tylerc

Anyone know if 509 has a warm pool??

SantiC

I have to imagine it does. Aside from the sunset villas, which are subject to unexposed winds and ocean currents, I would assume this is likely one of the villas that gets the most sun. What do you think?

iluvdoco

My guess is 507 and 509 both have warm pools, maybe 507 slightly more than 509 due to 509 being slightly angled downwards. The other advantage of the OWVs on the eastern side is that the current is allegedly gentler (although house reef is still not great).

countingmiles

I decided to go with OWV 516, anyone have experience with the ones nearby with regards to sunrise view, pool temperature, sea depth?

outlawashere

How cold is the pool? Is it around 10C?

onlysuites

Main pool is warm and so are the sun facing villas. Just the sunset ones are the ones that don't get any direct sunlight. I wouldn't say it was as cold as 10c but it certainly was cold.

escape4

Checked in yesterday - going to have a fantastic 10 days here.

Regarding sun and pool temperature issues, the bolded statement above is incorrect. @onlysuites seems to comment on the temperature of sunset OWVs without having stayed in a SOWV if I am interpreting his previous posts correctly (?); he can correct me if I am wrong, but I am led to believe he was rather referring to the OWVs which are facing north (522 to 528) as being cold, which is not the same as the rooms labeled “sunset OWVs” on Marriott.com (530 to 544) and selling at a premium over the regular OWVs.

The pool of the sunset OWVs start to get direct sunlight at around noon and are directly in the sun until sunset (~6pm), hence the name of the villas. Since SOWVs have direct sunlight in the pools all afternoon which is when the sun is strongest, I suspect that pools of the SOWVs are warmer than the pools of the inner-facing OWVs which are directly opposite of SOWVs – some of those must get sunlight all morning but not starting early/mid-afternoon.

Our pool (SOWV) is cooler than the ocean for sure, but I would not consider it cold or cool. Granted I am a northern climate guy, but even my wife who is from a southern climate does not have an issue with the pool temperature.

mjrobson

Booked 8 nights! Apr 24 to May 2nd 2019! If anyone else is there!

tylerc

I can't recall which number I had, but it was just a few down from the JJA suite looking straight away from the resort (not the sunset side)...it was ultra private but FREEZING pool!

I'm probably in an GV this time around anyways.

breef

First off thank you for everyone's experience and all the information - it's been super helpful.

I was on the phone like a maniac Aug 18th - 20th calling both the US and Malaysian call centers and booked a 5 night stay in Nov in an OWV for 85k Marriott points per night with 5th night free (60k per night, then a 25k separate line item per night for the guaranteed upgrade from GV to OWV). All things being said for a total of 340,000 Marriott points or 113.3k legacy SPG points for a 5 night stay it feels like a steal.

I've been at SPG Gold for years and haven't hit Plat in a long time. To my surprise after a few calls complaining about how clunky the transition has been and sending in an e-mail someone at the legacy SPG team, I was upgraded me from Gold to Platinum. Typically I think these are challenges and after you hit a number of stays you get the status, at least it is that way reported with Marriott now, but the legacy SPG team apparently has the ability to upgrade you during the challenge. They told me if I complete 16 stays between now and then I'd keep Platinum for 2019, but I'm just so happy that breakfast is going to be covered during the stay, huge huge bonus for us both.

So to setup these questions I'm about to ask, my SO and I are not super wealthy and consider this to be a trip of a lifetime.

1. Is the fruit basket are the cookies and coffee/tea replenished daily as suggested in the Platinum Amenities area in the wiki? I've read various accounts that little treats and the fruit basket is updated once every few days. Silly thing to worry about but considering the cost of food and drink it would be nice to rely on a little snack here and there.

2. Should we tip our butler $100 bill upon arrival? Now stay with me on this one, I know this may be contentious for some people. But I've also read in this thread and elsewhere that people seem to get what they consider inconsistent service until they "open their wallet." Do you think this gesture will be a completely empty one? Or do you think it may return some dividends in terms of some additional goodies or complementary items during the stay that might enhance the experience? Elsewhere in the thread someone suggested the butler has a decently wide discretion and some things they seem to be able to authorize are free breakfast (not worred now that I'm platinum) or free Blue Hole experience or the obvious showing up with more cookies, coconut drinks, etc. Any direct experience would be welcome.

3. Are requests for a specific room granted from anyone's experience? I've read through the advice as to what rooms to request and would prefer a good mix of warmer pool and decent privacy, so I think I'm going to try for 507, which also might have less of a current underneath in the ocean according to reports. Would be nice to be upgraded to a Sunset OVW but considering several reports that suggest if you don't buy up in cash you don't get any upgrades I'm not going to hold my breath.

4. How is the scuba? Not a lot of reports on the scuba diving trips. Is it worth scheduling multiple dives? Are the dive sites they take you to via boat interesting? I have very low hopes that the house reef is going to be all that interesting based on reports here.

5. How is the Maldivian Sunset Fishing? Looks interesting, but beyond TPG I haven't read any reports on this either. I did read that the kitchen will cook what you catch - would be pretty amazing if cooking those fish was included in the price, but I very much doubt that is the case. Have any of you done it and caught a fish? If so what was the charge to get it cooked and served?

6. Anyone bring snacks with them? Curious as to if anyone has experience of bringing some extra little snacks with them and if it all worked out? Did you buy them in Male or bring them from your destination? Don't worry, we aren't going to hold up in the room and eat nothing but breakfast and ramen, but it would be nice to have a few goodies at the ready.

VAFlyerSAN

I stayed in 508 (St Regis Suite) and it was warm (usable) until ~4PM each day. This was in November.

randomdude

I'll land at 330p from DXB. Any chance i'll end up missing the transfer?

escape4

The OWVs past the JJA suite are the north-facing OWVs 522-528. So the key takeaway is that folks who care more about privacy and less about sun should prefer those OWVs. People who prefer the sun and do not mind to give up a bit on privacy should prefer the inner-facing OWVs (east facing).

In that same line of thought, it's worth mentioning that the advantage of the sunset OWVs (which are more expensive than the regular OWVs) is not just the sunset views. It's that you get both privacy and sun - no tradeoff required.

vikasr

How is the reef near your SOWV for snorkeling?

onlysuites

You will probably get in on the last sea plane however I would stress that you stay overnight in MLE or catch a earlier one. My flight last year got delayed by 45 mins and I ended up missing the last seaplane. We had to wait from 5pm till 11pm in the domestic airport for a 45min flight to a local island. Then wait another hour for the transfer to a boat which took a further 40mins in pitch black waters. Got into hotel at 2am. What a waste of $1000 for that night. This was at the Conrad so I am not sure what St Regis would do.

However I have read on FT only (maybe at the start of this thread?) about a FT'er whose flight was delayed and he had to fly the next day after overnighting in the lounge and they did not give him a extra night.