Hotel4Real!

Preface – big downtown Sheratons in general are very hard to review, but my experience with the Vancouver towers was *especially* tough – it was simply a very thoroughly mixed bag that I don’t know how to revisit.

Let’s start with the goods first: the pre-arrival planning and overall elite appreciation here was top notch. Drink vouchers AND points were offered to make up for when lounge was closed, and breakfast was offered with the flexibility of ordering through room service. The rooms I got were great during both of my visits, not the biggest but definitely unique – panoramic floor-to-ceiling windows offered lots of natural light and a small balcony was perfect for fresh air, I absolutely adored both of these. Although, a renovation is in my opinion overdue at this point, and the new Sheraton look would suite the hotel’s modern persona much better than the mix they have now. The view was also quite good on the higher floors.

Parking was thankfully included in my rate, and although the parkade can get confusing at times, I was able to navigate parking with relative ease.

Now I have some stuff I didn’t like, and the majority of the complaints came from my interactions with the staff. I checked in with a gentleman who also happened to be a trainee. He was doing a great job in following all the steps on his checklist however the interaction was not overly personal and frankly quite cold – considering he was still in training though, he was very much on the right track by ensuring accuracy first. That said, I am not able to find them any excuses for the other interactions I had with the front desk. Once another guy cut in front of me in their plain sight and got served first, and when I once ordered delivery from Uber and had to pick it up at the front desk, I was stared up and down by a team member behind the front desk as if I was breaking some sort of law. Also don’t expect any sort of late check-out past 12pm unless you REALLY ask for it – I hate pulling my elite card but had to do it twice out of two stays to get a 2pm check-out. Apparently this hotel is considered a “conference centre” and Marriott’s late check-out benefits do not apply here.

Now, onto their restaurant Cafe One. My first experience in the restaurant was great, my server was very personable, attentive and delightful to chat with. My server during happy hour was awesome as well, and her beer recommendation was on point.

BUT! During my second stay was when things started to turn sour. I dined in the restaurant four times and not once did I experience the same level of service. One morning it took the host (also the supervisor by the look of it) 10 minutes to seat me (no tables available during peak breakfast hours). Even worse, I had to help myself as I was never approached by any servers, never offered a menu or a drink. Simply put, I was not served at all. When I brought this to the attention of the same host, I was “confronted” with “Did you flag anyone down?” which was extremely off-putting and made me want to leave on the spot. He also told me that I did not need to sign my bill and could just leave, which made me feel even more like he was not expecting me to tip and was not interested in engaging with me as a result. To their credit, the restaurant was busy, but considering the size of the dining area, that people are helping themselves with the buffet, and that there were more than 4 servers on staff for the ~15 tables they had, I expected to be treated better. The next few mornings were better, although I found it interesting how nobody seemed to be interested in checking on how my breakfast was. I was offered the daily breakfast as a part of my elite benefits, but considering the $36 plus tax/grats price tag, my experience was WELL below par.

All in all, to me the Sheraton is a good enough hotel. It does not “fail” – per se – in any areas it’s expected to deliver in. To me, it was just a massive shame how the otherwise okay experience was dampened by sporadic incidents that left an overpowering sour taste in my mouth when I left the parking garage. Vancouver is a very competitive market for upscale hotels and the room rates absolutely reflect that especially during summer time. Sure a renovation would be nice, but I felt like there are deeper problems to be fixed to turn my verdict around.

RealScore

Service: 5.0

Design and Room Size: 7.5

In-room Amenities: 7

Bathroom Size and Layout: 7

View from (my) Room: 8

Hotel Location: 9

Available Guest Facilities: 9

Food Quality: 9

Food and Beverage Service: 7

Executive Lounge Quality: N/A

Final RealScore: 7.08

Final RealRating: B

Hotel is built/opened: 1994

Total number of rooms: 775

Length of stay: 5 nights

Membership level at check-in: Platinum

Room type experienced: Premium Room (better amenities)