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(photo courtesy of St. Regis Atlanta / Buckhead)
- My 34th Birthday: A Two-Week Celebration
- Birthday Celebration in San Francisco
- Birthday Celebration Continues in Los Angeles
After our time in San Francisco and Los Angeles, we spent the next few days at home before beginning my actual birthday trip to the woods up in north Georgia. We could have easily left Thursday morning and headed right towards our cabin, but a quick work meeting in Atlanta made for an easy stop the day before and an opportunity to stay at our first St. Regis. When I think of St. Regis, I think of fancy; too fancy. Neighboring hotels include the Mandarin Oriental, Ritz Carlton, JW Marriott, Intercontinental, W, and Westin; we were definitely in good company. I used one of my SPG Confirmed Suite upgrade nights to give us the best shot of getting confirmed in a room with Butler service (and it worked out).
When we pulled up, we were welcomed by the valet and for $34 our car was taken away. Check-in was quick and polite. For once I opted for the breakfast option as a platinum instead of the 500 bonus points. It was the continental breakfast or $17 off each of our breakfasts. Depending on my mood I’ll value SPG points at 2-2.5 cents a piece and given that we were planning on eating breakfast at the hotel, it only made sense. This is actually a big plus for a hotel with a club lounge (which the St. Regis does not have); as a platinum you’ll get free access to it which usually includes some form of breakfast (which allows you to take the points too).
The room had a comfortable living room with separate TV and bedroom area. Oh and don’t forget the TV in the bathroom mirror…I mean, what else do you do when you’re brushing your teeth??? After we got settled we were greeted by our butler, who reviewed the services available to us. Free shoe shine and a couple of clothing items pressed if desired (tempting for a solo/overnight business trip); but I just wanted coffee. A French press of coffee (just like at home) and a pot of tea for Sara; complimentary, included with the butler service. A nice perk, but like anyone that frequently stays with Starwood, I’ve gotten pretty used to the Africa Kitamu.
I got through some work emails and we called it a night. In the morning we went downstairs for breakfast and enjoyed a quiet breakfast, as there was only one other couple in the dining area. Mid-week, mid-morning isn’t exactly busy given most of the business travelers were gone an hour or more ahead of us. A couple of coffees and made to order breakfast, and our $34 credit covered 3/4’s of our breakfast. Not absurdly priced, but priced for a St. Regis. Regardless it was tasty and a smart move taking the breakfast credit.
After returning to the room, we called the butler service, had another pot of coffee and tea sent up, and confirmed standard check out time of 12 p.m. As an SPG Platinum, I’m afforded a 4 p.m. check-out of desired, but we were headed out and had no intention of staying late. I generally go through the process of checking out (instead of just leaving) whenever I depart, so that housekeeping knows the room is ready to clean and it can be made available for someone else. Perhaps someone is looking to check in early that day and, by doing this, maybe they’re able to do just that. I’ve been lucky to have this happen to me and would encourage everyone to do the same.
I took a quick stroll after packing up as Sara finished, and it happened to be that it was my actual birthday that day. As I was walking outside, one of the gentleman working at the front door said to me, “so today is the day, right?” I grinned and indicated yes and thanked him. To me, this was the most memorable part of the visit. Sure, we enjoyed the room, the service, the bath amenities, and the overall property was great, but the fact that he had remembered after a 15 second conversation with Sara the day before that this day was my birthday, is what made the stay truly memorable.
Given all the SPG properties in the Atlanta area, I could have easily stayed somewhere else (and probably saved a few bucks too), but we decided on the St Regis as a bit of a splurge since it was my birthday, and it was also the only one of the nine Starwood brands that I didn’t have a stay/planned stay at. Last year SPG had an unpublished benefit, where if you stayed at all nine brands, you received a complimentary 3 night award to be used at any category 1-6 property. Will it happen again this year? I have no clue, but I figured since I was only one property away, it was worth it. Time will tell.
Now, back to that “fancy” comment…yeah, its a bit over the top, but it isn’t gaudy and doesn’t try to be opulent. Everything is done tastefully. Things aren’t gold trimmed for the purpose of being gold trimmed. Simply put, the St. Regis is classy, upscale, and impressive.
If I’m back in the area, I likely wouldn’t stay here again. Not because I didn’t enjoy the property, but because I’ll almost equally enjoy another property within a reasonable vicinity to where I’ll need to be for much less money. The extra cake in my pocket, I’ll enjoy.
I love the points and miles game and the experiences are amazing…but something I’ve learned is that I’m not a first class and seven-star hotel kind of guy. Business class and a nice four-star Sheraton or Westin meets our needs.
Cards we used:
Starwood Preferred Guest American Express Business – Our night at the St Regis
Chase Ink Plus Credit Card – Gas for our car ride
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