Think Twice Before Paying for a Club Level Room at the Sheraton Atlanta Airport
If you’re staying at the Sheraton Atlanta Airport during their Club Lounge renovations, be sure to call before paying to upgrade to a club floor room! I was upgraded automatically as a Starwood Platinum, but if I had spent money or points for lounge access on my recent stay, I’d feel tricked.
They’re selling Club Level rooms for about $20-$25 more a night depending on your rate. 
There’s no notice on the website, room descriptions, or email confirmation that the club lounge is under renovation, though when you enter the lobby there’s a display showing what the new, larger lounge will look like.
In the meantime, there’s a temporary lounge set up on the 11th floor that offers non-alcoholic beverages and computer access and the evening appetizers are served in a roped off section of the 1900 Bar. Breakfast is in the restaurant. All of that is perfectly fine.
What did leave something to be desired was the haphazard, inconsistent communication.
I called ahead to see if the lounge would be open on New Year’s Eve. That’s when I found out that the club lounge was under renovation so the evening hors d’oeuvres would be served in the bar. No mention was made of a temporary lounge, so I stopped on the way and picked up bottled water for my stay before dropping off the rental car.
At check-in, they told me about the evening appetizers in the bar and about the 24 hour temporary lounge on the 11th floor. Guess I didn’t need to buy the bottled water after all. I was also given a print out outlining my options.
I swung by the temporary lounge which was basic, but fine. The evening appetizers in the bar were cheese, veggies and dip, and little pizza bites as the hot option. A scanty spread compared to other hotels, but again, perfectly fine.
The next morning I grabbed an early breakfast in the restaurant and rather than linger at my table for a second cup of tea, swung by the lounge to get some to go and some more bottled water since I’d finished mine.
My key didn’t work. I ran back down to the front desk to get it reprogrammed which is when I was informed (in a tone that suggested I should have known) that the temporary lounge was closed for the holidays!
- The taped sign on the door hadn’t been updated
- The paper outlining lounge benefits did not indicate a closure
- No mention of holiday hours had been made on the phone or during check in
They suggested I have breakfast in the restaurant and when I informed them I had, but just wanted some bottled water and hot tea, they looked around helplessly and told me they didn’t have any suggestions.
So depending on the day, paying for a club level floor is basically like a more expensive breakfast package. Before you book, consider calling to find out when/if the temporary lounge will be open.
One Comment