asnovici

Any update on how far is Sheraton from Transamerica Expo Center?

YYZ_TVGuy

Lurkers, can you comment on why this hotel accepts NONE of the SPG promotion codes available pretty much everywhere else (including the Rio hotels) ?

I can not make a $0.01 dent in the price of this hotel.

Starwood Lurker

What specific SPG promotion codes are you attempting to use? And, what dates are you trying to use them?

Best regards,

William R. Sanders
Online Guest Feedback Coordinator
Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide

[email protected]

YYZ_TVGuy

ZBT, Z6H etc. Various combos tried the week of August 22nd-29th.

I'm aware the hotel is not on the Participating Hotels for these promos - my question is why? ZBT specifically mentions "Valid at hotels in US/Canada/South America / etc...." Last time I checked (about 3 months ago, this stuff changes...) Sao Paulo is in South America!

Starwood Lurker

Well, first of all, those are not SPG promotion codes. An SPG promotion code would be something like SPG35, SPG50, and perhaps even SPGCP, although that entails the use of Starpoints to discount a combination of cash and points.

Secondly, a hotel is very much in charge of its own financial destiny and the onsite revenue manager is the king of the realm in that regard. Perhaps the revenue manager of this hotel decided that they did not want to participate in ZBT, Z6H, or any other Z?H promotions. It could be that they are getting along swimmingly without them. If that is the case, then that might explain why they aren't participating.

Nevertheless, asking me or Thyetus to explain why this happens can only generate a response such as this one. To get the real skinny on that, you would have to quizz the revenue manager of the property itself.

I can tell you, however, that the SPG50 rate is working for your travel dates. You would have to call the Customer Contact Center nearest you and you would have to book two reservations to get it for all seven days, but I think two nights at the weekend rate and five at BAR6 is about as cheap as it gets and may be a better choice.

Best regards,

William R. Sanders
Online Guest Feedback Coordinator
Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide

[email protected]

YYZ_TVGuy

Ok, taken, but for the record I was just looking for a little insight is all... I was expecting something along the lines of "This isn't a 100% Starwood property" due to the "WTC" hanging off the end, which as I type this I realize is World Trade Center (I'd confused it with "ITC" from India. Oops.)

And thanks for the SPG50 tip.

Starwood Lurker

No worries, but be sure that it is better than what it is offered as a default rate online. Sometimes it is; sometimes it isn't.

Best regards,

William R. Sanders
Online Guest Feedback Coordinator
Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide

[email protected]

claes059

Pics: http://travel.webshots.com/album/573...fqQQHZ?start=0

In July 2009 I traveled to Sao Paulo. After a comfortable transfer to the hotel from the international airport, arranged by the hotel, a friendly receptionist welcomed me. She tried to put me at ease since I was concerned about my safety. I did read so much concerning safety issues in Brazil. The reception arranged a private citytour for me.

I was upgraded from a Clubroom to a stylish Design room, specially appointed for me! It was great, only.. just a few meters from the room on the streets a machine was making a heavy noise. It was work in progress in the street so the machine would probably make noise all night.

I called the reception and they gave me a very beautiful designed room, in Japanese style. It offered a spacious bathroom with bathtub and separate shower. Wow it was great until….. I hit the bed. Perhaps this was a kind of Japanese bed, but it was ROCKhard. The reception was very accommodating for me and arranged a suite on the top floor. It was not renovated but spacious and with a sitting area. The bed was ok, so I could have a night of sleep after my long flight. The view from the suite was ok, and I could have a view of this big city.

When I asked the reception if the hotel did have Sheraton Sweet Sleeper beds, suddenly it appeared the renovated Clubrooms on the lower floors did offer them. So actually the room I had made reservations for. I did have a look inside and the rooms are very stylish. The view was not interesting however. No Clubroom was available for me, and the hotel could not offer me other renovated rooms. So I stayed in my suite with a view on the highest floor!
The suite itself was not a Starwood / Sheraton room. Since the room was not renovated yet, everywhere I noticed the WTC labels. It was a strange feeling. The bed was ok, but of a rather low quality, a big contrast with the Sheraton Sweet Sleeper bed.

The Clublounge is beautiful designed, spacious, luxurious and the lounge offers during the day snacks, Nespresso coffee, tea and drinks. In the evening alcoholic drinks are available with small snacks and fingerfood. All of high quality. Most butlers do not speak English. Some businessmen became angry, since the butler did not come back after they asked him to refill the Nespresso machine with water. Even when a supervisor came to look and I asked him to refill the machine. He said ok, but never came back. One of the businessmen went to his room to get the water for the refill and I helped him with the machine…
Guest of the Clubfloor can use the laptops which are placed in the lounge for free.

Breakfast is being served on the topfloor of the hotel, in a sort of lounge. Selection is ok, and the quality is high. The buffet is tastefully displayed.
The butlers make a Nespresso if you want to. They are friendly, efficient and take one step further to help you.

Dinner in this hotel was a very big disappointment. The restaurant is not owned by the Sheraton, it’s another company. The restaurant is a sort of large bar with tables and a big tv. The waiters do not speak hardly English so I had to go to the reception so they could explain the menu to me.
The wine I had was excellent. The food however was tasteless and of a very low quality. The vegetables tasted very strange. It appeared no potatoes or rice was being served with this meal. So I asked for it. It took a very long time, I even asked the waiter a second time. So when I had almost finished my dinner the French fries were being served. The waiters did their job but without much commitment to the guest. I did notice many guests had to wait long for their food. The food came from very far I guess, the waiter had to go out of the restaurant via the reception and lobby to collect the trays with the food.
Hope the hotel will offer better dining experiences in the future.

The Health club was claustrophobic small, with only a few machines. The outdoor swimming pool looked rather nice, but was under construction.

The hotel surprised me with a birthday cake, it tasted good and I shared it. See pictures.


Would I go back? Well the renovated Design and Club rooms are great, and the reception told me the Clubfloor rooms will also be located on the higher floors. Service is friendly and the personnel tries to do its best. The hotel is still changing from the WTC to the Sheraton hotel standards. I noticed the personnel experienced this changing in standards as a very big change for the better. They were still struggling with it. I guess the hotel still needs time to bring its standards up to the standards of Sheraton / Starwood.
But I do hope the hotel will offer better dining experiences for their guest, with a higher quality of food! I noticed many guest are going to a shopping mall which is connected with the hotel. It offers some restaurants. Only on Sundays they are closed.

I want to thank Aline Passucci of guest relations for all the professional service and friendliness she gave me. I felt already at home before my landing in Brazil!


Pics: http://travel.webshots.com/album/573...fqQQHZ?start=0

Kate_Canuck

My company booked me for a night at the Sao Paulo Sheraton last week. This is the only approved hotel in the city under our travel policy. I arrived fairly late in the evening, after a delayed flight due to the rain storms. I was told that the twin room allocated to me was a renovated room, but it certainly did not look renovated to me: definitely not one of their Design rooms, more of a refreshed room that looked like it contained the somewhat dinged, old furniture and fixtures. As I usually do on check-in, before unpacking I went to have a look at the bed and bathroom to check cleanliness. The bathroom was ok but when I flipped back the covers on the bed I spotted a short, curly hair and - worse - a couple of tiny red bugs. Now, I don't know what a bed bug looks like but I have my doubts that this is what these critters were - maybe tiny spiders or mites of some kind. A bug is a bug, however, and there certainly was no way I would get a night's sleep in that room. I headed downstairs to ask for another room, which they were able to provide. I dragged my suitcase to room #2, which smelled musty, had a few burn marks in the carpet - and another hair in the bed. Back downstairs and this time, the check-in clerk came upstairs to show me another room; this one, she said, was a Club Room. Again, the same tired furniture and somewhat run down carpet. Like the other two rooms, it had ancient-looking mattresses, mattress covers that didn't completely cover the mattress - and another hair! That was it. I told the employee that I couldn't stay in the hotel and we went back downstairs and I took a cab around the WTC and checked myself into the Hilton, which had very nice new mattresses, thank you very much.

I realize that there likely are insects in most hotel rooms (not to mention my house), but I can handle invisible vermin. Once I meet them face to face, however, I'm out of there. I am not going to stay in that hotel again until I'm confident that they've gotten rid of the old mattresses.

I'd like to add that, although I was very disappointed with the physical condition of the rooms, the staff who I dealt with in respect of this issue were exceptionally professional, courteous and respectful.

eightmillionmiler

I am flying up from Buenos Aires today and will stay at the property. I will post a report tomorrow. Been there quite a few times before it was a Sheraton and once afterwards. The OPs experience different from mine, but we shall see if something has changed.

abarbieri

About 8km (15 minutes by car)

ajnaro

Maybe, but it seems unlikely since this particular hotel always had a terrible reputation in Brasil before signing up with Starwood. São Paulo is a very tough, over supplied market for hotels and aparthotels.

Pat Plus

I understand this hotel is nowhere close to a subway station, is this correct?

I have a great corporate rate (125 USD) but it may not be worth if the hotel is too far away from the subway, since I'm going to Sao Paulo as a tourist.

pjbillez

Well, the subway station the hotel is close to will not really help you as it is not connected to the major subway network. Moreover Sao Paulo's subway system is not that extensive. If you are coming as a tourist I recommend staying in the Jardins area. You'll find plenty of accommodation at the mentioned price range.

SkyTeam777

The pictures on the web site indicate that this hotel has been fully renovated, but reports here reveal otherwise. Can anyone comment on if the hotel is as modern as the web site shows?