For an overnight Doha transit stay ~18 hours, can anyone advise between the Westin and the W as a plat member? I also have hyatt globalist and that could be an option as well.

Thanks!

I've been to both many times. 18 hours isn't terribly long. A little more info will help. What are you looking for? Dinner and sleep? A night out? Quiet in general? What time do you arrive / depart - makes a huge difference given how terrible traffic is there.

Both treat Plats well in my opinion though I think the benefits at the W go further but not enough to make a difference on an 18 hour stay.

I'm not JGB89, but I'll build on her/his question... I get in about midnight and will leave the hotel about 1pm the next afternoon. May sit by the pool, or may visit the Museum of Islamic Art if I get up on time.

I could do the Hyatt, but I'm an SPG Plat and looking primarily at the W and the St. Regis.

Same questions as the above. Have 2 layovers in Doha. One from 5am to 2am, and the other from 12am to 8am. As a platinum, which SPG resort in Doha would be best for enjoying a pool and excellent service for the first layover?

I personally love the W pool and service - you really feel removed in there but there's still lots to do and great dining options. The Sheraton is more of a complex; bigger with a small "beach" and large pool area though not as nice IMHO as W. St. Regis is as you'd expect though further than both of the W and Sheraton.

Moved to the W after the Marriott Marquis; haven't stayed here in a while! Feedback:

• They've renovated the lobby. The famous suspended lanterns are still there, but the rest of the dark furniture is all gone for more contemporary little seating areas with curved leather couches and upholstered chairs, with hanging Arabesque pendants sequestering them. Arabic patterns in gold behind the reception desks, which now have pink tops and sea green carpeting below. It's nice, but I can't help but feel like W has now been Marriottized. It still feels plush but somewhat more generic; it's clearly 'W by Marriott' if that makes sense.
• Staff are fabulous as always. Check-in was quick, upgraded to a W Suite. Even though I performed a mobile check-in hours in advance, I still had to wait about fifteen minutes for the room to be ready.
• Room is gorgeous and spacious; the W Suites are the yellow ones and two categories down from the top-end Extreme WOW Suite. Wedged in the corner of the building with a hanging swing chair, curved couch, dining table for three, king bed and 1.5 bathrooms. It's a testament to the excellent designers that their furnishings still have a 'wow' factor almost ten years after opening!
• WIP Lounge still exists, with food from 5-7 PM and happy hour from 6-7 PM. Food selection is a step down from the lavish spread of before [which had sushi, more hot options and sandwiches] but the current spread is still decent, with generous selections of salads and three hot options.
• The hotel still allows smoking indoors in the Crystal Lounge [which the WIP Lounge is a part of], Wahm, the bar on the pool deck and many rooms. As a result, many parts of the building stink of stale smoke.
• I hate to sound so judge-y... but the clientele ain't what it used to be. Also, the WIP Lounge clearly doesn't enforce a dress code so there are MANY guests who are in here wearing shorts, hoodies, swimming trunks, beanies and flip-flops.

Sigh, nothing stays the same. At least the bones of this property are still great.

khabah

Where can I find the email address of W Doha? I have a long transit in Doha coming up from midnite to midnite and I want to ask if they can accomodate my request to check in at 1am to check out at 10pm or so the same day.

I do not qualify for the Qatar+ programme so this would be a direct booking with the hotel. Thanks.

Hi R2,

You can reach W Doha team at [email protected].

Best regards,

Chie Ling Chua
Social Media Specialist
Marriott International
[email protected]

This is what I have in the exec lounge sticky. Can anyone provide an update?

* Doha / W / OPEN Sun-Thurs (per website); 09/18 update

Wow, just had a terrible check-in at the W Doha. Just awful.

No mention of my status at all or any benefits. No upgrade. Told “sold out” when most suite categories are still for sale. Just asked if I needed late check-out. No mention of lounge access. No welcome gift. I asked about the lounge and was told about the nightclub.

There’s two options for internet: Complimentary or $25 (90 rials) for fast. I picked fast, but it’s so slow I can’t even get speedtest to start (errors out on latency test). Connections keep dropping.

I asked about an upgrade and was told they assigned me to a marvelous room with a good view. I’m looking at a parking lot. I think I’m going to go down and complain and while I’m at it ask for the no welcome gift comp.

Very disappointing! I was considering two stays later this year - hopefully this is an isolated situation. Your experience seems to be in contrast with others unfortunately.

Are you there on a cheap QR stopover hotel rate? Or booked as usual on marriott.com?

On a paid corp rate, not paid by QR.

A non-update update: went down to speak to the manager on duty. She was very apologetic but didn't do anything meaningful to recover except for being nice and apologetic. She said welcome gift would be coming later, points were already applied to the room since breakfast was included. She said they're almost sold out. I pointed out they're selling every type of suite category on marriott.com but that did not deter her.

I dropped the matter, I don't actually care that much about getting a suite — perfectly comfortable in a base level room for the one night layover, and the room is decent. It's more about the principle and the expectations which were so far off from reality. This hotel gets rave reviews everywhere, so I just couldn't believe how far off it was for me.

She said she'd make sure I got an upgrade on my next visit or "any other W hotel." Meaningless offer as I doubt I'm staying here again next time.

So she can offer upgrades at Ws in other countries? :rolleyes:

I had exactly the same issues about 3 weeks and made a complaint about it and to be fair it was handled well but it was a shocking stay and a big fall from grace from what used to be one of my favorite hotels!

How did you make the complaint and how was it handled?

I guess not :td:

when they asked me at checkout how was my stay, I said not good but no point to discuss I will be emailing later, within a few minutes of leaving the hotel, the hotel had email me to ask me what was wrong as they heard I did not have a pleasant stay, I responded explaining like yourself the lack of recognition, the lack of upgrade initially (like you I persisted and luckily found a manager willing to listen) and in my case some very rude behavior by the staff towards my son who is only 18 months old (I know its not a family friendly hotel but the staff were less than friendly towards him). Anyhow he responded really nicely, apologized and offered a complimentary 2 night stay to rectify the situation, so there is still some hope, the only thing is my wife is really unkeen to return after that experience :(

what room type did you end up receiving after this?

WOW suite which is what I get around 60-70% of my bookings usually here historically

This is what I have listed in the exec lounge sticky. Can someone provide an update whether it's accurate or what the lounge/breakfast situation is so that I can update the sticky? Thx.

* Doha / W / OPEN Sun-Thurs (per website); 09/18 update

Cheers.

Not sure what the information is supposed to mean.

There is a club lounge with the following hours:
6am-11am - breakfast
12pm-4pm - lunch buffet
5pm-8pm - dinner buffet
6pm-7pm - happy hour

There is also breakfast in the restaurant. Don't recall the hours.

For the exec lounge sticky I don't need the hours. The last time I had checked the hotel website, it showed the lounge open Sun-Thurs, so I was wondering what the breakfast situation was on the weekends when alledgely it was closed. If you're saying the lounge is open daily, then I'll update the exec lounge to say OPEN (which means all 7 days). Also, to clarify - are you saying there is the option of breakfast in the restaurant instead of the lounge as a regular thing or is restaurant breakfast the PAG option? Again, any input appreciated & I'll update the exec lounge sticky.

Cheers.

I was given the option of breakfast at the restaurant. I believe it might have come from a rate inclusion. I received the hours of the lounge, with no mention of it being only open on certain days. I stayed one night on a Wed.

The location is the same as a popular nightclub Crystal, so it's quite possible the lounge is not open on days where it turns into the club at night. I wouldn't know.

I too stayed last week and it was such a contrast from recent previous stays, though you still got no recognition at check in and no upgrade, I raised the issue and was upgraded accordingly to the wow suite.

The staff are much more friendlier especially to my 18 month old son, and have kid menus in the restaurant now. The Suites come with Aqua Di Parma toiletries which are my favourite!!

For Ramadan you can chose spice market or la spiga (asian or italian) as the lounge options for lunch and dinner and chose 3 courses from a set menu thing with complementary non-alcoholic drinks.

This is back on my hit list for Doha!

Thanks for the continued updates. I currently have rooms booked at W and Grand Hyatt for the same dates (both flexible) and waiting to decide which one to keep and which one to cancel. Earlier reports of stinginess of W were disturbing, your latest update is a bit comforting, but I wish the upgrades were proactive. I am still on the fence until further reports!

If your stay is during Ramadan then I would definietly go for W , it is quite so good change of being upgraded and the free food at La Spiga and Spice Market is AWESOME!

It's a few months from now so I still have time for more reports, and Ramadan will not be an issue by then... I will keep W in mind for Ramadan in future years though! Thank you

Broader discussion, but is it worth it to visit Doha vs Dubai? Or is it better to give Doha a few more years to catch up with construction before the 2022 World Cup?

I found Doha to be rather boring. I think Dubai is more fun and has more to offer. This'll be up to everyone's personal taste, though.

Short answer is Dubai by a long shot. I think if you want a more detailed discussion you could ask in the destination threads rather than here which is limited to W.

Executive Lounge Access
 

Hi all. Can someone confirm that Marriott Platinums receive lounge access? I'll be at W on a Tuesday evening / Wednesday day. I know it was taken away at LCs and most Ws don't even have lounges, and Marriott has changed everything up, so I'm sure it's not an official benefits. Thanks for confirming.

You do but the lounge is rather depressing IMO

always enjoy the W. The Gin drinks are about all you can drink until 1900 in the restaurant on the first floor on Thursday evenings!!

Really what has changed? I haven't been in over a year but still loved it for dinner or midday snacks last time I was there.

I loved my upgrade there. Round bed with metal type curtains around the bed on an electric controller. Very cool. Huge bathroom.

Staying here now. There is no longer an executive lounge for platinum/titanium guests

any lounge alternative?
 

Does the W offer an alternative to the lounge, like in the restaurant or something?
What's the situation with breakfast? Is that offered in the breakfast for elites as well?

The W is ranked #1 on Tripadvisor for hotels in Doha; however, there are a few Bonvoy properties in the top 10:

https://www.tripadvisor.com/Hotels-g...ha-Hotels.html

Which would you recommend overall for location / rooms / lounge / elite benefits?

Thank you.

Can any one share the email address for STR pearl and STR Doha?

Thanks

Another great, yet imperfect, experience in Doha - don't get me wrong, there's a lot to like here, but I could see the cracks in the seams with a few items / details. I would still recommend the property - here are my pros, cons, and photos:

Pros:

• Had to ask at check-in (more in Cons), but was upgraded to a Cool Corner Suite Sea View that was ready at 12:30 PM - though, it was only on the 4th floor (hotel rooms here only go up to 15 as residences are on 16-29)
• I really liked the layout of the Cool Corner Suite - especially the large and comfortable desk (so funny that a W has a fantastic productive space) and the massive amount of floor-to-ceiling windows
• Bed was fantastic - just-right mattress, large, plush pillows, plush covers
• Great views of surrounding buildings and water (you can see the STR in the distance and the new JW tower if it ever opens)
• Friendly service throughout - great luggage service, great front desk, brought a nice welcome juice at check-in
• Elite welcome gift breakfast at Market by Jean-Georges was great
  • Super tasty dish that I could only describe as breakfast pizza
  • Nice salmon benedict on made-to-order menu
  • Tasty cinnamon donut and chocolate muffin with white frosting
  • Brought out a super sweet plate of pancakes with a chocolate Welcome message - the server brought a plate, I told him I didn't order anything else, and he just smiled as he lowered it so I could see the message - a great moment
  • The restaurant manager was super friendly and was constantly checking on me and others
• Offered late checkout proactively - I asked for 2 PM, which was granted with no problem

Cons:

• No Internet TV OS
• Shower had a poor smell - pretty sure it was a drain issue as the drain plate seemed to be missing, and the smell went away when the water was running (so not an issue while taking a shower) - I chose to not notify as I was already settled in, etc.
• Shower setup is impractical - pressure from the rainfall head is poor, the wand has great pressure but only has a low hook that points at back-level rather than head-level
• I was not pre-upgraded most likely by mistake - at check-in, I heard "so, we have you in a Spectacular Room on the 5th floor" - I politely asked if there were any upgrades, the associate looked and said "oh, wait, yes, you're an Ambassador. Let me get you something." - there was a lot of discussion between agents and some trips to the back office - it seemed pretty obvious that I was missed in the pre-arrival sweep, and they weren't expecting such a mistake to be made
• No evening lounge offering - a drawback compared to other nearby options at similar price points (JW, MM, Sheraton, etc.)
• No in-room welcome treat - I have a hunch this was due to the room mixup - not a huge issue, but a bit surprising for a hotel of this class in this region

Overall, I would definitely consider returning.

Photos:

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