Entry to the hotel.
Just as I entered the hotel, I saw a wedding ceremony in conduct. Hotel felt total non-descript.
Why are you in this hotel in this city?
I was in Ahmedabad for some work and to visit my grandmother who wasn’t keeping well of late. According to Aloft’s website, the hotel is on SG Highway. However, it seems to be on the outskirts and not many would like to come here. It felt way out of the city.
This property was priced at Rs 3200. That is approximately Rs 4000 with taxes. It increased my SPG night count by 1. Plus, I had signed up for a Member Exclusive Offer and hence this was just one step there. With this stay I achieved 2 bonuses.
1 stay for member exclusive reward. I get 4000 points every alternate stay.
1 Stay at Aloft brand property which would help towards reaching 9 brands.
With Aloft you get 150 bonus points as Gold member Vs. 250 in normal SPG properties.
Points
Gold Member Bonus = 150
Stay Points – 128
50% Elite points = 64
5 Brands Bonus = 500
Total Points = 842
Value of points received in Rs = Rs. 2795
Check in
As I entered the lobby, I was met with a big round reception table and all the staff members standing behind it. While my bags were being fetched, disappointing news was broken to me- that I would be given a Splash Room instead of the Suite which I was promised in the first place. I had the Wedding to thank for this Bummer!
I was allotted room number 219 on the 2nd floor. I got the impression that staff was new here. There was no evening lounge because Gujarat is a dry state. So, I expected them to at least add complimentary snacks and pool table like they have at other properties. If not alcohol, then they could have easily provided me with juice or aerated beverages, but nothing of the sorts happened.
Journey to the room
To the right side of the reception, there is an elevator. My room was upstairs, right behind this elevator. I could see the efforts this property had put in to save money on the lights because the corridor was pretty dark. The natural light in hallway was also not enough, making it look like a little dark alley. I did not particularly like it.
Room
The door looked like that of a YMCA hostel. The room began with a small hallway and surprisingly ended right there. I found the room setup and design a little odd. It made the room feel smaller than it actually was. There were 2 writing tables in the room. The bed was larger than a usual King size bed. Mattress was doable.
There was not much view from the room. The Luggage Rack was right below the TV and right in front of the bed. I found that so many features of this room were weird. The chair back felt very frail.
The power plugs were Indian so you would have to bring your own converters if you don’t have standard 220 v plugs.
This room had a nice phone though. It was cordless with a big base. You could take it around.
Washroom
The washroom was fully equipped. It had a closet where you can put in your belongings. I appreciate that there was a separate door for the shower so the entire washroom doesn’t get wet.
There was nice old school basin with a lot of space around it. Opposite to the basin was a proper closet which also had a safe.
There was a bidet next to commode which I appreciate.
Looks like I have forgotten to take the picture of the shower. The shower was a usual one and not a rain shower. The water pressure was great but the temperature was horrible. I felt like I was taking cold shower even when tap was turned to full HOT. But you can see it with toiletries.
Toiletries
As you can see there was just a dispenser and no conditioner. The soap fragrance was alright. It wasn’t great but not particularly bad.
Internet Speed
The Internet was another interesting service at this property. Here, By default you are allowed to use the internet in only 1 device. When I called up guest services, they had to specially enable it for me to use in multiple devices.
The internet speed was slow. At times there was buffering in videos. For the most part it was alright for limited applications.
Food and Beverages
The spread at this hotel was average. Neither was it sprawling with big chains, nor was it like Anya or Hyatt Place where the spread cannot be seen at all.
A little confusion was in the air because of the Wedding and the catering happening outside. People who were not a part of the wedding were inside. Just as I was heading for breakfast, I was told that it is not included in my package. At this I had to show them my reservation that included breakfast. This was highly irksome!
There were lot of fried dishes. I wish they carried more healthy options at breakfast. Luckily they provided me with Vegetable Uttapam. A small caveat is that they couldn’t make it gluten free and it had white rice component in it.
I will let the pictures speak for the presentation and the spread.
Fitness Centre
The Fitness centre at this property is very small. There are 2 treadmills which didn’t have any remarkable features. There were no yoga mats but a big area for stretching. The Fitness equipment was very limited and there was no staff looking over.
Service
I felt that this hotel and staff was very new. Despite of the fact that they meant well and had no ill intention, they didn’t know how to go about a lot of things. There were no special Gold Member Amenities. I received a call at 11, which was the time around which I would check out. When I told the manager that I would check around 4, he said that it would be chargeable. I had to make him check the SPG terms and agreement.
Bottomline
The best part about this property is its cost. You will not get much from the hotel but if you need some Starwood benefit multiplier, I definitely recommend this property. Other than that, there is not much about this property that stands out. There is another Starwood property in middle of the city. Four point by Sheraton is similarly priced.
