard room on a high floor. Very large window with nice view of the skyline. The room was very nice--typical of a new Westin.

millburnmike

Very nice hotel. I stayed there for about six months 2 winters ago and was very happy. I was back about a year ago and it was status quo. It has only been open for a little over 2 years and the only negative is that it is at the outer edge of the downtown. Since CLT is relatively small this is not a big deal. Try for a high room, but do not get stressed about it - the top 2 have upgraded soaps and a better radio, but nothing else. Corners are a little bigger with nice views. There are a lot of regulars there so upgrades for plats is not even guaranteed. Enjoy your stay.

aaffair

The Ballantyne Resort & Spa is offering triple points until March 1st. A much better choice if you are going to Charlotte. The "B" Resort is more convenient to the airport and truly is a luxury property. The Westins are all the same although the Amber grill restaurant serves some great food. The Ballantyne's Grill Room is not too bad either!

aaffair

Try the Ballantyne resort, part of the Luxury Collection in south Charlotte. They are good with thier upgrades. Ask for Christina, the SPG manager. I hear they are also giving triple points through March!