SkiAdcock

Opening Feb 2018. Cat 4.

Hotel website:

Stylish European Hotels by Marriott

Moxy hotel is located in the city center leading to the renovated old district - New Aghmashenebeli, where old surroundings are redesigned and brought to life to attract young at heart, creative, extraordinary personalities. The bright and open lobby layout is paired with contemporary furniture. The ''Plug and Meet'' gathering areas provide modern ergonomic seating, large writing walls and 56 inch televisions for presentation projection. The lobby also boasts a state-of-the art video wall and 24/7 Food & Beverage offering a wide selection of snacks and drinks. Other hotel amenities include healthy continental breakfast, an evening bar featuring wines by the glass and local brews. All bedrooms are equipped with 42 inch flat screen televisions, build in USB ports and free Wifi.

gba

Looks like this property is now open, I'm headed to Tbilisi in June and would love to hear a review or two before deciding to stay here. The savings over the Marriott and the Courtyard are substantial.

makin'miles

I stayed here for one night about a week ago. I'm a Marriott Platinum Elite, but come from the SPG side of the family so am not that experienced with Marriott properties - this was also my first stay at a Moxy.

Property is located in a new/purpose-built building on the east side of the river, but directly beside a bridge that walks you back over to the west side. The immediate neighbourhood is comfortable and not particularly noisy, although there's a small street that runs north of the hotel that's filled with cafes and restaurants.

The hotel itself was comfortable and had a nice feeling. The rooms were small, but the lobby was large with lots of different areas and a great vibe. Welcome drinks were offered on arrival. Bed was comfortable. There is very limited hanging space in the room, and I'd be careful about a long stay as there isn't too much storage. The hotel itself seems fully functional, although it looks like some additional retail or restaurants will open in the complex soon... the interiors remained under construction. The agent mentioned a gym being available at check-in, but I didn't check it out.

As a Platinum Elite, I was offered free breakfast. I'm not sure if that's only supposed to kick in once the programs merge in August, but worth mentioning. It was relatively simple, but a big big cut above the free breakfasts offered a some limited service properties in the States. Otherwise, the food choices are fairly limited. A bartender works in the afternoon/evening, so a full bar is available. I found drinks a bit expensive compared to a lot of other places in Tbilisi.

Overall, I felt it was very good value for the price paid (about USD70), and I would definitely return for a short stay.

Tbilisi is an outstanding place. I travel quite a lot, and would say it ranks among my favourite long weekends away, anywhere. I totally recommend it.

SkiAdcock

Thanks so much for the update. Much appreciated.

Cheers.

SkiAdcock

Already have trip report (see above), but Marriott press release saying it's officially open:

Marriott International?s Disruptive Hotel Brand Moxy Makes Its Mark In Georgia With The Opening Of Moxy Tbilisi | Marriott News Center

"Boasting the style and spirit of a boutique hotel without breaking the bank, the 130-bedroom property is ideally located in Saarbruecken Square, offering easy access to Gallery Tbilisi Shopping Mall, MOMA Tbilisi, and the city’s business district, making it a perfect choice for business and leisure travellers alike."

PurdueFlyer

Just returned from a 3-night stay at the Moxy Tbilisi. Mixed experience.

Received arrival drink upon check-in, which turned into a double, courtesy of the bartender. At 6pm on a sultry July evening, this was appreciated. Received a standard room on the 4th floor (4 is the top level here). All the rooms are the same per the front desk. I have only stayed at a Moxy one other time (Berlin) and was upgraded there to a suite-type room, but apparently that's not possible here. Room was small-ish. Not Ibis-in-France small, but having just come from the JW Bucharest, it was noticeably smaller. lol. Maybe with 2 persons and multiple pieces of luggage it would be an issue, but it was certainly fine for a solo traveler. Bed was comfy but I found the sheets to be a little starchy.

Was not offered breakfast as a Gold Elite. Front desk said "only for platinums", and that this was a "recent change." My stay was July 25-28, and I tried to inquire if this was related to the upcoming August program changes (since I would "become platinum") but this was difficult to convey with the language barrier. I asked again the next morning, with different staff but was told the same thing.

My rate was $74 USD/night. The rate including breakfast was $99 USD/night ... a difference of $25 per night. Since I had an early flight out on the last day, my 3-night stay only would have enabled me to take advantage of a breakfast on 2 of the mornings anyways, which is why I decided to risk no brekkie with the cheaper rate. Hey, nothing ventured, nothing gained, right? Instead I walked to Dunkin Donuts across the river, and enjoyed my coffee and 2 donuts for 6.05 GEL ($2.44 USD). I consider this a win. Dining out in Tbilisi is ridiculously cheap.

The hotel is on Saarbruecken Square on the east side of the river. There is a "walking street" extending northwest of the hotel that is lined with shops and restaurants. Most of these venues on the walking street do not open before 9am so if you are looking for breakfast, you'll be limited if its early in the morning. Tiflis Pub is next to the hotel, and is open 24 hours. They were doing a brisk business when I left for the airport at 4am. There is a small grocery on the corner, across the street on the north side of the hotel. I had a day-trip excursion at 9am and was able to stock up on snacks and drinks from the grocery before leaving.

The roundabout on Saarbruecken Square has buses and Marshrutkas that stop, you can access these with a Metromani card. There is no Metro stop near the hotel however. I asked about transport to Freedom Square but the front desk advised me it was probably easier to walk (~15 mins).

The only wrinkle for me was a noise complaint. On Thursday (my 2nd night) I was disturbed by a loud, techno-club music sound that I couldn't figure out where it was coming from. My room faced the square, with bars and restaurants, so I figured some venue was playing loud music. I put my BOSE noise cancelling earbuds in and that blocked most of it out, and drifted off to sleep. The next night, Friday, it happened again. This time it was much louder. I went down to the lobby and discovered that the lobby was playing (blasting) techno club music at a nearly deafening volume. I went to the front desk to ask how much longer this was going to be going on (it was already 10pm) and I had to lean over the front desk and get face to face with the agent to have the conversation; it really was THAT LOUD! She indicated another "hour or hour and a half" for the music. lovely. I had a 3:30am wakeup due to an early flight, hence why I tried to get some shut-eye early.

I wrote to customer care about my complaint, and the hotel responded to me. They felt "sorry for the feelings I left the hotel with" and said "Moxy is aimed to make guests happy having fun atmosphere during the visit at the hotel, that is why on Fridays and Saturdays we organize DJ parties for our guests and all of them are welcomed to have fun with us."

OK, now ... so far, I like the Moxy brand. I'm ok with the fun, youthful, energetic, hashtagging and instagramming vibe. But, when the walls in your 4th floor room are vibrating from the music that the hotel is creating, I feel like there's a line that was crossed. You still need to be a hotel first and foremost. My guess is that as Moxy properties sprout up in more and more locations, that brand probably has a lot of leeway in how they each choose to create their own "vibe." The hotel didn't really endeavor to turn the music down a bit, which is what I wanted them to do, but instead explained WHY they do it.

Would I stay here again? Probably yes. superb value. good location. Other than the club rave, staff was excellent for the entire stay. Always a smile and friendly wave when I was coming or going. They handled my cab arrangement to the airport at 4am, and even made me a free coffee for take-away when I left. Overall it was a pleasant stay. Feel free to PM if you have any questions about the area or Tbilisi!

cheers,

PF

SkiAdcock

Thanks for the detailed report. Much appreciated.

Cheers.

AbuCordoba

Has anyone ever stayed here? any thoughts? Its significantly cheaper than the Marriott and decent reviews from what I can tell. However if anyone as experience would be appreciated.

mecabq

It's a good location and a nice building, but the service is indifferent. They had no map of Tblisi and didn't have basic change (not foreign currency conversion) when I arrived by taxi and needed it from the front desk. I dropped laundry off before the deadline one morning, then when I was checking out the next morning, I even called down (or maybe visited the front desk) and said I would be leaving in an hour and could they please make sure that it was back. They said, sure, but it wasn't when I was checking out.

Worst of all, they just shrugged at all of these basic service lapses. I know that this part of the world is not renowned for customer service -- though the full-service Marriott across the river was excellent -- but their aloofness reminded me of some of the bad experiences I have had at W hotels. Like they are cool and flashy but can't be bothered by basics.

I was not offered breakfast as Platinum, either. This was last summer.

red star