dingo

I've not been to the RC...please report back. It is supposed to be a 'green' hotel and I certainly have the reputation around here as not caring much about the 'green' movement...but I'd still appreciate the report.

Congrats on your upgrade controller1...I've stayed at the hotel around 30 times and have had one upgrade that was better than moving up to those illustrious Starwood Preferred floors. My guess is someone made a huge mistake!

EnvoyBoy

Well, I went to the RC for drinks last night so my report is limited to that experience but before I even walked into the hotel, I can tell you that, although only five or six blocks from the Westin, it's in a far superior location surrounded by high-end restaurants, nice bars, limited shopping, a high-end cinema, Cold Stone, etc. etc. THERE'S downtown Charlotte! It's also within a block of the Omni and the Hilton so I wouldn't hesitate staying there if you had business at either of those other properties.

Very modern and box-y but nice. I almost walked past it--it doesn't look like a typical RC. Lounge was a little dark (I wouldn't take a book in their and try to read) but very comfortable and even though fairly full it wasn't loud. In all ways it seemed to outshine the Westin but it was a bit "less than" for an RC. For example, as I went to find the lounge, I walked by two employees who didn't even ackowledge me. Flashback to the Westin! Service in the lounge was good and friendly, but not crisp. Don't get me wrong: it was a DELIGHTFUL change from two days stuck at the Westin durin a tropical storm but it wasn't quite RC standards.

I am wondering if it's a Charlotte thing whereby the community just doesn't have the necessary people for the level of service you'd expect from an RC. In a conversation with a manager at the RC New Orleans, that's a huge problem down there and they have to "import" people for anything remotely close to mid-management or above.

At the end of the day, the city is small enough to get around that if I have to return to Charlotte I will avoid the Westin. The whole experience was, at best, simply disappointing, if not entirely frustrating and mind-bogglingly stupid at times.

dingo

Thanks for the report; I'll have to check it out at some point.

NDDomer86

This is going off topic and might be better served in the Marriott forum, but I just completed a stay at the new Ritz Carlton. I found the service to be great for Charlotte (where service is certainly not a forte save for a select few properties)), but like EnvoyBoy, thought it a bit lackluster for a Ritz Carlton. The rooms were nice, but lacked that "wow" factor (think nice Westin with a RC bed and a nicer bathroom) that you expect from a Ritz, particularly disappointing with all of the money that was poured into the development of this property. Definitely a very average Ritz Carlton (particularly for a new build) but a very nice option for Charlotte. Pricing seems pretty on-par with Uptown hotels, making it a very viable option for anyone visiting Charlotte (and with attractive corporate rates).

NDDomer86

$79 rate through March 2, 2010 including parking.

USFreak

I am surprised that no one mentioned the internet charges....thank god I am PLT but the guy infront of me wasn't and the rate was $18.95 for 1 day. The price went down per day if you stayed more than 1 night. I stayed for 2 nights and it was 26 and change. For 5 nights, it averaged to $10 per day. RIDICULOUS if you ask me.

I was in town this past weekend (3/6-8) for the SoCon basketball tourney and stayed at the Westin for the 1st time. Hotel was packed with several conferences and as one poster put it, the lines for any type of service were just unreal. The check-in area was VERY poorly constructed and a very limited staff checking in a massive amount of people.

I had a room xx02 with the double views of the interstate and the stadium and generally was satisfied with my room. Upgrade was the corner room...They forgot to charge me valet parking so I got off with free internet and parking and a prepaid rate of $100 per night for two nights.

Moving Chicane

To define this a bit better, the rates are based on a 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5+ day stays AND a 512 or 2MB up/down connection. The longer/faster you want, the more you pay. The 1 day, 512 starts at 10.99 or 11.99 if I remember correctly.

And while I didn't have a check-in issue (even with a full lobby of Quail Hollow Tourney golfers), or check-out (5am Monday); I had to deal with what was perhaps the worst "bell hop" eva! I actually had to yell "Alto" at him across the lobby entrance and valet area to keep him from loading my bags into someone else's car!!! (Note to Bell-hop: Just because you take a bunch of claim checks at once (mine was the first) doesn't mean you lump them all together and deliver all the bags to the car associated with the final claim ticket! argh!) Too funny....

af fp

I'm currently staying there, as a Preferred Plus, it's pretty bad:
- no upgrade
- no complimentary water
- must pay for shoe shine
- amenities limited to the bare minimum, eg soap
- no king bed for me although I reserved one ("at this time we have none left").

dingo

What's a preferred plus?

af fp

That s when one has a starwood Amex. Not great but usually it gets you something like a smile. Here it's been useless.

af fp

I'm there again. What a dump. The caesar salad is a soggy piece of lettuce thrown in mustard sauce. The swimming pool has green water with black clouds (tadpoles?). Do I come back for the points and eventually gold status or just stay at the much better Ritz Carlton (RC), for the same price? The Aloft downtown is not on our company's list, too bad...

qwsxz

I sincerely hope you are exaggerating. The Charlotte Westin is the reason I am loyal to the Starwood brand. I was working my first traveling job out of college in Charlotte the summer the Westin opened. I was staying at the Residence Inn by the football stadium and the Westin mgr at the time got me a better deal and comped me Platinum. To this day, even though I don't travel for business anymore, I go out of my way to stay at Starwood Properties. Honeymoon, vacations, etc and every place I stay at I use the Charlotte Westin as the standard.

Kudo's to Starwood to making me a loyal customer. I hope if I visit the Charlotte Westin again, the experience will match my first impression made 7 years ago.

af fp

Well I finally managed to book the Aloft in Charlotte and the difference is huge, mostly because I have not had to deal with uninterested staff too much, service is really a big problem here, but also because the food is simple but better. Try the Westin Charlotte again, you will be sorely disappointed.

CMK10

My Father stayed here on Saturday night of last week and he had himself a little accident. While walking outside he tripped and fell and hit his head on a metal garbage can/ashtray. He was dazed from it and was unable to call for help but a Valet had seen it and they called 911 and alerted the front desk. An ambulance was called and the supervisor brought towels out to put pressure on his head. Luckily, he's ok (with minor damage to his pride I'm sure).

I called last night to thank them for all their help and the woman actually thanked me for calling because she wanted to make sure he was ok. They even offered to comp the room and pay for the ambulance ride because it happened on their property. Big ^ to them.

He is usually more of a Ritz Carlton fan but due to this experience, this will be a new hotel choice for him.

nfg05

This Westin is decidedly middle of the pack for me. Nothing too impressive about it but certainly not one to avoid if you need to be in downtown CLT and want more than the bare-bones, loud AC experience at the Aloft.