gleff

Personally I've never really been impressed by the pre-dinner service in the club lounge. As long as they keep a nice breakfast, and ideally their wonderful after dinner treat selection, I'll be happy with the lounge. Though, sure, a nice pre-dinner presentation would be a plus, perhaps some decent cocktail service, but the lack of it isn't a deal killer for me. Just don't skimp elsewhere. And if they've improved on turndown service (I've never been anywhere that's historically been as inconsistent) that's a plus as well. I'll be back to the property next month to check on things...

cranrob

Actually, that's not correct either. We had the southwest corner suite on the lounge floor (33?), and it did not have a balcony.

tommy777

All the suites classified as corner suites has a balcony. The specialty suites (like the Club Suites) might not have balconies.

tommy777

I totally agree, the breakfast is what's important and it's still great. But it's really nice to have a drink and watch the sunset from the club lounge balcony. I wish they could just adjust the alcohol prices to the same level as the bar downstairs.

And I let Donald, the manager who I interacted with, know about it. He was very surprised and promised to bring it up

Somewhere Over the Atlantic

I recognize that, during Christmas week (between the 24th and New Year's), bookings at this property should be high, making plat upgrades scarce.

However, what about the prior weekend (i.e., Dec. 20-22nd)? Does Christmas traffic begin this early, or would I stand a chance to snag an upgrade in a pre-holiday lull?

Peatisback

I feel like I should know the answer to this question, but can't for the life of me remember:

I'm staying for one night at the Golf Club property, then the next night at the actual Diplomat. For the night at the Golf Club, will I have access to the Exec lounge at the Diplomat?

If my memory is correct there is no equivalent at the sister property, is there?

superbobx2

Sorry can't help on the last question, although I would presume it's questionable since the lounge isn't at the property you're staying at... just wanted to comment on a recent stay at the diplomat.

Got a ocean side corner suite on a middle floor which was pretty nice, old style TV's and the such though. Next time, I would request one facing south on a higher floor, as the view from the north side seems to be another building. The lounge was very nice, and the evening appetizers were very good. IIRC, there was a chicken salad and a lump crab meat salad with some various other snacks, veggies, fruits, etc. All in all a good stay, but I must admit the staff don't seem all that personable, at least to me. They also didn't have any idea when the shuttles to the golf property ran until, and I had to find out myself from the driver (the lady who was selling the golf packages, etc. even asked me to tell her once I found out!). The spa facilities there were great though!

CarNut

Booked an AMAZING rate at the Diplomat over New Years and received the following email, which I think is a GREAT way of dealing with the expecation of upgrades over the holidays:

Greetings from the Westin Diplomat Resort & Spa!

We are so pleased that you have chosen to visit us in South Florida! As a Platinum Starwood Preferred Guest, we know that you are our most discerning guests and we appreciate that you have chosen to stay with us!

I did want to reach out to you in advance of your arrival regarding the possibilities of upgrades over the dates of your stay. You have chosen to stay over an exceedingly busy time frame, where this resort receives more demand for our Suites than we can possibly accommodate. As a result, we are reaching out to our Platinum Starwood Preferred Guest's that have booked with us to let them know that the probability of a complimentary suite upgrade is very small. It is very important to us that the probable lack of a suite upgrade be communicated to you prior to your arrival, so that we won't in any way disappoint you when you arrive.

We know that staying in a suite can be very important to a guest's full enjoyment of their stay. If that is true for your visit with us, I urge you to please confirm a suite while we still have a few available over these dates, either by paying for it or by confirming it with points via the Platinum desk (1-888-625-4991).

Please note, the Resort's commitment to the Starwood Preferred Guest program, and the benefits of our Platinum guest's receive are a priority to us. If a suite is available for the entire length of your stay on your arrival date, we will of course be happy to upgrade you accordingly. I just feel a responsibility to let you know ahead of time that it is unlikely over these dates, so that you will have time to make arrangements if a suite is vital to your enjoyment.

Please feel free to contact me with any questions you may have, or if there is anything we can do for you in anticipation of your arrival!

Kind Regards,

UncleDude

I have to report this every time through SPG.com Missing Stays.

Is it just me they always forget..I also agree with other posters that the exorbitant Club Lounge Wines Prices and new hassling for TIPs in the Lounge is starting to take the shine off my stay at this property.

lambrettaStarr

Last year I booked two rooms and BOTH were upgraded the weekend before Christmas. I think it was the 20th'ish.

Does anyone know if the 24/25th are busy here? I live in Florida and will be booking here, but want to pick strategically to get a suite.

CarNut

Just back from a seven night stay at the Diplomat - December 28 - Jan 4. Overall, a great experience!

We arrived at 9:30 AM on December 28 (off of a cruise) and were surprised to be given a room right away. The agent apologized for not having any suites available, but suggested calling the front desk in the afternoon to see if any had become available. We spent the day at the beach, and were then upgraded to a 1 bedroom suite facing west, south and east (NO balcony) on the 34th floor. The seperate bedroom meant more to us than a balcony, especially given that the lounge was only one floor away.

The lounge was great for breakfast and late afternoon snacks, but given the time of year, it was a complete zoo. There were security guards posted outside the doors on a couple of days, but they really didn't seem to be doing anything. I repeatedly saw a number of groups of children in the lounge alone, helping themselves to as much (or sometimes more!) food as they could pile onto their plates.

I agree that the constant badgering for tips was a bit much - most of the time I either left the receipt blank, or actually filled in $0 and signed it. One morning, I went back to grab a bottle of water about an hour after I had finished breakfast, and was promptly presented with the cheque again and was told that I had forgotten to sign it earlier.

We used the shuttle a couple of times to use the gym at the Diplomat Country Club. Much better, bigger, and quieter facilities that at the hotel.

We never received turndown service (didn't request it) and found that while housekeeping did a decent job, they would leave any dirty plates or cutlery in the room - wasn't a big problem, but just something that I've never experienced before.

Given New Years and the Orange Bowl, the lobby and driveway of the hotel were ALWAYS full of people, but we used self parking only, so didn't have to wait for the valet. While convenient, the self parking garage has to be one of the worst designed garages I've ever been in! We quickly learnt to drive up to the 4th floor, follow the exit signs, drive back down to the 2nd floor and park there!

Spent a couple of days on the beach in front of the hotel. 2 chairs and an umbrella cost $43 per day, but given the time of the year, the beach was mostly in the shade by 2:30 pm. We were pretty upset the first day as we only went out around 12:00 pm. Most of the pool area was in the shade by 2:00 pm each day.

All in all, a great stay and we'll definitely be returning.

tommy777

Just reserved a 6 night stay at the Diplomat again for the end of February. Will report back how it turns out ^^

es21729

I'm a newbie here (lowly Gold member...) Just wanted to share my experiences. I had visited this property with my wife 3 years ago (used an award to book an executive club floor room) and was impressed with the hotel overall. We returned the next December with our 5 and 7 year old daughters and had booked 2 adjoining rooms for 2 nights again using the 12,000 point/night award. When we arrived to check in late Saturday night I was informed that due to my Gold status I was upgraded to a suite (nice!). However they did not have the second room adjoining to it ("same floor though" they told me). I was obviously disturbed at having my 5 year old booked in another room "somewhere else on the same floor". Being very gracious, the reservation agent disappeared for a few minutes and came back with a manager who apologized for the inconvenience and offered us the Governor's suite with room to sleep all of us (had a den with a pullout couch for the kids). It was a stunning 1,500 sq foot room with a large dining area, full bar with seating for 4, 2 bathrooms, wraparound balconey, etc. To top it off they threw in Executive club access. The room price was listed on the starwood website at $3,000 a night. If that wasn't good enough, the manager told me that due to the fact that I ended up only using one "room", she credited me back for one of the rooms I had booked, so I ended up just using the 12,000 points per night for the 2 nights I stayed there. Great experience!

This past December I stayed at the Atlantic in Ft. Lauderdale. Glad I got that in before the hotel leaves starwood. Really nice, trendy place. I booked a suite for 14,500 points (seemed very cheap for a suite) and was upgraded to a luxury suite upon arrival. I'm not sure what other privileges I would get being Platinum (I don't travel too much but spend plenty on my *wood amex card), but Gold does not seem to have done too bad for me! I only have positive things to say about starwood.

bsdstone

I'll be there with my family the 19th-24th...any chance we'll overlap?

gleff

I am very jealous of es21729, in perhaps a dozen stays I have never been given the Governors Suite. I did ask once, though.