Four Points Meriden, CT [Master Thread]
 

I am staying at the new Four Points in Meriden, CT and have so far been thoroughly impressed. This former Ramada Inn became a 4-Points 2 weeks ago I was told and is going through a thorough renovation. It definitely has the best bed I have seen at a 4-Points and furnishings are all new. The hotel is still undergoing renovations on some floors and the common areas. The restaurant is pretty decent as well. There was a little hiccup upon checkin, but I'm sure thats just a part of the learning curve. Its definitely the best 4-Points I've stayed at.

I stayed there on July 4th for one night before heading home after our fireworks season and was impressed as well. Still some work to be done, walls are a little sparce etc. People treated me very nicely and one can see the potential. I forget what they called their bed ......"Four Comfort" or something like that, but it was VERY comfy.
They welcomed me as their very first VIP (aka Plat)!! :D

Not much written about experiences at this hotel, so I thought I would contribute my experiences. On Friday, we were in New Haven CT, and we thought it was easier to stay over rather than try to drive home in heavy traffic, so we searched for nearby properties. Two Starwood competitors were sold out in New Haven, so we booked at this property by calling the hotel, 17 miles from the center of New Haven and reserving two rooms. As has been pointed out by a unhappy poster in another thread, the property is off the beaten path;however with GPS it turned out to be an easy straight shot up Interstate 91, then about a mile off the interstate in Meriden. Upon checkin, we found our reservations for two rooms were merged into 1 room, and fortunately, there were rooms available to unmerge the reservations into 2 rooms. I was recognized as a Platinum and given a choice of the welcoming ammenities (took the 250 points). However checkin seemed to take forever, perhaps as long as 10 minutes. Our friend became inpatient while waiting, and decided he needed to go out to his car to bring additional clothes in for the night. Upon his return, we still were in the process of checking in. We were given rooms 511 and 513 on the SPG floor, which were standard-sized rooms, but they had bathrobes and a complimentary bottle of water. The light on the left side of the bed did not work so I pulled on the plug and it came out easily from under the bed. I then rolled the bed away from the wall, but could not plug the light in as the nearest outlet was on the other side of the bed, far beyond an outstretched plug. (I wasn't going to read anyway) Guess they were trying to hide this problem from guests.

The airconditioners were window units and quite noisy causing my wife and our friend in the next room to mention that they were awaken during the night by the noise of the AC kicking on.

We had breakfast in the Sports Bar in the AM and it was satisfactory. Previously a OP indicated that the kitchen staff did not show for breakfast: it appeared to us that the kitchen and the dining room was adequately staffed to provide the service we all expect. Our walk through the hotel found the carpet dirty in numerous places (my wife always checks the carpet). There is an indoor pool which we did not try, as many of the guests had kids, all whom seemed to be having great fun in the pool. Guests have access to a computer which is behind a locked door of the business center which I used to book another AA flight. I remember being told that I needed to insert the room key into the lock, and then lift up on the door latch on checkin. When I slid my key into the door, the green indicator light in the door came on, but when I pushed down on the door latch, the door would not open. I tried it again, and then again, but with the same result, the door would not open. I then went to the desk clerk for help, and he chuckled, stating that the door latch was put on incorrectly, and one needed to lift the latch up, rather than press the latch down! I followed his directions, and the door magically opened!

The hotel offered us reasonably priced safe accomodations for a night, and is convenient for those traveling Interstate 91 from Boston to NYC. It lies about 20 minutes from New Haven, a trip that we considered too long to do again in the dark if we did not know the location of the hotel, or did not have GPS.

That should teach your wife for sleeping in your friends room and not yours.did your friends wife sleep in your room?:rolleyes:

Need review/info for 4P Meridien, CT
 

I'm waiting for a smart-... comment about doing a search.
"Meridien" generates 20 pages of results.:mad:
God forbid Starwood opens a hotel in Sheraton, Indiana.

Please save search comments, and if anyone has updated info about this hotel, let me know. Thanks

FYI, It's Meriden, Ct. (Not Meridien, which would definitely bring up more search results).

The staff goes above and beyond. They're the only SPG property in CT that I actually look forward to staying at.

What do you specifically want to know? I've stayed there about 20 times in the last two years.

Stayed there for a very brief 4 hours this week after arriving at 4:30 am. The front desk celrk checked me in quickly and gave me the AAA rate. She then had me roll dice, which generated a free breakfast. The room was nothing to remark upon except that it had no soap. The internet was very fast, except at that time of the morning maybe noone else was using it.

The breakfast buffet selection had chocolate chip, but not regular, pancakes.

Also you can have your wedding there with dinner, 1 hour open bar for 100 people, and the honeymoon suite for $5,500, in case anyone is looking

I have stayed here a lot lately and the staff could not be nicer. For what it is this is a perfectly pleasant hotel and the suites are nice. They just upgraded the wifi and it works great.

have been there 6 times over the last 4-6 weeks.

Property is rough, but they throw points at you for extra promos. The place definitely is due for an upgrade, and should be started soon as per sales manager

In Praise of the 4 Points Meriden
 

We had a room booked for last night to get out of our powerless (and heatless) house. The front desk was a madhouse at 5pm, with people waiting for rooms (it seems as though people did not leave at the designated check out time and housekeeping was severely backed-up). In addition, they were getting about 1 walk in every 10 minutes (turned them away - hotel is booked through Sunday) and about 1 phone call per minute with people looking for rooms. The three ladies at the front desk handled it with grace and poise and kept those of us waiting for rooms updated (and gave out drink coupons, which was very nice). In the end, we got our room around 6:30 and our power came on at 9, so we left, but they did a great job.

I just got a letter from the property. I stayed there for business in September 2011 and they just realized they never charged me, 8 months later, and will be charging me! And I never noticed.

Is that even legal?

Not charging you or asking for their money 8 months later? I think they would have as long as the statute of limitation is in CT for contracts. In the end if you owe the money you should pay it.

Morally it is due and I would pay it, legally however, I'm not sure. I don't live in CT or even in the US, so laws might be different.

What is this square box on my dresser named "zenith"? Looks like a tv, but tvs are supposed to be rectangular. This square thing is confusing.

OK hotel. If I hadn't gotten a BRG and didn't need the night for the 3x promo, I wouldn't have stayed there. I don't understand the business model. There are several hotels right off the highway. This one is a mile away. And who stays here if not passers through? Not convenient to Hartford or New Haven, being 20 miles from either. No real food or conveniences nearby. And not all that cheap either, but for the BRG rate. Room is dated. A/c is one of those floor units not controlled by temp thermostat.

Yet the lot was near full. They must be doing something right. Very friendly front desk. Fresh cookies. Coupon for a free breakfast. Good free wifi. All in all a bit of a diamond in the rough.

still have the dice game at the FD?

I have found that due to the on site restaurant, lots of road workers stay there

were you there last night? I was but didnt get back till 2am stopped off on my to Boston checked in using the roomsaver.com coupon $69 (Mon-Wed) $59 all other days wasnt offerred a free breakfast but then again I didnt want it as I had too much coffee on the drive back and didnt hit the sack till 3am

Unfortuantely NO

its now drop your biz card into the glass jar and I think either once a week or month they draw 1 card (all the other cards stay put for the next drawing) and they give that person 10K in pts

If you missed the BBQ place on the way in, you really missed out.

On your left very soon after you take the turn off of Main Street onto Pomeroy.

Looks like I missed you by a day, craz.

I missed it. But I did get a good bagel, so there's that.

I will be there next month and will try the BBQ. I have been driving by it for years. Where do you go for the bagel.

At the free breakfast at the restaurant attached to the hotel. They brought them in from somewhere. Very good. Just the right crust to chewy ratio.

At the hotel now. Lots of changes and new faces. One of the employees told me the hotel was in the process of or has been sold. Makes me wonder if it will stay in Spg with the new sheraton literally right up the road.

Any update on the condition of the hotel?
Are the rooms already renovated?

THX

Last time I was there they were in the process but to me it will not change the property that much. If it is not to far out of the way, the Sheraton Hartford South is really a much nicer property and not that far away.

I am in the hotel now. I was at the Sheraton Hartford South which is 10 minutes away on Saturday. If you read this thread you will see that over time I have liked this hotel.

NOT ANY MORE.

Checked in this afternoon. They gave me the wrong wifi password and when I called down stairs the phone didn't work. They sent someone to look at the phone and it was still broken later that night.

Two computers in the lobby but only one can print but in the past both could. They have whatever version of windows that no one can easily use especially us Mac people.

My new upgraded suite has NO plugs that can be accessed by a desk or night table. The hvac still has no thermostat and the one in the bedroom has no auto setting so live with what you set.

To add insult to injury I came back after dinner and the wifi in the entire hotel is down. The woman at the desk said she and the GM called their wifi provider three times each and they didn't answer. Go figure. Guess it was the low bidder.

Last time I was here one elevator was out and from the lights in the lobby and a sign on the second floor it looks like it still is.

IMHO the new owners have not helped this property out the least bit but turned it into a wreck. If the rates are close go to the Sheraton Hartford South as it is close and a really nice hotel. If you want a cheap room with a hotel bar (it's like the only bar around) and not much else stay here.

not great
 

Stayed last night - for one night - on a hot, humid, rainy night.

The front desk gal was very friendly, as was the server at breakfast. Warm and friendly.

Beyond that, there wasn't much to recommend this place other than the rate ($129). Hallways and my room smelled musty. Hotel was clean but tired - totally devoid of style or charm.

If it weren't for the *Wood affiliation and the opportunity to earn points and qualifying nights, I'd probably choose the Hampton Inn or Residence Inn nearby.

So let me give an updated review. I have been at this hotel dozens of times, and many more to come.

Recent reno of the lobby area. Well done, nice. Indoor heated pool, spacious and comfortable. Exercise area looks good, just not my thing. Lots of meeting space. Great bar and restaurant, diverse menu.

Rooms recently had a refresh. I typically end up with the "32" suite. Well appointed, comfortable, sofa, refrig, microwave. Large desk, but I actually prefer the lounge chair here so I can work and watch TV. Outlets in LR are minimal, but some rooms have a new outlet bunch on the table with 4 outlets and 2 USB slots. All the BR also have the same. The GREATEST thing I have NEVER seen elsewhere. The BR has a thermostat RIGHT next to the bed. I prefer to sleep in a cold room with the fan on. This allows me to turn off the fan, raise the set temp, check email and only get out of bed when the room is warm after 5-10 minutes. GENIUS.

Breakfast buffet is decent, but always the same, real eggs, potatoes, bacon/sausage and french toast. It is full, not continental.

Another great thing I have lucked out on, when you do MAGC, they still fresh your room, make the bed, trash, replenish water. My work is in New Haven, I CHOOSE to drive the 20 minutes to this property. Tracy and Yvonne care about their guests and work hard to make it right.

I have stayed here for years and you like this place a lot more than I do. When the hotel up the road became the Sheraton South Hartford I moved up there and it is such a nicer hotel although it tends to be more expensive.

Four Points Meriden, CT [Master Thread]
 

I took a job west of New Haven in January so I've been spending way too many nights in hotels in the area. My preferred hotel has been a Hyatt Place in Shelton but as an SPG Platinum Ambassador I decided I really should spend some nights with SPG since I'm trying to achieve Lifetime Platinum. Sadly this hotel is the only option in a 20 mile radius so I booked a week here recently.

Overall I also cannot share etsmyers enthusiasm for the Four Points. Don't get me wrong, overall it is a functional decent place to stay but IMHO it does have the following issues:
- a strange location somewhat off the beaten path down an industrial warehouse road
- the lobby is indeed renovated but I think it is very strange that they leave all the doors to the conference/meeting rooms (which are directly accessible from the lobby) open. Why would you want all those doors open showing everyone that walks by empty rooms with table and chairs?
- hallways to the rooms were dreary and dingy
- I too got a __32 suite but I wasn't as impressed. Evidently they did not replace all the furniture in the suites when they renovated even though they should have. My bed needed replacing and felt like it was leaning or lopsided.
- hallways were very noisy
- the week I stayed there it was very snowy and the hotel did not do a good job at snow removal. Parking lot barely plowed and area right in front of door was never really cleaned or salted.

Positives:
- friendly staff
- good room housekeeping staff as pointed out
- good strong wifi in the room

Overall it is a functional hotel but I would not go out of my way to stay there. I'm actually choosing to stay with Hyatt even though I would like to stay with SPG in the area since driving daily from Hartford to my job to pick another SPG property is too far.

The south Hartford Sheraton isn't really in Hartford. It's maybe 10 minutes up the road.

Hyatt Place or Hyatt House? I know there is a HH in Shelton.
I also frequent the HP in Milford.

Maxed out the HGP promo so moved to the 4p. I like the breakfast and bar/dinner better at 4pt over the HP.

Sheraton South is nice, but that turns my 30 minute drive to 45. YUCK

Sorry but I got my Houses and Places confused! :). I've stayed at both but prefer the Hyatt House in Shelton over the Hyatt Place in Milford even though it is farther from my office. HH also is in a nicer area with better food options than the HP plus the Studio Suites are pretty nice. So far this year I've also maxed out on the HGP promo and have had 20 nights at the HH and 8 nights at the HP. (Plus my 5 at the 4Pts and 2 at the Omni in NH) Was able to sign up for the GP Diamond Elite promo as well so I should be Diamond later this week.

Really wish SPG had a better option in the area! Tentatively have the 4Pts booked for 3 nights mid month so if your in town maybe we could have a FT get together at the hotel. Just don't steal my suite upgrade!

Definitely will be, but we apparently can also get together when at home since it appears I am just up 83

Spent a night here last week on points and was pleased. Confirmed most of what's been said in this thread; friendly staff, appealing lobby, elevators were prompt, pool was large enough for laps and the indoor/outdoor deck area was attractive (with shower on the indoor deck, no locker room), the bed was very comfortable in a typical 4P room. Didn't have too deal with thermostat as outdoor temps were moderate so room was pleasant without any noise.

Check in was fast; was upgraded to a suite which was appreciated and very unexpected (as a Gold). Also got $3 off/person coupon for full hot b'fast buffet, which was very good, as was dinner, in the Silver City Bar & Grill attached to the hotel. There were a couple trucks worth of road workers in the bar and restaurant, which helped make the place seem livelier than it might have otherwise. Overall the stay was pleasant and I would come back if in the area again.