Any recent experiences at the Sheraton Santiago Hotel & Conference Center?
 

Looking at doing a six night stay in mid-to-late September (is this too long to experience Santiago and nearby area?) and most interested in any information regarding Club Lounge and noise at night. Thanks.

I would change it to 4 nights for Santiago and 2 nights at the Sheraton Miramar Hotel in Viña del Mar. Valparaiso and Viña del Mar are definitely worth seeing and they also have vineyards about 40 min outside (on the way from Santiago). You could also do 3 and 3. But 6 in Santiago is a bit much imo (although it's a great city).

You can rent a car - it's a straight shot and easy to drive (about 90 min). There is a rental car facility in the hotel. Although note that when arriving the Sheraton Miramar you will have to drive past it a mile or two before you are able to turn around and enter it. Don't despair.

Re noise - there is a building going up next door - so some noise during day - none at night. Club lounge in the San Cristobal Tower is lovely with amazing views. Not sure about the Sheraton (the two buildings are attached however). As a Plat I reserved at the Sheraton but was upgraded to the San Cristobal Tower. May happen to you as well although ymmv.

Have fun! Amazing spot!

I agree with TravelinSperry - that's a lot for Santiago. The idea of the Miramar is excellent, but it's a small property and books quickly.

The hotel itself is excellent, kind of old-school but most (if not all) of the floors have been renovated in the last few years, and the lounge is nice. There's also a great outdoor restaurant pool-side, but September can still be cold, although we haven't had much of a real winter this year.

Everyone travels differently, so we can't tell you if six days is too much time for you, but if you like to take things slow and sleep in, etc., six days might be good, but if you like to get out and see everything right away, you might get bored by the end of your stay in Stgo.

We were there in May for one night.

The club is quite nice, as it was pointed out earlier, the views are great. The service was also great.

The only thing for me is location. Especially at night we had to walk a ways to the metro station. It's very quiet at night. Perhaps being there during the May Labor Day weekend didn't help.

Any recent stays?
 

Anyone stayed here recently? Doing a long weekend in early Feb. How "renovated" are the rooms? Is there a Club Lounge at this property, or only at the San Cristobal next door? Got a BRG rate which includes breaksfast: where should I have it?

This used to be my favorite hotel anywhere. After no less than annual stays since late 2001, this was my first choice of property in Santiago. I probably have stayed there 25+ times until my last stay in December 2014. I looked forward to each trip, with many staff welcoming me by name, handshakes, and hugs, from concierge to bartenders to lounge wait staff.

During my December 2014 trip, a terrible incident occurred. I will not go into detail here. I should have immediately contacted the local authorities, but I did not, figuring that the hotel which has treated me so well over so many years would try and do right and not want any publicity. After the incident, I did not post on any social media, nor contact Starwood Corporate. Again, I figured the hotel would try and remedy internally. After a few post-trip email exchanges with internal security and the GM, the GM did not reply to my final message. All correspondence was polite and professional. I would have been treated better had a been a first time customer complaining about some service item or fault with the room. At least then they'd comp you something or throw you Starpoints. Instead, this "lifelong" customer now stays elsewhere in Santiago. Sadly.

Quick Review
 

Had a recent first stay here in early Feb, and another one coming up in 2 months. Good BRG opportunities here at the moment, bringing rates lower than at the nearby FP.

I originally booked at the Sheraton, but since a whole wing of the hotel seems to be undergoing renovations (see picture), I was upgraded to the San Cristobal Tower, as others here have also reported. Now, for those familiar with the Sheraton in Buenos Aires, which also houses the LC Park Tower, this is a world away. While the Park Tower lobby, rooms and furniture feel dated, the San Cristobal is truly deserving of the LC brand. The lobby is nicely appointed, service is excellent. In general the grounds, pool and staff at the Sheraton seem much better than their Buenos Aires counterpart. There is an office building going up next door, but it looks near completion (glass panes were being fitted), so noise levels weren't bothersome.

There’s a Club Lounge at the top floor, but breakfast isn’t automatically included for Plats: you must surrender your welcome amenity if your rate does not include breakfast (I had to pull out my BRG confirmation, which thankfully mentioned breakfast, until they’d agree to honour it). The breakfast spread is great, and the hours are excellent, from 6:30AM till 11:00AM.

Evening hors is a mixed bag. They start at 6:30PM and go till 9:00PM. On the first night (Saturday), we went up around 7:45PM and found a packed lounge, and nothing on the buffet. It wasn’t until 8:45PM that they brought out some cheese and ham sandwiches and that was it. The following day the lounge was much quieter, and the snacks were being regularly replenished, so maybe Saturday was too busy, or it was an off night. In any case, drinks are complimentary throughout, and include some very good pisco sours, sparkling wines, beers and other cocktails. Great service and great views too.

Location-wise, it can be a bit of a pain. It’s a straight shot to/from the airport, but there’s really nothing within walking distance: not a corner store, and the taxi stop is often empty. The nearest metro and shops are a 10-15 minute walk away. Famous seafood restaurant “Aqui Esta Coco” is just across the river.

All in all it was an excellent stay and I’m looking forward to my next stay.

Looking at staying here for 1 or 2 nights, but definitely concerned about the immediate area not having as much to do as the W.

We're only in Santiago for 2 nights, so we're definitely going to do some sightseeing, probably via Uber / cab, but it would definitely be nice to be able to walk around.

When people say there's not much around via walking distance, does that mean within 5 minutes? 10 minutes? 15? I know a lot of people define "walking distance" differently.

Thanks

There's really nothing at all until you get almost to Aqui Está Coco, about 2.5 kilometers from the hotel. Then some restaurants and cafés start to appear. About 300 meters more and you're at the Pedro de Valdivia metro station and right in the heart of the Providencia section of town. It's a middle class neighborhood, similar to Copacabana in Rio without the beach. You'll need to get on the metro to reach fancier parts of town (or the cbd, for that matter). If you want a more upscale location with SPG, try the W.

Aqui Esta Coco is not more than 500m from the hotel.

Agree, was there just 4 weeks ago and this restaurant is probably 5-7 mins walk, just across the bridge and you're there.

If you walk out of the hotel (turn left) thru the park for about 10 mins you get to a load more restaurants and all themed according to a particular Country. We went into the Chilean (fish) restaurant and the manager's son does some fantastic artwork on a plate with food colorings (he does it there in front of you). It really was impressive and made the meal (I can dig out name if anyone wants it).

We got a guide for 4 hours to show us around the main sites of Santiago (we really liked the museum + Mercado) and then it was off to Easter Island (absolutely wonderful place!)

Forgot to mention... Pisco Sour's are great to drink in any flavour!

Google Maps gives the distance as 2.7 kilometers. Frankly, having done the walk many times over the years, including before the Concepción bridge existed and before Aqui Está Coco burned down and was rebuilt, 2.7 km seems exaggerated to me. The map seems to be giving a pretty crazy route, turning right instead of left out of the hotel front entrance. They also give a more realistic route at 2.1 km crossing the new bridge straight onto La Concepción. At any rate, we all agree that it is highly walkable. I personally feel uncomfortable walking it at night, mainly because most of it is almost abandoned after dark. Nevertheless, after walking the route on and off for about 20 years, I can say that nothing unpleasant ever occurred while doing so. I once had a pick-pocket at the near-by metro stop Los Leones.

For what you've described above, I would recommend the W over the Sheraton. As a "local" for the last eight years, I've stayed in both - I go to the Sheraton for a weekend at the pool and quiet, relaxing times, and I stay at the W for fun (usually after events). I'm not a fan of the whole bathroom-in-the-bedroom thing that the W has going on, but it's a MUCH better location if you want to go out by foot.

Also, quite a few companies have moved out of the Sheraton's zone in Providencia and up to the area of Las Condes around Manquehue (Sanhattan), so it's much quieter at night around the Sheraton. Lots of business travelers are staying at the W/Ritz area and up, rather than in Providencia and closer to Santiago Centro as compared to before. I much prefer the restaurant options that are around the W than around the Sheraton, with the exception of Aquí Está Coco, as has been mentioned previously.

New Club Lounge?
 

I have an upcoming stay this weekend, and looking at the photos on the website, it seems like the Sheraton now has a dedicated Club Lounge (as opposed to previously using the San Cristobal's lounge). Can anyone confirm this, and how the offerings may differ (I would miss the pisco sours from the San Cristobal lounge!)?

Answering my own question above: there is now a lounge at the Sheraton, therefore Plats can no longer use the lounge at the San Cristobal.

However, during my last stay they were having problems with the aircon on that floor, so the lounge was closed and Plats were being directed to the San Cristobal. Therefore I wasn't able to check out the offering. I'm due back in September, but if anyone can elaborate on the offering, etc I would be happy to hear!