imverge

The Sheraton Hotel & Tower in Rio property isn't any better. The location is rather poor and forget about walking around the hotel at night. The rooms are outdated with no internet access. they have no working in-room temp. control and always feel damp. The Exec Lounge in the 4th floor is poorly stocked for breakfast unless you arrive at 7AM!! The staff are just "there" nothing special about their personality or service levels. I will only stay at Marriott when in RIO.

100,000miler

Gee Imerge, guess we disagree about the Sheraton.

I have stayed there 4 or 5 times, and I always request one of the Tower rooms which are actually between the pool and the lobby on the 2, 3 and 4th floors. Try these out. They have real balconcies and a slightly bigger than the regular rooms which I agree are nothing special. Even the suites are nothing special.

I do like the hotel and had no hassle with guests.

The SPG lounge on the 4th is being renovated and I found the staff and good really good for breakfast. The gym is one of the best in any hotel I have ever stayed.

Finally yes the location is a bit removed but you can take a bus easily for 2.20Reals, or a metered taxi for about 12R to Copa.

I am curious what sort of rate you can get at the Marriott as the best I saw was over $300US which is just too much for me.

sbtinme

In fairness, the reviews of the Sheraton Rio (here and elsewhere) are always a very mixed bag, with some liking the hotel and (at least it seems to me) many more coming away with marginal to poor reviews.

Some have declared it a very poor Sheraton, lower than the brand average.

FlyingSmurf

Even if it is not so modern, I would prefer the Sheraton Rio Hotel & Towers, because it is closer to the city (with a lot of complimentary buses to the shopping malls and restaurant).

If you are looking for a good Brazilian Restaurant I would suggest you the "Barra Brasa" (just 10 min ride from the Sheraton io Hotel).

If you need a phone no. of a reliable taxi driver that won't charge you to much, just PM me.

ricosuave

The Towers were actually pretty nice. You're at the end of Ipanema - not many pedestrians go out that far. The complimentary shuttle was wonderful! There's plenty of great places to eat near where the shuttle drops you off. You could get the hotel to get you a cab to a good churrascaria (Brazilian Barbecue), then get the restaurant to call a cab to get you back.

My wife grew up in Brazil and is quite street smart. HOWEVER, Rio can be brutal. We wound up getting a reservation with Grayline to take us to and from the airport - just for peace of mind. The week after we were there, there were bad riots - gangs vs. police. Several police officers were killed. We were traveling with our 6-month old, so we totally wanted to err on the side of safety.

We did 4 nights at the towers on points. Since it was free, we may not have been as picky as if we were paying, though... Still, it's a nice hotel.

CO 1E

I stayed there this past June in a regular, non-SPG upgraded room. It was fine - no smells, dirty carpets, or problems with air conditioning. Bathroom was clean and modern; all plumbing worked without issue. Elevators were reliable and very modern (seemed quite new). Staff was polite and helpful. Given some of the posts upthread from Spring 2006, I think the hotel may have undergone some renovations between that time and this June, when I stayed there.

Hotel is in a convenient, safe location, only a 5-10 minute cab ride from Leblon (IMO, the nicest of the popular Rio neigborhoods) and the nice part of Ipanema. A reliable, English-speaking car service maintains a stand at the hotel, and drivers are always available. Fare for the car service to Leblon was about 14 reais each way ($7); regular yellow taxis were about 10 reais (car service is better).

It is the only hotel near the main parts of Rio that has its own beach rather than being accross the street from the crowded, public beaches in Ipanema and Copacabana, if that is of any importance to a guest. Water is unsafe for swimming due to strong currents, but the locals venture into the water to surf.

The restaurants and other common areas appeared new and clean. Food was good. Pool/deck area outside the hotel with other restaurants and bars was nice and clean, although there were many stray cats running around. In fact, the Sheraton has a little hutch donated and maintained by an animal charity in which about 20 stray cats live. The prescence of cats is unavoidable, however, given the location of a favela on the hillside above the hotel.

In sum, the hotel is nice and very conveniently located, but not outstanding. If you want to stay at a nicer, newer property and do not mind a 20-minute cab ride to the popular areas in Rio, stay at the Sheraton Barra. I should note that I would much rather stay at the Sheraton Rio than in any of the other major hotels in Ipanema or Leblon, and certainly more so than those in Copacabana, due to the Shearton's location.

3544quebec

The Sheraton Rio Hotel and Towers which was re-named The Sheraton Rio Hotel and Resort at the beginning of 2007 (I suppose they can refuse guaranteed 4pm late check-out now) from Jan 1 2008 lists rates for Club level rooms.

I assume that the Towers rooms are now becoming Club rooms and the Towers lounge a Club lounge. The listed room amenities are "Club Floor Room,buffet Brkfst For 2,separate Check-in & Check-out,eve Drinks/hors D Oeuvres,vip Lounge"

Good news for Platinums

ihdihd

I was there a few weeks ago and they looked like they were rennovating those floors with wood paneling. It escapes me though why they would have the club floors so low (i remember it was 4th and 5th or something). Meanwhile, the regular SPG floors are way up. What do you get when you get upgraded as a plat? Well I ended up with a nothing special corner room that they insisted was suite (it wasn't) on the 14th Fl. Non SPG / very outdated looking floor.

atxtraveler

I just stayed at the Sheraton Rio and really enjoyed it. If you are interested in an English Speaking taxi driver, who will hire out for the whole day, just ask the front bellman to call Dario Santos (a local driver). We hired him originally for one day to do the sightseeing tour, but ended up hiring him every day as he was very affordable (50 R$ a day). He was supplemented by a jewelry dealer which made him so affordable, and we went in to look at the jewelry but were under no pressure to purchase.

He actually made our trip, as he was always a great driver, and happy to see us each morning.

radonc1

Using the Starwood site, I clicked to the Sheraton Rio and Resort. On the site is a "contact us" section and I used the e-mail address from this part of the website to send the hotel an e-mail regarding my upcoming stay with them. The mail came back with an invalid address response. So, how do I contact this hotel short of calling them? Is there any other place I can get their e-mail address? Thanks in advance
Radonc1

rrgg

Is this referring to the hotel car service, because Sojourn magazine and the spg site say it's complimentary?

GUWonder

Last I was there, there was some kind of limited complimentary service but it required booking in advance and was not always available. I was unable to make any use of it whatsoever.

3544quebec

There is ahotel bus that runs every 1-2 hours along the beachfront through Leblon,Ipanema and Copacabana and drops you off whereever you want. Its free and you need a ticket but you usually just need to go to the desk 5 mins before departure.
There is another free bus that is provided by the Rio Sul shopping centre just past Copacabana. It runs the same route but only lets you get off at Rio Sul. The two services tend to alternate so that there is something leaving each hour during the day.

Azurik

I have a planned trip coming up with 3 of my friends, flying Delta from BOS to GIG and staying in Rio from 11/15 thru 11/24.

#1a) I booked Cash&Points from 11/15 thru 11/22. C&P isn't available for the final two nights (it keeps on going in and out of availability). Is there a recommendation on where to stay for our final two nights of fun?

#1b) I got a 2 Doubles Classic Oversized Room, but we have 4 people with us. Should I be expecting an additional charge?

#1c) How likely is it for me to be upgraded as SPG Gold? FWIW, we're
actually arriving in RIO at about 9am and take a cab to the Sheraton. I know check-in is at 3pm, not sure if that will make a difference in success rate.

Ideally, our last two nights, we would want to be close to the action in Copacabana and would probably want to spend around $150 a night. Are any of the other SPG properties in Brazil close besides the Rio Towers and Barra?

Thanks,
John

imverge

Hi John,

First off let me start by saying that you will be charged for having more than 2 people in a room. They are very strict about that. Hotels in RIO don't usually allow more than 2 adults per room. In fact, I would double check with reservations if 4 people is even possible at this property.

The only way I can see you getting away with it is by 2 of you checking in and then the other 2 can join you later.

As for getting upgraded as a GOLD, the hotel is very cheap when it comes to upgrades. I'm a Platinum and they gave me a 1 cat room upgrade. They might give you an ocean view instead of a mountain view.

Your check-in isn't going to be any better. Last time I was there I waited 2 hours for my room and I arrived at 2:00PM. There were loads of other people also waiting as most flights from Canada/USA/Europe arrive in the AM.

For the last two nights check out The Design Hotel. It's really well located just off Copacabana beach and a two minute walk to Ipanema beach. Hotel is modern, clean and staff are fantastic. Rooms have flat screen TV, mini bar and AC.
Rates start at $150 Here is the link for more info:

http://www.luxehotels.com/index.cfm?PropID=358

BTW, there was a LM on Copacabana but they left Starwood all together when they were taken over/merged.

If you need any further info just PM me. I've been a frequent guest at the Sheraton over the last 3 years.

Just a heads up though.. Make sure when you check out take notice of the daily UNICEF donation charge on your folio. You can have that removed from your bill but you have to tell them. Don't take no for an answer. I asked the GM to provide me with some info on where the money is allocated but he didn't have a clue.