Residence Inn by Marriott Santiago de Los Caballeros

Beautiful-looking property with ample free parking. Beauty is only surface-deep. Door would not open upon check-in. It required two employee attempts. One employee had a laptop in tow. Service was mediocre. The daytime watchman felt too watchful. Never felt adequately greeted or welcomed. Not sure if I would stay here again.

Overall, experience at the property is good but has areas to improve. Let’s start with the good. 1. The staff at the Marriot are warm and welcoming. 2. The property is nice. Everything is brand new and clean. 3. I haven’t been to the country in over 10 years. It is nice to see an international hotel company investing in Santiago. It is different. I am used to seeing more local people. The property was filled with local people and other business people from different countries. It lets me know that the city is moving towards progress which I like. 4. The property is in the heart of Santiago. It is close to everything. 15 minutes to the airport. 15 minutes to downtown Santiago. Here are a few improvements that can benefit the property in the future. 1. Since it is an international hotel company, there should be a watchman (security) checking for actual verification of booking if a person prior to driving into the property. It ensures safety for the guest and staff. This should be done 24/7. 2. Have workshops on different issues with other booking websites and how to manage it. One example of this, I used bookings.com to book the hotel. Upon arrival, the staff member couldn’t find my name. I showed him the confirmation. He referenced the guest name as the principal person in the hotel. But I was the one who did the booking, it was under my name. As a result of that, the person didn’t add the bonvoy member number on the reservation. If staff are able to handle hiccups like this and how to solve them, it will make their job easier. 3. Have different audits on a quarterly basis on certain things around the property. A few examples are checking to see if the phones in the clients rooms are working, paint, customer service, food and everything. Based of these internal audits, management is able to make recommendations and adjust it as they see fit.

Finally open! This is the first international hotel chain to open in Santiago. Very much needed. I stayed on opening night and the experience was great, very few guests. Here are some observations. Staff was well trained and eager to assist. Two story lobby beautifully decorated. Lobby bar, and seating areas. 2nd floor restaurant, where the included breakfast is served. Had salmon for dinner and it was good. Breakfast was weak and they need to improve the offerings. 3rd floor gym very nice well equipped. Pool with outdoor patio seating and bar grill. The room was new!!! very nicely decorated with a kitchen fully appointed. Underground parking, 2 levels. Overall, it was a great stay, and cool to be in the first one in the room, had that new smell!! This hotel is attached to the HOMS medical center and is part of a medical tourism model being developed, There is some retail space next to the hotel that is not open yet.