bpoe19

I was there with a group right after New Years, and we were upgraded to a jr suite with very good ocean view. The beach across the street is nice, and the water this time of year is awesome. The hotel is a nice change of pace from the Sheraton Rio.

wendySFO

Thanks bpoe19 for your update.

In terms of transportation from the airport (GIG) to Sheraton Barra, I got a quote from the hotel of R$174 (approximately $75 US dolloar) for a private car. They also told me they can help book Rio Shuttle for R$18. I am surprised by the wide difference of the two choices. Any one has experience with the Rio Shuttle? Will it take much more longer to get to the hotel?

lovtofly3

I took the Rio Shuttle last Jan. from the Sheraton RIO in Leblon to airport.
Concierge did booking .
It is not a non-stop service,depending on traffic and other hotel drop-offs and pick-ups could take 1 hrs or more in either direction.

Price is right..

Sweet Willie

anyone know how much a taxi costs from GIG to Sheraton Barra ? (I'm assuming less than a private car)

wendySFO

Just arrived Sheraton Barra. Took a radio taxi from the airport, R$99 pre-paid at the airport just after immigration/customer before exit to the arrival hall. They take credit card so no worry if you don't have the Brazilian Real. It is a white taxi waiting outside of exit. There are yellow taxi outside waiting as well and it is cheaper. I went with the radio taxi as I wasn't sure if my lack of language skill will be a problem and I have no Brazilian currency. Rio shuttle is most economic but have to pre-book and may have to wait a bit as they are on fixed schedule.

Sweet Willie

~$40 for a cab seems reasonable to me, especially as there will be two of us.
Great info on them taking a CC^

how great, ENJOY! I'm very curious of the dining choices in the hotel and nearby.

wendySFO

Tried the room service and resturant at the lobby. Food was ok, service at the resturant was excellent. There is also a pool side place to eat inside the hotel. I passed by when went to massage but didn't try it.

There are some resturants in walking distance I tried. One is Italian on the left about 10 min walk, was good. Another one I tried is Japeness on the right about 5 min walk, food I had (Japeness fried noddle) was really salty and not very Japeness to me

There are several stores nearby have all kinds of pastries, they are all very very good.

ATM is at the immediate right after exit hotel front door. For misc needs, there is a small supermarket next to the hotel cross the road from the right(inside the apartment complex). There is a drug store next to the supermarket and a cafe type of place for lunch/dinner/pastry/coffee.

The best food I had in Rio was near Ipanema and downtown, they are also considerably cheaper. I went with the locals so probably not so tourist oriented places.

Sweet Willie

thanks for the feedback, good to know about a spa at the hotel, Mrs Sweet Willie & I are looking forward to doing nothing and being pampered for 5 days in the Sheraton Barra area/hotel, then go crazy/celebrate NYE in "downtown" Rio for a few days.^

Sweet Willie

For ease of figures, our exchange rate was $1 US = 2.15 Brazil Real.

we did the same as wendySFO, it was just too easy after getting off the long plane flight and gathering our bags

I chose the Sheraton Barra de Tijuca for a number of reasons: cheap room using cash n points being one, but more importantly I wanted a non-packed, relaxed beach scene for the first few days we were in Rio and the Sheraton Barra delivered.

We arrived about noon and were checked into room 1009. Front desk did offer platinum amenity at check-in. Room was a nice layout, not ocean front but 3 rooms “back” and close enough that when we sat out on the patio, one could easily hear the waves pounding the shore. The patio was nice to sit in the evening and have a drink.

breakfast wasn't offered to me (plat) but perhaps because we were on a cash and points rate ? Anyways, breakfast was 42 Real for both of us. After one breakfast we decided the buffet is good but it is so much stinking food we didn't need and we could eat much better for less later on in the day at other meals.@:-)

Our Bed was not lush but comfortable enough. Bathroom is long and a bit narrow, shower is very strong/good.

The pool area is very crowded (many chairs close together) and I’d recommend going to beach anyways as that is what is so nice about Barra de Tijuca. Everyday we took a long walk on the nice boardwalk that lines the LONG Barra de Tijuca beach.

We did try the spa, a couples massage for 55 minutes was 270 Real. Both Mrs Sweet Willie & I remarked the masseuses were ok but really didn’t have good techniques of the good masseuses we’ve been to. Still very relaxing and we weren’t sorry we used the spa.

As AAEXP correctly points out, there are plenty of restaurants within walking distance of the Sheraton Barra (we walked to/from all of the below). The concierge also mentioned restaurants which would provide free transportation to/from the hotel & restaurant but we found more than enough within walking distance so we never went to any of these “free transportation” restaurants:

We never ate at the Sheraton Barra for dinner, we had a couple lunches by the pool (the pizza is very good, our favorite being the dry meat & catupiry cheese
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Catupiry Mrs Sweet Willie also enjoyed the Sheraton Burger & the club sandwich.)

On Saturdays, the Sheraton has a buffet of various Brazilian dishes, I was disappointed that we did not realize that is was only served on Saturdays. Included in the buffet were at least 8 different kind of “stews/soups” including feijoada which may be considered the national dish of Brazil.
http://www.brazilbrazil.com/feijoada.html

At night we had a couple of Caipirinhas most nights at the bar on the first floor. At 12 Real a drink, it was ok priced I thought.

For dinner:

About 4 blocks away, we walked to dinner at FRATELLI RESTAURANTE. It served the most tender/flavorful octopus I’ve ever had, simply delicious. We also split a pizza which was good. The “optional” appetizers they put down before the meal were delicious so we weren’t too ticked off when we saw they charged for them. We learned our lesson and when sitting down at a restaurant, we’d look at the “optional” items they were going to set down to see if we wanted them, most of the time we didn’t, guess we lucked out at Fratelli.

A little further after Fratelli Restaurant, about 7 blocks away from the Sheraton Barra is the Churrascaria Tourão located Praça São Perpetuo 116
It is a large loud place filled with families that serves very good grilled cooked meats that they slice for you tableside, there is also a large buffet full of salads, appetizers and desserts. We only spent 102 Real all in for our meal, this included quite a few beers and drinks.

In that same square is a small supermarket with deli, the big 1.5 liter bottle of water in the hotel room costs 11.50 Brazilian real, the same bottle in this supermarket costs 1.45 Brazilian real. We also were able to stock up on some beers, wine, snacks. This market also sells some very good baked goods including cheesebreads and the best brigadeiro we had while in Brazil http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brigadeiro Also, the supermarket has it's own food serving area, almost a mini-restaurant that served very good food, including the best sandiwch I think it was called carne asada (steak) sandwiche for only 5.50 Real, terrific.

Also in that square is a micro-brewery restaurant They serve German food but we had a few other items. The fried shrimp appetizer (we didn’t expect them to be fried but sautéed) were actually excellent and a ton of them. We then spilt a fish cooked with spices and dende (palm) oil. Very good. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Palm_oil

After some very heavy meals, we took a break and ate a Minimok which is a sushi & yakatori place only ½ block from the hotel. It was not as cheap as some of the above meals but a nice change of place. Afterwards is a pasty & bake shop right next to minimok open late for coffee & a treat.

There is also another sushi place the opposite way from Minimok which looked more sushi only oriented.

Can’t for Ipanema but for Leblon a flat rate taxi ride was being offered by the “taxi” desk of 52 Real.

--

bpoe19

Thanks for the trip report! I wish we would have known about the micro-brewery, then we would haven't had the foam disaster of the Heineken mini-keg we lugged around for 3 days (Sheraton Barra kept it on ice for us at check-in too). It was bad trying to pour it while eating at a beachside hut/eatery and even worse once we were on the beach--good times.

claes059

Review of the Sheraton Barra hotel, Rio de Janeiro.

For pictures: http://travel.webshots.com/album/573780435fsLaEj


The Sheraton Barrra is only 20 minutes far from the Sheraton Rio. I took a yellow cab. In the weekend the citycenter of Rio, f.i. Lapa, can be reached in half an hour.

The Sheraton Barra is located near a very ugly high rising building, which blocks the view of the ocean from your room. This Sheraton is a rather new hotel, and one can notice. Upon entering the hotel you find yourself in a spacious area, luxurious interiors.

The check – in at the reception was friendly and efficient. I had made reservations for a room with Prime Ocean view, so I had high expectations. I had emailed the hotel weeks before my arrival concerning my preferences. I received a free coupon for a Brazilian drink and a note that a enhanced room was waiting for me, since I was a Gold SPG. So Expectations were even higher now!
While walking to my room I noticed the public spaces are well maintained and it gives you a pleasant feeling of being here. No old carpets or old doors.
However, when I entered my room I did not like it!
I noticed a very smallish bathroom with a very basic shower and no bathtub! The Prime view was not a frontal view of the Ocean, only a side view… From the bedroom the view was the ugly high rising building near the hotel…

I did not receive a welcome card / welcome message on tv, or gift. No bathrobe or slippers were available. No coffee corner / water cooker.
This room should be a renovated room, and certainly they had replaced the mouldy carpet for tiles since I am allergic . However not in the bedroom!

I could not imagine this was the room I made reservations for. And the hotel did not upgrade me! Standing on my small balcony I could see two balconies on my floor on the left, before me. So, I guessed these rooms would have the Prime Ocean View.

I called the reception two times since I was not happy with this room without a bathtub and having not frontal Ocean view. But they could not offer another room! Boy, I was quite disappointed. I guess my expectations had been too high for a deluxe Prime Oceanview room for $265,-- per night in a 5* Starwood hotel…?

I went to the reception on my way to the beach. I spoke to mrs. Erika, who helped me very professional and very friendly, I felt more at ease now. This attitude of her did give me a nice feeling, knowing she is doing her best! She promised she would look into this matter and would try to find a room with a bath or a frontal view.
After my visit to the beautiful beach of Barra I asked the reception again for another room, but they told me I had to wait.

In the evening I tried again, spoke to mrs. Erika. She had a meeting with her supervisor in the morning and now she would do this with the supervisor in the afternoon. Mrs. Mariana, the supervisor, appeared after some time waiting and showed a different kind of attitude.
I did not like the way she expressed herself, a hard voice and kind of dominating. I found myself in a heated discussion concerning bathrooms with showers. In my experience I have had always bathtubs in the 5* Starwood hotels around the world In 2 – 3* hotels you can find the basic showers or sometimes even basic bathtubs. According to mrs. Mariana this was not the case, she had travelled in Europe and Australia and did find the showers in the 5* hotels. Furthermore she told me I had one of the best rooms! Only the suites had a bathtub and some of the suites with frontal view. But no suites without the mouldy carpets were available. They would try to find one if a guest would checkout early… But most of the suites were used for the couples who were just married…. She would include my preferences in my profile for the next time. I

I thanked her for taking care of giving me one of the best room without the carpet in the livingroom and not in the bedroom. But told her very clear I did not like the room.
Though during the evening the attitude and conversation with mrs. Marianna bothered me too much. I was annoyed the conversation had this effect on me, even when I was out in the city centre of Rio! .

During my stay I had several contacts with mrs. Erika. She was one of the Stars of Starwood I guess, she made me feel at home!
She showed me a suite with bathtub. I liked the suite, and I liked the spacious bathroom with bathtub! The view was ok, only on the lower floor. The suite had carpets in the room. She promised me the bathrobe, slippers and even a coffeemaker. She added that the hotel was planning to offer these items not only in the suites but also in the preferred rooms

The rest of my stay,, 2 nights, were perfect! I liked the interior designs of the hotel, the spaciousness and 5* ambience. Breakfast was a feast, high quality products, wide range of products, attentive waiters, stylish! Though it was very, very busy, the managers and waiters coordinated everything very well! It was a pleasure having breakfast in this restaurant.
My dinners were fine in this restaurant, nice ambience and good selection in the menu. I did like the wine menu.
One annoyance is the lack of knowledge of English. Many times the waitress told me she understood my order, but from her actions I could notice she did not.
But the restaurant takes care of this immediately, and in a short while an English speaking waiter serviced me! “Hello gentlemen….” was kind of funny. He did a good job, and I was happy he did understand what I wanted to order!

The Spa seemed to be very nice. The woman at the reception did not speak English, so after a short conversation I decided not to take a massage. Could not understand why she did not speak English in this international hotel!

The Gym is located in a separate building in the pool area. The gym is perfect and I had a great workout here. Only one suggestion, the floor under the cross trainer was dirty with old sweat of other guests who used it. I guess the fitness instructor could keep an eye on that?
After the gym I had a very, very nice swim in the heated pool. The pool for adults is large and it was nice, I could swim many rounds. The Spa area for men was great, the red pushing button of the whirlpool was confusing. Beside the button was a message: push when in danger. However one of the pool boys showed me I did have to use this button to activate the whirlpool.
The sauna and steam bath were nice too. I was totally Refreshed after my visit to the Spa and gym! (Or in terms of the Westin brand, I refreshed my soul…..)
I asked the reception the costs of the beachtowel, a friend of mine liked it so much, she wanted to have it. When I asked the reception it was almost €40, -- and too expensive for a present. Do not know why the towel had to be this expensive for a guest.

The Sheraton Barra does have a terrific concierge. This youg men helped me out when I had to check in for my flights back home. It was not easy to reach the airline on this Sunday, and he spend many simultaneous phone calls and internet actions to check me in. He arranged the rio airport shuttle for me, and everything went fine! For me another star of Starwood, someone who is making a few steps steps further to help.

As a guest you have 30 min. to surf at the internet at the Sheraton@Link. When I tried to use it, one pc and one laptop appeared to be defect. While trying to log in, it was not clear to me how to log in as a guest for 30 minutes. I did hear other guest complaining considering this matter. In general I noticed a member of the reception team is taking care of the guest here.

I did have another “meeting” with mrs. Mariana. When packing my suitecase I noticed I had left my coat and a present in the Sheraton Rio. I went to the reception and spoke to mrs. Mariana. This time she appeared to me much nicer, and helped me out. She did a great job. She managed to have my coat back in 1-2 hours. It was great!
I did notice that her attitude, hard voice, kind of dominating and arrogance, was an aspect of her personality. Since this time she was very helpful. I guess she could not help the way she acted, and I guessed this was her attitude to most of the guest and not only to me. Well besides this, she acted very professional and empathic towards me!

Would I go back? Most certainly.
This is a very comfortable hotel, with, in general, a professional friendly service. The Spa seems very nice and the relaxation areas ( pool/gym etc) are attractive too. It is a pleasure to have breakfast or have dinner in the stylish restaurant.
One big disadvantage for me is the lack of…….. a bathtub and a real Prime Ocean view in the rooms! I.m.o. the hotel should change the description of the type of room on the SPG site, it is not a Prime Ocean view but a (Front)Side Oceanview, and a clear description the rooms have not bathtub! This way one’s expectations are not so high.

For pictures: http://travel.webshots.com/album/573780435fsLaEj





I

TTT103

Thank you for a very detailed review of the hotel. It sounds as though you enjoyed yourself, even after all of the challenges with the room.

A few observations:

1. English is not the native language in Rio, so why would you expect everyone to speak English?

2. If you feel that you did not receive the room type that you reserved (prime ocean versus front/side ocean) simply contact SPG customer service to express your dissatisfaction.

3. Forget about the rating of the hotel being a 5. There is so much subjectivity with the rating system. It's kind of like the hotel being a SPG CAT 4. What does that really mean with all of the SPG inflation that has occurred over the past few years with additional categories and point creeping. The fortunate thing with all of this is that hotels are generally not doing well so I would expect a significant number of declines next year with SPG hotels moving down in CAT's.

4. Next time, spend time enjoying your vacation rather than worrying about the room, upgrades, and gifts. Afterall, how much time do you really spend in your room.

ajnaro

It seems to me that anyone who has this sort of an attitude toward hotels may as well as book into a pensão in downtown Rio. It would certainly be much cheaper!

SNA_Flyer

It most certainly is not, but one would expect that the front line staff in an international hotel would have some proficiency in English. Not just for native English speakers, but also for the many world traveling people for whom English is a second language and are not Portuguese speakers.

BlissWorld

Let's do a SAT verbal question:

Sheraton::Five Star

(A)Hawaii::Beautiful
(B)Diamond::Expensive
(C)Walmart::Upscale
(D)BMW::German

The answer is....C.

Those 2 do not belong in the same sentence.