W New Orleans – French Quarter

Pretty weak three, frankly, But I’ll give it benefit of the doubt based on a good location and a good dinner recommendation from the front desk.
The hotel itself is quirky, with what seems like a random layout — I couldn’t figure it out all the way, but also didn’t really explore and try to map it. I just know how to find my room. I was originally very confused that the rooms weren’t accessible from the lobby, but the hotel is obviously built in to an older building that wasn’t intended to be a cookie cutter «tower» hotel.
I’m not proud, but I did get an upgrade from the standard room when I checked in, which was a pleasant surprise. Not sure what the upgrade entailed, but probably just physically larger. Supposedly each instance of this class of room was «uniquely decorated» but… I don’t think I could really tell.
Mattress was comfortable enough, except for maybe the worst case of non-​fitted, and ill-​fitting sheets I’ve yet encountered. I hate waking up in an un-​tucked wad of sheets. Do I just not know how to use a bed, or is this simply ridiculous? Good overstuffed pillows though, I did like that.
Bathroom was fine — could use a little more direct lighting for shaving, but great water pressure, etc. My only complaint was it was a bit cramped — even for one person — and there wasn’t a good place to hang a towel where it could get some air circulation and dry out overnight. Again, not a building designed to be a modern hotel, but also no bathroom ventilation, which would be welcome in a humid climate like this.
Parking is spicy — $ 47/​night for valet after taxes, but that seems to be the norm around here. Still hurts, though. Also not sure why every morning they have adjusted the mirrors randomly — I get (but don’t like) when they adjust your seat, but adjusting the mirrors seems really odd. In general, staff are friendly and helpful, providing the aforementioned great dinner recommendation (Kingfish, probably my favorite meal from this past week). The price here wasn’t insane, considering it’s a W in a good location, but it’s not cheap either when you factor in that parking and the fact that there’s no lounge with breakfast a la the less expensive (and granted, less «cool») Sheraton nearby.
I dunno. W’s aren’t designed for people like me. This place was fine, but I would try some place with more amenities that I actually take advantage of. Sheraton takes lots of crap for being soulless, and they usually are, but the ease of getting some quick breakfast early in the morning really saves me some hassle as a business traveler. I’ll trade the W style for that. I think if I was on vacation, I would appreciate this a little more.

This is my first time staying at a W Hotel anywhere. My brother did all the booking so I can’t give a review on the customer service for checking in and the bill. I will give a review on what I like or didn’t like about the hotel.
Upon arriving, the Valet guy asked us if we needed a cart to bring all our stuff up to the room while my brother was checking us in. We didn’t need it since everyone had their own luggages. While waiting for my brother to check in, I checked out the courtyard and pool area. The pool of course was small but that’s okay. The courtyard was very nice an quaint.
We went up to the room and at first glance, it was a pretty decent size room with 2 queen beds and enough room for our luggages. There was a mini fridge filled up with drinks and a section filled with snacks. The bathroom was a bit small but big enough. The shower was a good size as well. I loved the «Bliss» brand facial scrub, lotion, shampoo and conditioner that was provided. I normally use my own but I like the brand Bliss so I used it all. I wish we had gotten room that over looked the streets or the courtyard though.
The location is perfect. It was walking distant to everything including Bourbon and Canal Street and the famous Café Du Monde. We didn’t have to use our car at all during our stay. We walked everywhere.
Overall, this was a good hotel. I wouldn’t say it was the best hotel I’ve ever stayed at but it is one that I will return to.

Nice hotel, but TERRIBLE service, rude employees, and DEFINITELY not worth the $ 500 a night rate. They overbooked, so when we arrived after 11 hours of driving, they did not have a room ready for us or a spot to park our car. After driving through Bourbon street at 8:00 pm on a Saturday night for an hour, they finally found a make shift spot for our car (which we had to pay $ 50 for). Another 30 minutes later, they told us that our room was ready, but when we got up to the room, there was one queen bed (we had booked 2 queen beds because there were 4 of us staying). Another 30 minutes went by before all they could do was offer a twin sized blow up (that was rock hard) and a sheet. By the time we finally got situated, we missed half of our one night stay in New Orleans, and to top it all off, there was no hot water in the shower. And by no hot water, I mean the water was ICE cold and unbearable to shower in. Another family with children were in the same room situation as us too. Needless to say, we will not be returning to this cramped hotel.

2 months after my trip, never received all of the money they illegally doubled charged me back. After multiple frustrating convo’s with customer service reps I was told the manager had to respond within a few days; he never called. I followed up with CS again and they told me he claimed he had spoken to me and closed the case and that was that. I spoke to an investigator for Starwood who asked me to explain what happened and interrupted to scream at me for an entire hour. No amount of «please could you let me just finish my story worked». She questioned the legitimacy of my Huntington’s Disease (!) because she’d never heard of it, and then told me if I was in fact so sick then I had no business travelling. Apparently she’s never heard of a bucket list also, how is any of it her business? She then told me the entire ordeal, doubling charging me, blowing me off, was completely my fault for not having more money, yelled at me again, and hung up. I’ve managed to stay calm and polite throughout every interaction and I still don’t understand how a company can survive when you screw over guests and then yell at them and blame them.

We had a lovely stay here, friendly staff, good service

Just arrived not so good, room is tiny even by NYC standards. Desk personnel not so friendly, heat doesn’t work in the room. Person came to fix «says wait a half hour and if it doesn’t heat up call back». Really. How long does it take to heat 120 square feet? This is not looking good and to think I could have stayed at Harrahs hotel down the street for 3 nights. Unfortunately the bad reviews seem right on so far.

Almost everyone at the front desk was friendly upon check-​in and check-​out. The only gripe that we had was one girl that answered the phone and gave a bit of attitude. Sorry, I’m not about that life hun!
The room itself was cozy and had two comfy queen beds. We were able to fit 5 girls in the room comfortably not to mention the wall art that we had in the room on the ceiling of a King of Hearts playing card. There was a cute lounge area in the back of the hotel that included white furniture so it had an Art Deco South Beach type of feel. Had it not rained, we would’ve enjoyed more time down there.
Location wise this property can’t be beat. It’s in a relatively safe area close to Canal St. and Bourbon St. There are lots of chain around here (Starbucks, Popeyes, Walgreens) as well as psychic reading shops every other store. Just about everything is there in the vicinity of other large hotels as well as the casino.
Some things I encountered that bothered me: the gates lock at a certain point and you always have to have a key to get access to go up in the elevator but they don’t really tell you that so you’re pretty lost for a few mins before you notice. The layout of the hotel is also somewhat hard to navigate.
Lastly, you are charged for every little thing so beware. We requested an auxiliary cord that costs $ 25 if not returned. Umbrellas if not returned are $ 60 each. My hubby special ordered chocolate covered strawberries and a bottle of cheap champagne that were $ 30 (strawberries) and $ 90 (champagne). It wasn’t worth it. The strawberries were small, old and the chocolate looked extremely messy. Room service isn’t available past 11pm so we had to call a delivery joint around the corner. It wasn’t bad especially for the price and quick delivery service.
If I didn’t get an employee rate, I wouldn’t stay at this property for what it would have cost otherwise.

Room was clean, although no places to hang towels. Not a lot of room for luggage. The linens were in my opinion scratchy compared to other W’s we have stayed at. The other thing was loud arguing in the hallway two of the nights we were there. Took over an hour for staff to arrive and remove the problem… Also the lounge area is amazing if it did not smell like cat urine.
Good was a drink when checking in to start the Halloween weekend off. Fast and simple check in. Staff was friendly and helpful. Soubu has some amazing food as well.
Overall the Hilton Riverside had better rooms, staff, and linens which is surprising to me. My wife wins the hotel round this trip. My choice of the W had convenience.

Being SPG Platinum for the past 7 years, I feel comfortable rating SPG properties.
This one, unfortunately, doesn’t measure up well. My summary would be «great location, poor facilities /​service.»
Pros:
— staff was really nice
— location was fantastic
— great little courtyard
— cool entrance area
Cons:
— couldn’t check in until 5:30 for a 4pm request
— didn’t get the upgrade I should’ve gotten
— got shoved into a dank handicapped-​accessible room overlooking an alley (apparently my status is pretty useless at this place)
— room looked like it should’ve been in an Aloft (get your branding right, guys)
— hotel literature listed a business center, which I was counting on to take a call from. Nope — they don’t have one. When I asked, the front desk said, «Yeah, it’s not right on the website» Sooo… you know it’s wrong and just leave it be?!?
— hotel was understaffed, and staff seemed confused, disorganized and overwhelmed
Overall, one of the worst SPG experiences I’ve ever had.

If you are reading the other reviews of this hotel and are having second thoughts — go with your instinct. I went ahead and booked a 5 night stay at this hotel after reading the reviews and could not regret it more. If you have stayed at a W hotel before — be warned, this is not the same experience. Great location, good restaurant, very polite manager (Stacie), but it’s all downhill from there.
We had a Studio Suite with Jacuzzi (which did not work).
We had a laundry list of issues that simply led to us having a less than relaxing and enjoyable time in New Orleans.
Not being able to check in on time.
Dirty rooms. Even when we called to have our room cleaned we returned to find nothing had been done. The next day we made the same request only to return and find that our room had been «cleaned», but we found several pubic hairs on the bed near the pillows.
Unserviced mini bar that had a half empty bottle of wine left over from the previous guest.
The air conditioner condensation was leaking on the floor.
The bathrooms were dirty (tile and grout)
I understand that there is going to be a certain «charm» to any hotel in the French Quarter, but that does not preclude you from having a clean, functioning property.
The restaurant (SoBou) was very nice.
I have stayed at several other W hotels and will continue to do so, but I will not stay at this property again. There are much better options in The French Quarter.

This hotel is amazing I had a great time staying here. I don’t know what all the other reviews are about but the staff is extremely helpful and very fun and entertaining. They sent a bottle of champagne and balloons to my room for my birthday. They went above and beyond. Tyesha at the front desk was amazing. I will stay here again.

This hotel was awesome. I’ll be honest Nola is dirty and when it came to choosing a hotel we would only stay somewhere that was new and clean and that’s exactly what the W was. Located in the French Quarter it was very close to Bourbon St and all the bars. When we first arrived it was too early to check in so they held our bags for us and gave us complimentary drinks which they serve everyday. The service was great. Our room was clean, towels were renewed regularly. I had left my phone charger home and the room had a charging station with almost every relevant charger. The pool was nice and clean and the outside area is beautiful. Definitely recommend.

Pros
–Location: Perfectly located in the heart of the French Quarter.
–Sobu (restaurant attached to the hotel): They have happy hour starting at 3pm, which is where my husband and I started each evening. Cocktails and food are all excellent!
–Pool/​Courtyard area: really nice to sit by the pool and in the courtyard area for morning coffee or a nightcap!
Cons
–Parking: it costs $ 46 per night to park your car at the hotel and this isn’t listed anywhere on their website. Also quite annoying that we didn’t check in to the hotel until 11:30pm and were charged for a full day of parking.
–Staff: Valet gave us a «luggage ticket» instead of a «valet ticket» and couldn’t locate our car when we were ready to check out. The valet accused us of losing the valet ticket and then apologized when they saw the other half of the «luggage ticket» they gave was actually hanging in the window… after it took them 20 minutes to find our car.
–Staff (Part 2): Someone charged an $ 85 breakfast to our room and when I called the front desk to inquire about getting the charge removed I was asked «Are you sure you just don’t remember ordering the breakfast?» Yes… I’m sure. And I still had the receipt from where I actually had breakfast on that day. They said they would call me back and when they did, went through an itemized list of what was ordered and asked if I was absolutely certain that I had not ordered the food. Still positively certain.

Ok this place is amazing. I have worked in the hotel industry for 15 years most has been in management so I have to say I’m pretty tough on services. The first time two years ago we had booked at another hotel. Our experience was horrible so we called the W they walked us in a treated us like royalty. We booked again for my nephews wedding this past weekend. Shawn at the front desk remembered us from two years ago. She sent up champagne and a fruit platter to welcome us back. Then I couldn’t find the ATM so the bartender walked me across the courtyard to where it was. Another note, our air was not working very well so when Mo came to access the room he brought a whole separate floor unit in until he could get ours fixed. Then he sent us a bottle of wine. This is how you take care of you customers. Very impressed

If You really want to get to know your SO Better stay in this place. It is very small. We had the Fabulous Room which didn’t seem so Fab… The air conditioning didn’t work well and You know how muggy and humid N.O. can be. The bathroom is tiny You couldn’t fit 2 people in it Let alone turn around in it If You were in it alone. It has a very eclectic «Upscale» design which I’m not attracted to… very low lighting dark walls and furnishings and barely any natural light. Not Impressed. Especially for the price we paid to stsy.
However Very Impressed with the Staff at The Hotel… They were very accommodating helpful and genuinely kind. We needed to extend our stay one more night and we received 4 Free Drink Vouchers and ½ off Food for The Restaurant located in the hotel. Greg was The Man… He gave great suggestions about where to hang out… Who had the best breakfast lunch and dinner and the most efficient ways to get around the city… BOOM GREG GETS ***** 5 STARS *****

Location is the key to this hotel. Everything else pretty much sucks. It’s run by kids who couldn’t be nicer but don’t know what the hell they are doing. We weren’t able to check in when we arrived, they were delayed over 4 hours. Don’t get room 227. It’s right be the gym and all you hear is pounding and treadmills running all morning. Not my favorite Starwood property.

I love W hotels — have stayed in many — most many times over. This is my second stay at this hotel this year.
Start with the positive — the location is great, the rooms and public areas are funky cool as you would expect from any W hotel. The hotel manager is very engaged — if you have issues and outline them in the survey from the company he/​she reaches out which is great.
The staff — total lack of urgency — very young and not very sophisticated for the most part. For instance — when I asked for a spa recommendation — the young woman at the desk recommended the little store on the corner where Asian people give massages in a store front environment. The team just seems young and disengaged which is unfortunate because I know that this is not how the W operates. May just be a New Orleans dynamic. I witnessed many other people with frustrations not being handled well at the front desk.
I called for my car and a bellman — 15+ mins later I hauled my stuff downstairs myself. Car no where in sight — there was NO ONE else checking out at that time… again the valet staff are friendly and nice but no urgency.
My TV went out a few times during my stay — had to call Maintenance who told me that it’s an ongoing issue… really — I get that things don’t always work but «ongoing issues» with electronics need to be taken care of. I really do not want multiple visits from maintenance (as nice and helpful as the gentleman was).
No acknowledgement whatsoever of my platinum status with SPG — ok I know that is bratty but I travel weekly and it’s an expectation.
Again — I love W hotels — I like this hotel overall but they have work to do and it seems to be consistent.

After carousing about on Bourbon street w/​your new best friends this is a very nice place to retrieve back to. Unwind and sink into the arms of class and modern trendy and hip surroundings. Touches of elegance here and there. Then wake up and do it all over again with one eyed open.

This was my first stay at a W hotel and I really enjoyed it! I had a bunch of Starwood points because I travel a lot for work and decided to book this hotel instead of Le Meridien which was formerly the other W New Orleans.
Parking at the hotel is ridiculously expensive at $ 46 per day so I would recommend finding cheaper parking if possible. We were able to find $ 40 parking for two nights. I have Platinum status so I had the choice of a surprise local amenity, complimentary breakfast at SoBou, or points. I chose the breakfast. The complimentary breakfast is only for 2 people per day with a $ 16 limit per person. I was traveling with 4 guests so I used both of my complimentary breakfast tickets on one day. SoBou is part of the Commander’s Family of Restaurants which includes other restaurants such as Commander’s Palace and Brennan’s of Houston. Free wi-​fi was also included with my Platinum status but I didn’t use it. Wi-​fi is usually $ 14 a night.
I love modern hotels and fell in love with the W. I wish I brought my bathing suit because the courtyard and pool were beautiful!
Why I loved this hotel:
— Iced water infused with fruit in the lobby
— Complimentary Wall Street Journal or USA Today and coffee in the lobby every morning
— Comfortable beds and towels
— TV with all of my favorite channels
— Waterfall shower that is also in Westin hotels
— Bliss foaming face wash, body butter, shampoo, conditioner, body wash, and face wipes (in the gym)
— Friendly and helpful staff
— Walking distance from almost everything!
I probably wouldn’t stay at this hotel if I didn’t have points because it’s over $ 200 a night but I really enjoyed my free stay here!

There is a consistent theme in my travel life and that is SPG hotels. I travel almost every week for work and, when I get a choice, I stay at an SPG hotel. The familiarity, the products, and the service are all consistent enough to make the travel fun.
I got a chance to go to New Orleans a day before a work meeting. New Orleans is one of my top three favorite cities in the US, so I was in a good mood before even landing. Knowing that I was feet away from beignets also didn’t hurt.
At the time, this hotel was going through renovations. The front desk was warm and funny. So, I thought it would be a fine visit.
I assuming that these points have been fixed by now, but while I was there:
1. It sounded like people were trying to break into my room regularly. In the middle of the night and during the day, there was A LOT of giggling to my door handles.
2. There was a large leak in the bathroom, so when the guest upstairs flushed the toilet, the ceiling moved and leaked.
3. They offered a late checkout and the cleaning staff came three times to see if I was gone before noon.
I will definitely come back here; I just hope it is a little smoother next time. The courtyard is beautiful, the rooms are nice and the service is excellent. I would give it a try.