Sheraton and San Cristobal Tower, Santiago, Chile [Master Thread]
 

Enjoyed their hospitality middle of January '05. the hotels are very busy with cruise groups all over. Reasonable pool, snack food very average. My main story was that I checked into the Towers very late. Got a great rate but a low floor level - fair enough. Had just hunkered down and the air fan / conditioner started up, so bad I couldn't sleep. The concierge helped move me quick enough and the manager kindly provided a bottle two nights later. Sadly I was flying out the next night and couldn't do it justice! A great gesture none the less.

We stayed over New Years and were upgraded to a huge suite - the furniture was dated but the size of the suite was awesome.

Our only problem with the hotel was the concierge Marco - he sent us to an absolutely awful restaurant for lunch that was both bad and expensive. We asked them to try and find us a car, and he lied and told the other bellman/concierge that he had called us with a car - when in fact he hadn't - we were in the room the whole time and unless the phones weren't working, there was no way we wouldn't have heard it.

The gym wasn't bad - when it opened....

I find it pretty funny that you say that. I stayed at the Towers last August on a Cash & Points rate and got upgraded to an amazing suite. It would have been the perfect stay had it not been for Marco. He attempted to rip us off on every possible occassion. Do NOT go to any restaurant that he recommends because he only sends guests to places with kickbacks. We actually befriended one of the taxi drivers who the Sheraton concierge arranged for us and he told us some of the "dirt" on Marco. All in all, I would reommend the Towers. My suite was one of, if not the, nicest room I have stayed in.

Thanks for confirming our suspicions - we hate to feel paranoid.

San Cristobal Tower, Santiago, Chile
 

I will be visiting Santiago for four days and I'm booked at San Cristobal Tower. Any feedback on this? How do they treat Platinums? Thanks.

I am writing this from San Cristóbal Tower! First, in my experience the San Cristóbal treats Platinum SPG members very well. In the past five years or so, I have received suite upgrades on every visit. And the suites are really magnificent, with two huge completely separate rooms. Although the hotel’s location is not very convenient for people who like to walk, two new bridges have just been built over the Mapocho River, putting the hotel within a 10-15 minute walk to shops, restaurants, etc, in a near-by neighborhood called Providencia. Also, taxis are very cheap if you avoid the so-called taxis peddled by the hotel and take ordinary metered taxis. Two or three of these are normally waiting at the foot of the small hill at the Sheraton entrance. If you want a good location, right in Providencia, try the Four Points.

I love that hotel - I have stayed maybe 5 times with a few more on the Sheraton side. Definitely stay in the Tower. It is a really fine hotel - better than all but the most elegant hotels in Europe. Agreed that the new bridge makes things a lot more convenient. The concierge on the Sheraton side are very good - Ivan and the female (I can't recall her name now - she'll hit me if she finds out!)

Thanks
 

Thank you both for the tip. I will be staying at the San Cristobal Tower although the 4Points is a bit tempting location-wise.

Would appreciate any tips on dining, sightseeing, etc around Santiago.

Wonderful Hotel !!!
I think Santiago is the best capital in Latin America: excellent food/restaurants/wine, nice people, near the mountains (ski!!) and near the Pacific (although the beachs are not as good and the water sometimes very cold). The only negative point is the polution.
Restaurants : Astrid y Gaston (one of the best in Latin America - best wine list!), Agua, Europeo, Hereford (meat). Chile is famous for the seafood, but a very traditional restaurante (Coco Loco) wasn't OK for us last time, check with the Concierge.
In terms of sightseeing, try to rent a own car or a driver and visit the urban Santiago area (Las Condes, La Dehesa and many other interesting neighborhood). If you have more time, visit Viña del Mar and Valparaiso (1 hour by car). Of course if you have (I suppose not) much more time, visit the south of Chile !!
Enjoy !!!

I agree with all posted here before I thought the service at the San Cristabal was the best I ever had in any SPG property worldwide and also would also highly recommend the restuarant Astrid y Gaston.

Also make sure to visit the Los Dominos for anything such as artwork, pottery and nice inexpensive handmade souvenirs. The guy who makes the muticolored carvings on single matchsticks is alone worth the visit there.

mike

I have stayed three times at the SC Tower, and was upgraded to a suite twice. The suite was magnificent. The standard room was very, very nice as weel.

In addition to the suite, each night I recived a three tier tray of fresh fruit, pistachios, almonds, and chocolates. On occassion, I received the visit of a butler offering services, and I also received some free ironing (2 garments).

This is my favorite Starwood hotel in South America.

I like walking, so a 15-25 minute walk to the restaurant of my choice does not bother me. If accompanied, especially with children, it may be a bit far, but taxis are not expensive (rental cars are).

I found the food at the restaurants to be very, very good, even for not so hip places.

In short, everything about my stay in Santiago greatly exceeded my expectations.

I stayed on a cash and points reservation a few months ago and was also upgraded to the magnificent two room suite. It was one of the nicest rooms I had ever stayed in.

If you need any help from the concierge, I would recommend walking to the Sheraton side of the building (they are connected) and speak to the concierge there. The San Cristobal concierge ripped us off at every possible occasion. Ther was one individual in particular that almost single handedly ruined our trip. The Sheraton side was extremely helpful on the other hand and all their prices were very competitive. Enjoy your trip.

I have very high praise for both the concierges after two stays at the San Cristobal.
How could a concierge rip you off? Did you buy something from him?
mike

One example was that we had the concierge arrange for a van and a driver for us for the day. The driver ended up being very friendly and during the course of the day, told us how much of our price he received versus how much the San Cristobal charged us. That wasn't so shocking, but then he told us that if we had booked through the Sheraton, we would have saved some money. I checked with the Sheraton Concierge that night, and he was correct. They could have gotten us the exact same ride for much less. We ended up just getting the driver's cell # and used him on various other occassions on our trip bypassing the hotel's fees.

On another occassion, we tried to book a ski package through the San Cristobal conierge. We had already learned our lesson from the previous day so after being quoted a price, we checked with the Sheraton and again the price difference was fairly substantial.

On yet another occassion, we asked for a recommendation for a casual restaurant within walking distance. The place recommended to us was extremely expensive and empty (not a good sign for a weekend night) so we ended up going to a place nearby. We struck up a conversation with the bartender there and he told us about how the particular individual at our concierge receives personal kickbacks from the restaurant next door. He even guessed the guy's name that sent us there.

But again, the hotel is a great property and I would definitely recommend it to anyone. I would just be wary of dealings with the concierge.

I stayed there about a year ago and they treated me very well as a platinum. They upgraded me to a huge suite. It was a bedroom with a very nice separate dining/lving room... they treat the plats really well.