MaxFlying

I recall free beer and wine, no spirits, for a couple of hours.

UA-NYC

So this may be a true YMMV situation...based on my great stay, this would be my default choice on future London stays.

SNAs should be easy here BTW based on the % of suites.

AZ Travels the World

You raise a good point. Had my experience at the hotel been more along the lines of, "Mr. AZ Travels, I see that you are a SPG Lifetime Platinum. We really appreciate your loyalty over so many years and have upgraded you to one of our junior suites for your stay with us," (after all, we're not very busy and we have a lot of them)," a lot of what happened after that moment would likely have occurred differently.

. . . In a suite, the LED lights in my bathroom probably wouldn't have flickered.
. . . I wouldn't have had to put the toilet seat lid down to get into my toiletry kit.
. . . We would have had a drawer or two to unpack our bags and put clothes in, rather than in stacks on the closet floor.
. . . I wouldn't have stubbed my toe in the middle of the night on my suitcase sitting next to the bed -- because there was really nowhere else to put it.
. . . We would not have had to eat breakfast off a tray sitting on the bed.
. . . I'm sure there's more I'm forgetting.

A suite probably wouldn't have changed the poor service at breakfast in the Michelin-starred restaurant.

And I doubt it would have had much impact on the ridiculously poor manner in which staff handled the midnight fire alarm. (To wit, I stood near a woman in a hotel bathrobe and slippers -- covered in a full-length mink coat. Surely she was in a suite -- and it didn't exempt her from the indignity. )

But I'm only a Lifetime Platinum, not a higher-level Platinum with Suite Night Awards to apply to my stays in order to guarantee a suite. So based on my experience with the hotel's attitude about room upgrades as it was expressed to me, my caution is to others who may have only achieved Platinum status -- or maybe even those with SNAs: If you hope for something larger than the smallest standard room at The Wesbury -- pay for it. Either with cash, points or SNAs. Or you may end up in one of the smallest rooms you've seen in a long time.

Oxon Flyer

The Brits have an old idiom “All fur coat and no knickers”, a phrase with seems to perfectly summarise your review of this particular property.

AZ Travels the World

Of course you do!

woggledog

Stayed here NYE.

Quite possibly the biggest disappointment of any hotel I've ever stayed in.

Firstly, a little context. Used 20K points to stay here, as well as being platinum. However, understandably, this was NYE, so I wasn't expecting much

1. The windows are NOT soundproofed and single glazed. Whilst there's bonus points for being able to open them, you har every last bit of noise from bond street
2. Asked for a higher floor due to noise: "Sorry, no rooms available" It was 4PM...
3. Speaking of noise: Stayed on floor 2: You can feel / hear the Victoria Line underground beneath the hotel
4. The room was okay. Nicely appointed. The bathroom was underwhelming: When you still have to stand in a bathtub and yet the doubletree in Kingston has a shower like this:

Doubletree Kingston Bathroom

Breakfast was okay, and included as a Platinum, which was a nice touch.

But, the Piece de resistance was this little bunch of presents I found in the bed (which, again, was mediocre)



I'm not very good at complaining, to be fair, but when I mentioned this to the front desk, the response was, "I'll have a word with housekeeping"

Save your money people, and book elsewhere.

Starwood / Marriott, if you're listening: This is a disappointment and is NOT worth of the moniker "Luxury"

EuropeanPete

I stayed here a couple of weeks ago, and I had a positive experience. As a Platinum I was upgraded to what was called a Junior Suite (sort of a long room with a sofa) and generally treated pretty well. The room appeared absolutely soundproof (though faced over buildings). The two restaurants in the hotel are good, although I really didn't like the vibe of the bar. Very "Mayfair cheap" for those of you who know what that means.

I prefer the Sheraton Grand Park Lane for the staff and the faclities which is generally cheaper and in a comparable location, though for tonight the Sheraton was 100GBP more expensive, so I'm off back to the Westbury.

UKTraveller4Fun

I have to say overall I agree with all this, stayed a few times now this year and although it didn't get off to a good start as soon as I mentioned it to the staff the issue was sorted and never looked back. Also go upgraded on each time to a Superior Suite which was a very nice touch. The breakfast although on the odd occasion was a bit slow is superb and a great Platinum benefit, I would say best in London by a long way, non of the buffet cold food, all fresh and delivered to your table proper restaurant style, Joe is excellent I have to say!

The front desk and concierge have also been very helpful and also welcoming when you come back into the hotel, it has a more old school 5 star feel to it than say the Sheraton and the lifts are much better ( which wouldnt take much) than the Sheraton. The lack of lounge compared to the Sheraton is the only failing but with the suite upgrade and a nespresso machine in the room it didnt matter to much! Location wise is excellent also, you really are in the middle of it all, but sound proofing is also very good!

It has actually become my first choice for London SPG hotel!

EuropeanPete

Waiting for the lifts does take less time than the ridiculous wait at the Sheraton, but once you're in them they're potentially the slowest in the world! (maybe except for the beach lifts at the St Regis Princeville).

chanp

Anyone stay here recently?

LovetoTravel83

I stayed here in Summer '19. I used SNA to be upgraded to a corner suite. The hard product of the property is top notch. I enjoyed my stay and location was perfect.

I arrived early however the room was not ready and had to wait until 3 pm to get to the room. Also they advertise that they have the butler service, however, it wasn't available on the day of check in cuz it was a Saturday, but they rectified it.

In short, they stay was as expected and I would stay here again.

chanp

Thanks for the feedback. If I try it in the next month or two, I'll post back. Wanted to know what it was like during covid.

Oxon Flyer

London’s Westbury hotel to auction off 8,000 items ahead of refurbishment – Business Traveller

"The Westbury London is to auction off furniture and fittings from its guest rooms and public areas next month, ahead of a “major refurbishment” of the property.
Over 8,000 items are to be sold off including sofas, lamps, chandeliers and drapery (including silk-lined Jim Thompson curtains), writing desks, headboards and canopies from rooms, and furniture and fittings in the public areas, bars and restaurants and commercial kitchens.
The auction will also see the hotel – which is currently marketed under Marriott’s Luxury Collection – put its wine cellar stock under the hammer, along with signed prints by “leading contemporary artists”.

Catalogue and bidding :
Pro Auction Limited | The Westbury Hotel Mayfair Entire Contents of Iconic 5 Star Hotel Contents of Guest Bedrooms (bidspotter.co.uk)
Pro Auction Limited | The Westbury Hotel Mayfair Entire Contents of Iconic 5 Star Hotel Public Areas, Kitchens , Bars & Restaurants & Wine Wet Stock (bidspotter.co.uk)

LovetoTravel83

This is very strange, the hard product didn't seem exhausted when I stayed here in 2019.

khabah

Marriott today announced that The Westbury will undergo a 122 million USD redevelopment and renovation that will see a new floor and extension building added, façade renovations, the addition of a signature restaurant, speakeasy, fitness center and spa, as well as a renovation to all rooms and suites this year prior to rebranding in 2023 as The St. Regis London.

Finally - St. Regis returns to London and fills a hole in its portfolio.

khabah