Sheraton Norfolk Waterside Hotel

We had a lovely harbor view room, clean and comfortable, and enjoyed both breakfast and the evening social hour in the Sheraton Club Lounge. My wife and I stayed two days after Christmas, and the service really stood out. The young woman at checkout made things friendly and quick, and the valet and every other employee we met kept the good experience going. We had a wonderful visit and will definitely come back when we're in the area.

The view and walking area were nice, and the front desk woman was genuinely kind when I finally came down for help. I also thought the staff were great, and feel bad they have to work at this hotel. The room itself was another story. One bed had hair all over it, so I quietly switched to the other. The fridge door wouldn't stay closed, though they brought a replacement fairly quickly. Then I found there wasn't a coffee maker, even though it's advertised, and more than an hour after I called, it still hadn't arrived. I wouldn't be surprised if I end up with a cold shower too, based on how bad Sheratons have been for me. I keep hoping to have a good stay when my employer books one instead of a Motel 6, and I'm always wrong.

The comfortable bed and the breakfast staff were bright spots. Marvette was engaging, and Rena, the "Omelette Lady," was great too. We ate by the window looking out over the water. The lobby also looked impressive, and parking was plentiful. But the room and furniture were very worn, so I wouldn't call this a four-star hotel. The main reason I gave two stars instead of one is that some of the employees were really good. Our first impression was mixed. Jakira greeted my dad and me at about 2:30 in the morning, upbeat and helpful, and told us there was water in the room when we were about to buy some. Then at the elevators, one had a spill with a caution sign over it but was still in service. We couldn't call another lift, so we squeezed in with our luggage around the mess. It looked like something that could simply have been cleaned up. The next morning, the shower water was only lukewarm. The woman I called at the desk sounded uninterested and just said they were working on it, without an apology. Carl, the General Manager, later emailed to ask what would keep me from rating the hotel 9 or 10 out of 10 and invited feedback. I replied within half an hour about what had happened, but heard nothing back. On Sunday evening neither of our key cards worked. The desk told me to come down for replacements, then handed them over without apologizing. Back in the room, we found it hadn't been serviced. We'd used the privacy tag the previous day so we could sleep in after arriving very late, but not that day. When I called, I got silence after explaining the problem. The woman said she'd been listening when I asked whether they did room service at all. She offered a room change, but it was around 11 p.m. and we were heading to bed. I had to ask if they could make up for it. She offered buffet breakfast for the next morning, which would have cost $38, and I accepted. At checkout, Shakeesha (sp?) was kind and understanding. She asked what had happened, apologized, and said she'd tell Carl, who would contact me and probably comp one night. She reassured us again as we left. That was two days ago, and I still hadn't heard from him, by phone or in reply to the email they had solicited. I was most upset that the General Manager never followed up. It made me feel that Carl doesn't care about guests' stays. Update: I heard from Carl the day after posting this review. They offered 10,000 points, worth about $70-$86. 🫤

Update: Jamal, the assistant GM, called me personally to ask how he could make things right. He offered 50,000 points, saying that would cover a two-day stay at many Marriotts. I asked for 75,000 so I could use them for a weekend, and he agreed. Three days later I called because the points still hadn't come through. The front desk manager then said they could only give me 20,000 because their inspection found no bed bugs. I have photos. They also cleaned the room before inspecting it. I know because I was there. They moved me two doors down from my original room. I just want the points I was promised and to be done with it. The customer service has been awful. I was in room 811 on a work trip as an airline pilot. I woke up with bites all over my back and arms, pulled the sheets back to check, and found bed bugs. I packed and went to the lobby for another room, but they said they had to inspect first. I told them I had photos, and the two women didn't even ask to see them. They were rude, and one asked if I wanted to return to the original room to shower while they inspected it. I asked if she would go back into a room where she'd found bed bugs. My flight was leaving in three hours. Completely unacceptable.