Amanjunkie

Not sure if this is a taboo topic or would be considered libelous, but I wanted to get the opinions of fellow FT members on what was their most disappointing luxury hotel experience. For me personally, they were:

1. The Majestic Barrière in Cannes - Having to pay US$800 a night for 5 nights wasn't the problem so much as getting a very plain and tired room with hardly any amenities was. Granted we were there during the Film Festival, and hence the inflated rates, but I would expect more "luxury" even if I was paying half our rate. And the service was practically non-existent. The attitude was that we were supposed to feel lucky for even getting a room there booking just 3 weeks in advance instead of the customary 9 months for the Festival. And when we asked for a hotel car to take us to a party, imagine our surprise during checkout that it cost US$600! Granted, we could have had it for the entire night, and had I known the cost, I would have had the driver take us to Monte Carlo and partied all night until the morning. Sadly, we went home quite early as it was our first night and suffering from jet-lag. The pool (which required a fee) and the beach were nothing to write home about, either, though this was expected.

The good things about the hotel (though hardly saving graces) were it's proximity to la Croisette and the Palais des Festivals, which was very convenient, as well as the view onto la Croisette during the Festival (what a madhouse!). Also the meals at La Villa des Lys in the hotel were bliss, though we didn't need to be hotel guests to eat there. Next time, we'll take our chances at Hotel Martinez or the Carlton, even though they're farther down from the Palais.

2. The Mark in New York - At the time we stayed there, it was the only Mandarin Oriental-managed hotel in New York, and we expected the same level of service and comfort of the other MO's that we have stayed at. Though the rates were actually lower than comparable hotels in the city at the time, we still felt very unsatisfied. First of all, we found the service very stiff and unaccommodating, especially from the front desk. We did not experience any warmness at all during check-in, and the process felt much more like a business transaction than the welcome I would expect from a Mandarin. Secondly, our suite was very, very tired. Perhaps this is part of the "charm" that their frequent guests enjoy, but it certainly didn't suit our tastes. It seems like nothing worked in the suite as well, from the fax machine and CD player to the kitchenette. Having stayed there for more than a week, it would have been nice to boil water for tea or perhaps heat up some leftovers from the previous night's expensive meal, but the stove and oven were inoperable. A call to the front desk told us they would check with "engineering" only to call us back a day later saying that the stove units are turned permanently off, even though in the cupboards were pots and pans! We were not thrilled with the bathrooms either (disproportionately small compared to the rest of the suite) and generally did not enjoy our stay, even after they upgraded us to a larger suite after we made our feelings know.

The one thing that made us not completely regret our stay at The Mark was the concierge, Giorgio. A very affable fellow who got us reservations at restaurants like Jean Georges, Cirque 2000 and Daniel with very little notice, not to mention floor seats to a Knicks game and countless Broadway shows - tix were not cheap but we were on holiday and at least got us out of the hotel!

mikeef

Funny how these things work--I had a wonderful stay at the Mark. Service was excellent and the room, while a little old, was reasonably big and had a great bed.

On the other hand, the new Mandarin O. in New York is way, way, overpriced. Rooms are very nice and the service was fine, but at $575 a night, I expected a lot more.

Mike

Amanjunkie

Yes, I expected that other people would have different opinions! Perhaps why we were so disappointed with The Mark was because we had very high expectations. Had heard and read a lot of good things which is why we chose the hotel.

Have heard not so nice things about the service at the new MO, but will probably give it a try the next time we're in the city. Might be worth the price if they can get us seating at Masa (probably not, but we loved the old Ginza Sushiko in Los Angeles enough to give it a shot!).

jja34-1

The Majestic Barriere is one of the most disappointing "luxury" hotels I have ever seen, as well. While the outside is grand and the food is good, the elegant decor stops at the lobby. Our sea view room was large but had probably not been fixed up for at least 15 years and was showing wear. The side view suite which we were shown as an alternative was tiny and the windows were small and not easily opened. All in all, the rooms were a huge disappointment.

On the other hand, the pool, food and service at the hotel are pretty good. Together, they almost made up for the tired rooms (where we didn't spend much time, anyway). IMHO, the Majestic has the best pool in Cannes. Service was great and I found myself spending days at the pool instead of the beach, which is not so great compared to the beach clubs at other hotels.

FYI - Every major hotel in Cannes charges for the pool and the beach, so there's no way to get around that unless you buy an inclusive package.

In the future, I will probably always return to the Martinez, which is one of my favorite luxury hotels, especially after the renovation. But it was nice to try the Majestic, if only to see what else is out there.

Amanjunkie

Yes, I didn't have as much of a problem with the pool and it very well may be the best in Cannes. Maybe it's not comparing apples, but having been to many beach resorts in S.E. Asia, it wasn't particularly spectacular to me, but was still nice for a hotel pool.

The only points we differ is the service. Perhaps it was because we went during the Film Festival? I just remember it being a madhouse with people everywhere, and I'm sure they were at 100% occupancy, so this may be why.

Another point I forgot to make was the hotel was a great place to be for people watching during the festival. Being closest in proximity to the Palais, it wasn't difficult to recognize "faces", and being in the lobby around 6:30pm everynight with everyone in their tuxedos or gowns (us included) was definitely surreal.

Will definitely try the Martinez the next time I'm in Cannes. Any particular class of rooms or wing you would recommend?

DrivingRain

FYI...Palm D'or is an excellent Michelin starred restaurant within Hotel Martinez. I confidently recommend it.

Amanjunkie

Really wish I had known of this board before! Will definitely try it the next time I'm in Cannes.

naxos

Mmmmm! Still remembering a lovely lunch a while back.

slawecki

Palm D'or has a chef's table. Advance booking is usually necessary, but in Feb of about '99, my wife and I ate there 4 nights in a row. At that time it had 2*. I do not know the present situation, as the chef from that period is now in Paris.

jef7

Interesting question Amanjunkie. I'm inclined to say that so far my biggest disappointment would be the SFO Mandarin hotel. I won't be surprised however, if some flyertalkers will disagree with me as experiencess tend to vary. My stay there last May did not start off very well with reservation errors and apparent "duplication" I had no idea about. The situation was resolved only after some arguments. The room and the view, of course were both amazing (Bay view room) I have to say, but the disappointment continued with the service. I felt like my room was totally isolated and forgotten with room service cart at one point left parked on the room for an entire day. I did not receive any turn down services, until the second night when the house keeper at 11 pm entered my room! I was already sleeping and was totally surprised to see a shadow creeping in by the sitting area with a basket. It was disappointing enough to arrive in a room totally ignored, and then to be disturbed from my sleep late at night was even more annoying.

Finally, on the second day, after doing some shopping at the nearby stores, I went back to the hotel and stopped by at the reception and requested the business office to be opened up. The reply of the lady with that look of almost disgust was: "Why, are you even staying with us?" I did not report any of these, since I do not enjoy pointing out problems like these on hotels of this calibre. With the price that I pay on times i get to saty on luxury hotels, I expect nothing but the best. Atleast, now I know which property to avoid and not spend my money on next time I'm in San Francisco.

Raffles

The biggest problem with many 'old school' / 'grand dame' luxury hotels is the amazingly small rooms. My company took everyone to the Hotel de Paris in Monte Carlo last year, and we could not believe how small and, at best, averagely furnished the rooms were. At least mine had a harbour view - most of my colleagues were looking into an interior light well. We got a continuous feeling that the hotel believes that if you are not paying for a suite then you are a second-class guest.

To add insult to injury ... some people decided to stay on for the weekend (on their own money) only to find that the rate they had been given was higher than the rate on the hotels own website. Then they were not allowed to have breakfast in the main dining room - they were shunted off to a side room where a very perfunctory cold buffet had been laid out. (Remember, this was after our conference when they were on there own money.) Luckily I had decamped to Nice by this point.

I can't deny that the lobby / bar / restaurant are very impressive - but you don't need to stay there to experience these.

jja34-1

I am a fan of the x10 series rooms, which fall in the category of deluxe city view rooms. The rooms are larger than a standard room and have a sitting area. The title is actually a misnomer - they have more than a partial view of the beach and ocean from the terrace. The terrace faces a street and the apartment block across the way, but if you look directly to the left, you get a full ocean view. Given that the prestige sea view rooms are tiny and significantly more expensive, I opt for a deluxe city view room every time and ask for my favorite x10 room.

Other than the ultra-modern 7th floor junior suites and penthouse, the rooms at the Martinez are decorated in a slightly dated art deco motif. But they are nowhere near as tired as the Majestic's rooms, and I, for one, enjoy them, even though they may not be up to the latest standards.

milehighj

this may lead to some inflamed responses, but my biggest disappointment - by far - is Amanjena.

disclaimer: i didn't even stay there. i didn't need to. no amount of impeccable Aman service could possibly make up for - IMHO - the total lack of "specialness" of the place.

in short, the place left me totally cold and unmoved. i've stayed at Amankila, Amanwana, Amanpuri, Amanusa. to me, each oozes a special character that combines a beautiful natural site with understated architecture, to which one adds superlative service, and one has an Aman experience.

Amanjena, on the other hand, is a big, ostentatious temple slapped on an utterly flat, featureless piece of real estate in 'suburban' Marrakech. as such it has neither the character of the local 'Riads' within the Medina walls, nor does it benefit from striking views of the Atlas mountains, which some other better located boutique hotels possess in spades.

in fact, the villas have no view to speak of, blocked by a combination of walls and hedges. i also thought that the villa layouts were 'typical' Bali Aman re-hash (i.e. bed/living + big open toilet + dressing area + outdoor patio or plunge pool), with very superficial stylistic references Moroccan architecture.

while in Marrakech i stayed at and visited some pretty special luxury boutique hotels in the Marrakech area which combine excellent service and design character for a true top-tier Moroccan experience. Amanjena, most disappointingly, just isn't one of those places.

i can only speculate that Amanjena was conceived during Adrian Zecha's temporary 'exile' from Amanresorts (can anyone confirm this?), as i cannot imagine any place so lacking in true Aman character!

milehighj

Amanjunkie

I haven't visited Amanjena and in no way is this a defense of the property, but it was designed by Ed Tuttle, who also designed the original Amanpuri. Amanjena was opened in 2000, perhaps around the time that Adrian Zecha was "away"(?), but I believe these resorts usually take quite a few years to bring from conception to reality.

rfrost

Although I've been disappointed a number of times, the Ritz in London stands out in my memory for the world's smallest room in a luxury hotel (the bathroom was bigger than the room)--and yes, I've seen many viable candidates-- and their inability to get my luggage to the room in less than 90 minutes.