DC777Fan

How could CCTV footage disprove anything you said? I suppose it's possible that your bags weren't left outside all day, but that's still not the extent of it. Do they have footage of your interactions with staff and have them recorded giving you non-rude service?

A lot of the stuff you mention is pretty shockingly bad service for a St. Regis.

Properties that treat point stay customers as second tier should be named and shamed on FT so that nobody stays there. Of course it makes sense in a one off situation that point customers are less valuable, but the point redemption is part of the program... surely they understand that cash customers at their hotel will redeem their points at some future time, right? The program only works well if all properties buy in and realize they're going to have some earn and some burn at their hotel--particularly resorts which should realize they're still going to make good money on everyone with food & bev charges...

honflyer

Fully agreed - I am waiting for them to get back to me on the CCTV footage..agree that many of the points I complained about wouldn't be applicabe for a CCTV proof anyway. But still, I'm not scared of it, I actually look forward...I feel it's more a strategy of "threat" - very frustrating, I didn't expect this from SPG.

jgroll57

After reading this, I am slightly nervous about potentially staying there...really the beach thing worries me more than anything! I'm looking for somewhere that's rather tranquil and private

HHQX888

Last year when I was there I think what's happen when this hotel will be full, most of staffs which support guest they are from Bosnia and Slovenia country, they are young around 22 years old.
FD staff which make my checkin was 3 months at hotel business !

In Abu Dhabi Starwood hotels you can feel lack of skilled manpower.
Last Juni they exchange all front staff at Westin Abu Dhabi.

honflyer

FYI - I got an update from SPG CC, basically still denying my complaints (based on hotel's feedback & CCTV footage that is not shared with me...) - I am offered starpoints as a "goodwill"..I said I'm not interested and I really want an excuse and explanation vs. a complete denial, reference to secret CCTV footage and points as a goodwill (I could equally refer to secret iPhone-video-footage that I don't want to share).

"We appreciate your feedback about the beach. According to the hotel’s policies, the beach chairs are “first come, first serve”. I am confident they will be able to use your criticism to address any ongoing challenges. It is important for us to hear from our guests, so we can improve your experience the next time you visit. Your email stated the 1st row of chairs were being held by guests, and that by 11 AM almost all of the chairs were taken. While we understand that you didn’t receive your preferred location, we are pleased to understand that you did in fact have an opportunity to use these facilities."

Clearly they didn't understand I was talking about guests/staff "reserving" the front row chairs & cabanas with towels for guests (VIPs?) to arrive around 12pm/1pm...when I asked if I could take any of the chairs which had been vacant for hours, I had been told "no, sorry"...

"CCTV footage was reviewed to discover if the hotel was liable for the damages you have mentioned. They have stated that the luggage was stored in their normal facility, which is consistently monitored. At approximately 2 PM your belongings were moved from our internal storage to the loading area. This area is also monitored by an associate and CCTV. We can confirm that once your belongings arrived at this location, they were not exposed to sunlight. "
I was there, and I saw it, it was clearly in the sunlight..I'm not sure what to say to their reply, it's clearly bogus.

"We sincerely apologize, though we will not provide you with a copy of the footage. All material created during our regular course of business is proprietary, and property of Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, Inc. While we hope it will not be your desire, the only method to receive these details is through a court ordered subpoena. "

I guess I'll have to go to court ;-)

Disappointed...

honflyer

anyone have any idea how to proceed here?

DC777Fan

Were any of your items actually damaged from sunlight or were you just concerned about the potential for damage? If there's actual damage, you should send them an estimate for repair or reconditioning if possible.

That issue notwithstanding, you still were on the receiving end of some shockingly bad customer service (asking you to check out early for an "important" family is probably the most shocking thing I've ever heard of a StR associate saying), though that's going to be the hotel's "word" against yours as far as dealing with corporate. If the hotel is in deny-mode, the best you can do is name and shame them on the web + whatever courtesy comp Starwood is willing to give you...

Sphinx

This is very sad. I was planning to stay there in February.... Back to the drawing board!

PresRDC

"Important Family" is code for someone in the Royal Family.

m0hamed

Frankly, I would move all my business to a rival chain in protest,

gpeso8

I actually have nothing but positives to say about the St. Regis Saadiyat. I stayed in here in December for three nights. I booked three rooms on Cash & Points and did not feel like I was treated any less by the staff because I had booked an award stay. I thought every staff member was very pleasant and eager to please and both check-in and check-out were very efficient. Two of the rooms were upgraded to ocean view rooms. I'm just a gold so this was appreciated.

I loved being able to walk over to the The Collection and grab a quick bite at Shakespeare & Co. or the Lebanese restaurant. It's surprising that honflyer was treated so differently.

whimike

I highly doubt a Royal Family would be given a standard "connecting" room with courtyard view.

I stayed at this hotel in December, also on a points stay, and used my SNR to get upgraded to an ocean suite. I enjoyed everything about my stay, it is worrisome to hear how somebody could be treated so poorly.

PresRDC

Depends on the royal . . .

m0hamed

Could be their entourage.

raunow

Really sorry to hear about your sub-par experience, honflyer.

I'm personally concerned/confused, since I'm booked here for 4 nights of family R&R over a February weekend. Reviews here have been somewhat DrJekyll/MrHyde, but your experience really isn't what I'm hoping to experience myself.

Not that it would be any excuse, but was this an effect of max/over-booking ? What time of year/week was your stay ?

And not that it's of any help to you now, but I'd advice to collect on-site photo evidence of any incident involving your belongings.