Luxury like no other... (ArabellaSheraton Grand Hotel)

Member Name: zOOm

Product:	ArabellaSheraton Grand Hotel
Date:	09/06/01 (46 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Great presentation, Attentive staff, Best location

Disadvantages: Very expensive

I have spent about 10 nights in the ArabellaSheraton Grand Hotel so far. And I have enjoyed my stay there. I am told it is the most expensive hotel in Frankfurt, I am unable to confirm that, but it is very posh. From the moment you enter the lobby you can tell that they have spent lots of money on the general presentation of the hotel. The hotel has six floors.

The rooms:
The rooms are large and comfortable. Standard features include:

- temperature control – although rather than being adjustable in degrees or so, this is like cold or hot selection on the aircon.
- pay TV (be careful with this, they charge you when you just select the channels, every other hotel asks for confirmation that you are aware of the charge)
- alarm (of course),
- about 3 telephones, including one in the bathroom
- a fax machine
- Minibar
- Internet connection on the TV
- Games (there is a game console on top of the TV – but I have not checked what games are available).

The bathroom:

I find the bathroom a little smaller than the one in the Hilton. It does not have a separate shower and even though you have almost everything you need you get the sense that it was added due to an afterthought rather than being designed in from the start. There are mirrors everywhere and the shaving/makeup mirror has it’s own light. The whole bathroom is tiled and all the metallic fittings are either gold or silver colored.

Health Center:

I was disappointed with this. The health center is rather small. However, the gym is open 24 hours. There is a charge of 19DM (or something like that) to use the Gym. The usage of the pool is free, however the pool is rather small for a 5 star hotel. It is about 5 x 10 meters, which makes it less than half the size of the pool that you’ll find at the Hilton.

Location:

The Shraton is situated just off the main shopping street of Frankfurt.
It is also very close to the underground train station. There are lots of restaurants around and touristic places are all within walking distance.

Restaurants:

The “Brasserie” is where I have had my breakfasts. The breakfast costs about 40DM but is good. It is buffet breakfast and I recommend you go there relatively early. If you don’t get there by 10:00AM you will not find much fresh food.

“Peninsula” restaurant was very nice. It is located just behind the main lobby and next to the “Rhapsodie Bar”. The food there was nice and filling and the price was comparable to other restaurants in the area.

The “Rhapsoide Bar” is your typical hotel bar. It is nicely arranged and staff are very attentive. I have never had to wait more than 3 minutes before someone came and asked me for my order.

The Bulding

The building itself is relatively new and modern. All the metallic surfaces are either gold or silver color and the floors are whitish marble. There are 4 lifts and a special lift that is used for the pool/gym area.

Check in was very quick and efficient. You can ask for “breakfast Checkout” where a member of staff will bring you your hotel bill to sign while you are having your breakfast on the day of your leave.

StarWood Preferred Guest

StarWood Preferred Guest (SPG) is the membership card of the Sheraton Hotels. You get points every time you stay at any Sheraton hotel around the world. They are very generous with their awards. Stay at the Sheraton for 5 nights and you get a Fridy night free at any Sheraton aorund the world. Stay another 5 nights and you get a Saturday night free. Currently they are running a special promotion with American Express. Pay with your Amex card and you get 2 free Fridy nights or 2 free Saturday nights. I am not sure how long this promotion will run for.

You also get airmiles. Just p
resent your airline membership card (BA Executive Club or Lufthansa Miles & More or whichever) and the Sheraton gives you extra miles for staying there.

Overall, I recommend this hotel. The price I am quoting below is the normal rate, the corporate rate is about half that price.

Summary: