WoodyWindy

Hi All,

I'm spooling this up as a new thread because it was pointed out that most folks wouldn't respond to a message buried deep in another thread with what could be described, at best, as a "provocative" title. (An ancient one, at that! But it was the only thing that came up in Search...)

I'm going to be on assignment in Valencia for 5 weeks, and am currently booked at the AC. The review in the aforementioned thread wasn't exactly glowing. Has anyone been there recently to know how they're treating folks? Are the rooms well kept? Comfortable beds? Internet speeds? Friendly Service? PLT Perqs? All the normal stuff that, while nice for a weekend, becomes critical for a longer-term stay?

Thanks in advance!

SkiAdcock

Hopefully someone will be along to answer your questions. I just checked trip advisor & it's getting good reviews there. The management also replied to one of the posts & said they upped their wifi service (server?).

Cheers.

CKinMD

I stayed at the hotel about two years ago, I think it was just a few months after they officially became part of Marriott.

I spent two weeks on vacation across Spain and Portugal and stayed at a number of AC Hotels, so unfortunately a lot of my memories of the hotels are sort of blended together, but i'll try to recall what I can.....

The service was fine, the room was clean and overall I really had no major complaints. The bed was typical for AC Hotels, meaning the mattress was not as thick as I am used to in the US, but it was still okay and the sheets and pillows were high quality. (After my 5th or 6th AC Hotel in Spain, I ended at the full service Marriott in Lisbon and having a traditional Marriott mattress was like jumping into heaven).

The hotel is located on a corner of a busy boulevard and street noise can be an issue. You definitely wont be able to sleep with the window open if you're a light sleeper, but should be ok with the window closed.

I'm not a Plat, so I cant comment about upgrades, but the room I had was sort of on a diagonal, it was bigger than my friend's room down the hall. I'm not sure if that was considered an upgrade but you might want to ask for one of those rooms at a minimum, if there arent upgrades available.

The location was great, just a few minutes walk to the Ciudad De Las Arts y Sciencias (not sure about spelling) but as a photographer, it was one of the most visually stunning places i've been to in Europe.

I'm not sure if they do it anymore, but at the time, you could have anything you wanted from the minibar at no charge - I thought that was a nice touch. Also I found the breakfast at all of the AC's to be quite good.

I hope that helps!

WoodyWindy

Thanks for the response.
Just a quick update. I got here and checked in:
* Platinum acknowledged and welcomed as per current standards.
* Room upgraded.
* Bed looks like it will be comfortable.
* Room is a bit Spartan, as in Scandinavian design ethic, which isn't unusual for Europe, and decent size.
* Minibar is included as part of the room upgrade.
* No coffee maker or tea kettle.
* Desk staff very friendly and helpful.
* Breakfast not part of Platinum kit, but could be included as part of room rate negotiations. Check your rates carefully.

Overall, a very positive first impression.

SkiAdcock

Thanks for the update; much appreciated!

Cheers.

WoodyWindy

Following up now that I have been here a few days, I have a few additions...
The Good:
* Staff continues to be friendly.
* The in room Internet speeds are acceptable for my usage (and free for Platinum).
* Breakfast is decent, though if not included in the rate it might be a bit pricy for what you get.
* Housekeeping is good.
* The water pressure is great, and no shortage of hot water.
* The location is great! Lots of restaurants, shops, and the museum complex are all within an easy walk.

The Meh:
* There are no channels on the TV I am interested in, except sometimes BBC World news.
* The stereo is of good quality if you want to play disks or MP3 files. But there is NO reception on the radio side.

The not so good:
* There is only one iron for the entire hotel. Lots of luck actually getting access to it, so if you are a stickler for tight creases, you will be out of luck.
* There aren't enough power outlets. In particular, to use my computer at the desk without draining the battery, I have to unplug the aforementioned stereo.

Overall value:
Given the rates compared to other local properties, I would rate this hotel as a Good to Excellent value.

FinnishFlash

You can thank me for the good Platinum treatment because I gave them a lesson when I was there Just kidding, my treatment was not the best mostly because the guy who checked me in was very new at this hotel (I think he started the day before).

If you are the least interested in bicycling be sure to use Valenbisi bikes. Pick up/return places are all over the city and I am sure you have already noticed the nearest is right across the street from the hotel. Valencia is a very bicycle friendly city and probably not too hot yet either. We used the bikes to get to Valencia Zoo, La Liga football games and the beach area.

WoodyWindy

Thanks for the tip! While "athletic" is NOT a term that would describe me very well (or at all, some might say...), the bikes might give me the opportunity to improve on that count.

mster

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mster

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yurtripper

Just a one night stay here recently prior to an AM flight so not going to a give a detailed review as I didn't check out the fitness/solarium, etc.

I got upgraded to the top floor (9th). In reference to the post above by WoodyWindy (5 years ago) there *was* a coffee maker in my room. I can confirm that the water pressure is epic, so much that I had to dial it down considerably because, thanks to the euro-style glass half-door, I would have ended up flooding the entire bathroom otherwise!

I liked the ambience around the bar/lobby and the Terraza outside, which not only has v. comfortable seating but these dinky machines you can use to request service or ask for the bill without going back inside to the bar. Being a solo traveller here I felt too ashamed to use it so just got on shanks' pony to get another order from the bar.

As a Titanium I got offered the $10 F&B credit or the 500 points so I thought I'd try breakfast and took the credit. At check-in I was told the breakfast cost €15 and $10 was almost exactly €9 so I thought it would actually cost €6. It turns out that €15 was the NET charge and the actual charge on the folio was €16.50. Not only that but they seemed to have an FX conversion akin to DCC in determining that $10 was €8.50 rather than €8.95.

Having said that, I'd definitely go back as I like the location and the value is excellent.

SkiAdcock

Thanks for the update. Much appreciated.

Cheers.

cur

i am a marriott plat

7 night stay on an award stay, so the entire stay cost me 45,000 total, which is just a bit more than 1 night in the crappy, highly overrated city where i live now.

the only rooms available to bae and i 5 days out when booking were 2 twins. i sent an email to the property kindly asking for one big bed, and they said they will do their best. this was obliged thru a king bed in a "standard plus" room. this room had the big bed, a seating area, a super small Michael Scott tv ( https://thumbs.gfycat.com/RespectfulExaltedHydatidtapeworm-mobile.mp4 ), but a very nice big tub, so we are very happy.

upon check in at 2345hrs, no upgrade was available, apparently they are super full due to the john deere convention. the front desk guy was very apologetic over the lack of upgrade (unprovoked: i'm happy to have whatever room i pay for) and i guess in sympathy he said our breakfast will be comped despite not apart of rate. i asked what the plat amenity was and in a rush to get rid of us he brushed us aside, and i was too tired to dykwia nor push. our room was on the 2nd floor which was a bit disconcerting. however the room was fine and quiet, and we did not hear a thing on the street from our room. plus it was nice to be on a low floor as we rather take stairs and save time than wait for some slow a-- elevator, so i think i may change my marriott.com booking preferences. once we settled (~10min), we got a phone call from the front desk guy in a huff offering us the 10usd/person (or 500 marriott sloth chits) amenity in addition to the breakfast, which we obviously took. i think the amenity works out to 7,80euro/person/night

breakfast here is really not that great. it is eu continental. which to me is mediocre, especially for any marriott property. no eggs beyond their cold quiche (which in all fairness was nice) and hard boiled eggs. and cured ham and some cheese. the cured salmon was gross and crunchy around the edges. only hot options were bacon in one dish and potatoes in the other. every day. nothing else hot. the entire property (room, breakfast restaurant, bar) uses those stupid awful nestle pods which are horrendous at every level. at home we both make our coffee thru moka pots so we know what mediocre sub-par coffee should taste like. this is just a trashy lazy trend.

the bar is really terrific however. very good service and if you want any sort of cocktail or nightcap (using our f+b amenity) they make it with love and detail. the seating inside and outside is terrific.very decent glasses of wine are 3-5euro each. the food is ok. one day we decided to use our f+b credit for a burger, which was 14.50eur and good enough. but we mostly used our f+b for glasses of wine. the menu in their bar/restaurant is very spanish and we found nothing appealing, especially at their high price points. the room service menu has like just 6 options, i got a picture somewhere if anyone cares. just go out and walk 200m and get whatever cuisine you want. the mall 200m has mcdonalds and taco bell if you really need.

workout area is great. good equipment. solarium has no chairs so it's more of a roof top deck to stand on or something. good weights, good space, nice high quality bicycle to spin on.

our basic 200 level room had 3-4 english news channels (not including the russian totalitarian propaganda one), no english movie channels, no smart tv functions, and it was this size: https://thumbs.gfycat.com/Respectful...orm-mobile.mp4


grocery store is located 200m away in basement of el corte ingles. there is a taco bell on the 3rd floor with happy hour 4beers and nacho fries for 4euro between 1700-1900 which is a vibe lol. a bike share valenbisi station is across the street and i highly suggest using this system as your key means of transport. you're also 400m from the river bed park which is just terrific at so many levels.location is not central but with the valenbisi bikes we were 13 mins from old town and 10 mins from very high quality urban beach.

this is a very nice category 1. the staff here are so polite and nice. our housekeeper was great and was keen to take care of our needs such as extra towels and a thin sheet on our bed, the bar staff were great, the front desk were great. all staff were great. 4 nights in we have had a very nice stay. not the best location but such a bargain. 7 nights for the price of 1 in the crappy mediocre city i live in right now.

yurtripper

Any chance of sharing with us what this crappy, overrated city is?

SkyTeam777

Can anyone provide any comparison between this property at the AC by Marriott Valencia Colon?