RedSoxNation

I'm supposed to check in for a points stay in a standard king on Weds of this week. Each time I call the property, I get a different answer.

I'm flying from the East Coast and have work in Napa over the next week. The manager I spoke with today was evasive when I asked if an SPG Lifetime Plat such as myself is getting cancelled, who is getting the rooms that are habitable?

I've had this booked for 7 months.

Lurkers? Advice?

omegadeal

So they already notified you that your reservation was cancelled, or you get a different answer when you call? If they notified you, how long in advance did they notify you, and are they offering any help?

I have an upcoming reservation and am just wondering what to expect.

RedSoxNation

It was very conflicting stories when I called. I got an email that said I was ok. But when I called to double check, I always got a different story.

The damage is more extensive from the earthquake than they first thought. I was told they will be canceling most reservations into October.

I was was placed in another property in Napa today at their expense so they did as best as they could in my situation. I did consult William who contacted them on my behalf.

Good resolution I believe.

LobsterSFO

I am currently staying at the Westin Napa.

From the drive up to the hotel it is obvious that there has been quite a bit of damage to the hotel. There are two large trailers parked outside the hotel from a disaster recovery company and a few of the balconies of rooms are visible damaged. In the hotel lobby there are only a few signs of damage, but otherwise it appears normal. Normal that is apart from the lack of people.

I've only looked on the 3rd floor, but one entire wing of the hotel is blocked off. Walking to my room I see most rooms have tags on the doors and some are propped open and there's evidence of the repairs underway. There's a large dehumidifier in one hallway. It's hard to estimate just how much of the hotel is open, but it doesn't seem very much.

The staff and the service is at the same level it was before the earthquake and everything seems to be running smoothly, just in a diminished capacity. I hope they are able to recover quickly.

PTahCha

Scheduled to stay this weekend for 1 night. Just got the e-mail today about the cancellation. They offered the following hotels:

• Sheraton Petaluma (sold out, but may be available using Platinum guarantee)
• River Terrace Inn (Special Verasa rate was not available, but a special Sunday late check-out package is available for $579)
• Silverado Resort (Sold out)
• Meritage (The person answered the phone was uncertain about the special arrangement. Ultimately negotiated a $359 rate.)

Based on my conversation with the Platinum line, there may be a total of 18-25 rooms total that are available. Still, the hotel management could have been more forthcoming in terms of what the negotiated rate at each of the other properties should have been so it's not a guessing game. Additionally, if they knew that they could not accommodate all guests, they should have notify people sooner than 6 days prior to the trip. Very poor planning.

UPDATE 9/15: Just got a call from the hotel, basically to confirm that I received the e-mail. The person said that the displacement rate at the Meritage should have been "about $300", so they are going to call and adjust the rate on my behalf. We'll see how it works out.

PTahCha

Update 9/19: So the hotel never called back. Called the hotel and asked for a manager, and now they claim they only reserved a block of room, but the rate is not negotiated.

While the short notice is unfortunately, it's slightly better than the big fat donut we got from Hyatt corporate and Andaz Napa cancellation in October.

MSPeconomist

It sounds like you'll be at the Meritage, but of your list, I would have advised taking the Sheraton Pentaluma (which doesn't feel like a standard USA Sheraton at all) and focusing your wine tasting activities on Sonoma, which IMO is more pleasant and less touristic anyway, although it would be interesting to see the effects of the quake if doing so doesn't take you into a traffic mess with closed roads, etc.

NewMexFlyer

Sheraton Petaluma is a fun hotel, but is not an alternative to being in Napa. While I agree that Sonoma is a fun place to visit and the Pinot Noir wines from Russian River are some of my favorites, unless you are in Bordeaux, there is nothing like Napa Valley wine.

Calcifer

How have people with more recent stays fared? I see the wording on their website has changed somewhat and now reads: "The Westin Verasa Napa has resumed guest operations following the recent earthquake. Please note that we are still undergoing hotel restorations due to the recent 6.0 earthquake that impacted Napa Valley." Has anyone had problems with reservations this month? We're supposed to be doing a family trip in November and while I understand that's still some time off, I'm curious what sort of progress the hotel has made in getting back to normal operations.

PTahCha

I don't think you need to worry about it. Just tried to book a 2 night stay this weekend and they have rooms available for sale.

mahasamatman

Napa has become as much about whine as wine, and they take themselves far too seriously. Sorry, but I'll take Sonoma over Napa any day. Not only are the wines every bit as good (if not better), but the people are much friendlier and you get treated a whole lot better.

MSPeconomist

I totally agree. Also fewer traffic jams and it seems to me that Sonoma's tasting fees are lower too.

MGJ2727

Looking forward to a stay at the Verasa starting on Wed and extending through the T-day weekend. Stayed at the property in July for a week long work event. It was great. Carpenting was getting a little dingy, but with the earthquake damage, I'm guessing that's all taken care of and will be spanking new.

Sam P. Goodman

We were there about a week and a half ago and they appeared to be wrapping up repairs. Our suite was pretty close to the lobby so we didn't explore a lot of the building, but other than some drywall repairs in the lobby periphery that were still awaiting paint, everything we saw looked good. Great upgrade and super friendly check-in. I enjoy the location and its proximity to Oxbow and Downtown.

Calcifer

A belated post that our stay over Thanksgiving went off without a hitch. Did seem at the time that there might still be a wing out of service, though, at least on the third floor (going to your left as you come out of the elevator lobby). There was some construction and earth moving going on down around the river (ie that project mentioned in the Wiki was behind schedule) but that didn't cause any issues other than not being able to go out the back and cut across the lawn on the way to Oxbow.