Orange County Commuter

My most recent experience was last May. Had a great time! I am very comfortable with this hotel and unlike and earlier poster didn't find Paris to "Disneyland" LOL!

I was in a "Superior" room. It was nice, but not anything to get excited about. (There was a major conference at the hotel so I did not get upgraded to the Junior Suite. I will say that in the past they have been very good about upgrades. They did apologize that I wasn't given the junior suite, but I was happier with a "ready" room when I got off that plane from Atlanta!

canred

Stayed here a few weeks ago. The big news is that the elevators have finally been fixed. You may wonder what the big deal is but if you have stayed in the past several years you will understand. We have been coming to this hotel for many years and have enjoyed its location. FYI, there is now a Franprix at the side of the hotel (turn left as you leave the hotel and left at the first street. The lounge has offerings on a typical US schedule now, i.e. nothing on Friday evenings, but is available throughout the weekend for coffee, water and soft drinks as well as a place to relax.

SFOTerry

Thanks for the responses.

We are checking in today. Just did so on the mobile app - don't know if that will improve our chances for an JS upgrade or not. We dropped by the hotel on Thursday and were told they are heavily booked, so UG chances are not good. We have always managed one in the past so we have our fingers crossed.

Funny - I've never noticed a major elevator problem (we've stayed there 10+ times). However, the floor numbering skips the 13th floor, yet one of the elevators has always indicated "next stop 13th floor" when the next stop was the 14th. I wonder if that has changed.

SFOTerry

We are here now. Got the JS upgrade - but with the less desirable mental hospital view rather than the prison view. . There's a new décor: greys replacing the red/yellow wall coverings. Lighting is dimmer like just about every hotel I stay in these days. Other than that, mostly the same as before. I'll try to post more observations later in our stay.

SkiAdcock

This is what I have for the exec lounge sticky - can you confirm or update?

Paris/ Marriott Rive Gauche / Open for soft drinks/snacks; Breakfast in restaurant on weekends (during peak time in the summer through end of September, lounge is open for breakfast); i-net terminals & free wifi; 09/16 update

SFOTerry

Can confirm the above in red. Weekend isn't here yet, but I think breakfast in restaurant is extended to all with lounge access, or maybe plats only? Someone upthread said no evening snacks in lounge on Friday, but I don't know yet.

SkiAdcock

If you could report back after the weekend, would appreciate it.

Cheers.

kar120c

Last year on the weekend we got breakfast in the restaurant as a lowly gold.

SFOTerry

The lounge did not have hot food or free drinks on Friday night. I suppose anyone with lounge access gets breakfast in the restaurant on Sat/Sun.

itsaboutthejourney

This property is another example of why I don't like Marriott hotels:

Cons:
Very, very plain decor. I almost felt like I was in a hospital.
Had to prod the agent for an upgrade past 1 category. Even though they were selling jr. suites all nights of my stay, none avail. Settled for a "Superior" room that didn't seem any different than say a Marriott in Duluth (I know that is Marriott's goal).
Floorplan for my floor showed all rooms same size.
Lounge closed on weekends, so invited to restaurant where they had a very American breakfast. Adequate, but nothing that made you feel you were in Europe other than the chocolate croissants. Think deep friend potato cubes.
Had to fill out form with info that is in my profile, and I had used the app to check-in.

Pros:
L'Occitanesoap in room (French brand, no chemicals)
Minibar was 'free' for "Superior" rooms, but had to ask to have it restocked. It had Evian + gross Pepsi + a mini bottle of wine.
USB outlet next to bed
This property DOES use the app's chat function (used it to request mini-bar refill on 3rd day)

Mixed:
Neighborhood is outside of touristy central Paris, so good to experience everyday life and very local restaurants and shops. But there is nothing remarkable about the architecture of the immediate area.

Biggie Fries

Any recent info on lounge access / b'fast for Marriott Golds? TIA ...

hockeyinsider

The new Marriott.com no longer displays information about the hotel, like its last renovation date. However, Marriott.co.uk still displays this information. For this property, it says rooms haven't been renovated since 2007. It looks like some wall art and new TVs were recently installed, however. Maybe some paint, judging from the pictures. But otherwise, yes, the rooms are very outdated. Thankfully, properties renovated since 2013 or 2014 have a much better decor with exceptions allowed for local design influences. Also, for what it's worth, the suites look much newer. Maybe they renovated the suites.

Also, for what it's worth, Marriott's website lists room categories as "deluxe," "executive" and "prestige." I don't see a "superior" category. There are also four categories of suites: "junior suite," "family suite," "champagne suite" and "Hemingway suite."

SFOTerry

We enjoyed a pleasant 4-night stay 2 weeks ago. Nothing much has changed: the usual breakfast and evening snacks/drinks in the executive lounge and weekend breakfast buffet in the restaurant. Was upgraded (as usual) to a junior suite - basically 2 adjacent rooms with 2 baths, fridge with complimentary drinks. Staff are efficient and friendly. As usual, many airline employees overnight here. Elevators are still erratic, but get the job done. Love the ice machines on every floor by the elevators.

We enjoy the neighborhood (especially the Reveil Samaritain next door and Le Vaudesir around the corner), but it's not the best area for 1st time tourists and sightseers. There's a new Sixt agency on the corner (replaced the cooking school), which came in handy as we decided to drive to/from Lyon due to the rail strike.

We returned to Paris this week and went back to the neighborhood last night for dinner. Apparently Thursday's protest march (from Gare Montparnasse to Place d'Italie) came to a face-off with the police in front of the hotel as evidenced by a lot of broken windows and graffiti. I didn't notice any damage to the Samaritain. Here's a article with several videos (the RG is shown a little more than 2 hours into the 1st clip, and the clash in front takes up the entire 45-minute 4th clip). Just another day in France.

https://sputniknews.com/europe/20180...-reform-paris/

hockeyinsider

Do you remember what was served in the lounge?

BTW, Sputnik is owned by the Russian government.

SFOTerry

The usual hot dish (chicken, beef, or fish) & veggies (rice, etc.). Wine & beer plus some cold salads, cheese, etc. 2 of the nights we stayed were Fri & Sat, so no food then.

Yes. But I don't think it's fake video.