Westin Bayshore Vancouver

Historical context: We have enjoyed the Westin Bayshore separately as individuals and again as a couple for over 40 years. Until now we have felt like guests who have been treated with respect. The following is not only disappointing; it makes us doubt whether we will return in the future. We share as a warning to others. Details: StayVancouverHotels is a local program which encourages city stays with promotional gifts. We have used this repeatedly in choosing to stay at the Bayshore. The original promotion granted a $225 prepaid Mastercard for a 2 night stay. We booked 4 nights, expecting 1 card. After booking and paying in full, the promotion was increased to $450 for 4 nights. We emailed StayVancouver in the hopes of having our 4 night reservation recognized under the new promotion. They passed our request on to Westin who denied it stating that the room was non-refundable and prepaid and the new promotion would not apply. Fair enough, we weren’t happy with the decision, but felt they could justify it on their end. Fast forward, the last night of our stay — after an atmospheric river of rain and a promise of proper Spring sunshine to come — we decided to extend our visit by 2 nights. We again booked through StayVancouver and paid in full. We received confirmation of the booking and an email telling us to expect a $225 prepaid Mastercard for our new 2 night stay. We confirmed these arrangements with the front desk to extend our stay and refresh our keys. The clerk told us to return the following day to pick up our rewards card. This is where it turned sour. The card was not available for pick up. Despite having an email confirmation of the card’s readiness, we were told that “consecutive bookings do not apply.” The problem with that logic is that we were already here and decided to stay a couple more nights. We made a new booking that the clerk subsequently linked to the old one. The manager was called in and our reservation and confirmation email were both made available to him. He determined that StayVancouver was in the wrong to issue it and that they would not honour it. We told him that with our original 4 night booking, StayVancouver stated that it was the Westin’s discretion to not honour the new promotion, now the Westin is saying that it is a StayVancouver policy to not honour the new booking. Between both entities, we just ended up feeling mislead and cheated. Where does the buck stop? Each organization blamed the other for unclear guidelines/practices, and we were made to feel that we were trying to scam the system unfairly. It’s certainly not the point of a $225 promo card after having spent literally tens of thousands of dollars at this hotel over the course of decades; rather it has to do with the very poor way in which it was handled. The irony in this is that should we have received the gift card we would have used it in-house at the H2 Kitchen + Bar or the Tasting Lounge. Instead, we chose to take our business elsewhere. Dear Travellers: Are you old/experienced enough to remember when you were appreciated as a valued client or have we all resigned ourselves to be mere cogs in the corporate machinery where the dollar rules above all personal considerations? Even a small chit of some sort to use in the hotel would have ameliorated this situation! $225 isn’t an issue financially but it can be a dealbreaker in terms of loyalty. Read less

The location was great and we had high hopes of the hotel. We arrived early and enjoyed a lovely snack at the hotel bar. Then we got to our room, great view but after that disappointed. Our bedding had rips in it, there was no mini bar and ordering room service was tricky requiring scan of QR code on the right brochure and if a good coffee is important to you, do not stay here. The coffee machine was dirty and of the drip variety, and the coffee supplied was from Starbucks and did not taste anything like real coffee. One morning I tried the Starbucks cafe in the lobby- it was awful. For a five star hotel the room was a basic, tatty overpriced disappointment. Read less

My husband and I booked a 3 night stay in the Harbour and Mountain View Room at the Westin bayshore Hotel. As Marriott Bonvoy Members we loved the booking experience. The location of the hotel is great and view from the room was absolutely stunning. Thank you for the complimentary strawberries for our special occasion. I loved the Vida Spa and highly recommend taking services from Anahi. She was amazing. The bed was comfortable but we were disappointed with the amenities, pillows and particularly the size of the room (it was really small compared to the photos). The room definitely seemed overpriced for its size and amenities. There was no bottle of water and no mini bar in our room either. I would believe the cost of the room is simply for the view and location. The breakfast experience was highly disappointing. There was no buffet available since they were revamping their menu. When I chose the option "Eggs your way!" and asked for an omelette from the Ala Carte Menu, I was told that they cannot make an omelette 'my way' and that I would have to choose the omelette from the menu which they made their way. I found it rather ironic and didn't appreciate the way the staff handled the situation either. We ended up having breakfast at the Starbucks inside the hotel. Also please note that the hotel does not provided 24/7 in-room dining. The hotel has 2 pools (outdoor and indoor) although in 3 days we didn't see a single person in the outdoor pool due to the cold weather while the indoor pool was small and crowded. The H tasting lounge for dining and drinks is really nice and the dome looks beautiful. Special thanks to the manager, Niranjan for making the experience even better. Overall if the hotel improved its rooms, amenities and breakfast, the experience would surely be enhanced. Read less

During my stay at the hotel, I experienced several serious issues that made the visit extremely unpleasant. There were bugs actively running in both the bathroom and the room. In addition, there was visible mold under the window, which I only noticed shortly before checkout because it was hidden behind the curtain. After returning home, my family and I all developed persistent coughing, which raised serious health concerns. The presence of bugs and mold is unacceptable and was the main issue of my stay. I reported the mold problem to the front desk before leaving. I was told that someone would contact me, but no one ever did. I also emailed customer service and received only an automated response stating that I would be contacted. That follow-up never happened. I have documented all of these issues with photographs. Another major concern was the $50 parking fee. The hotel does not actually provide on-site parking; guests are directed to park across the street in a public parking lot. Most hotels do not charge for parking, and if they do, this information should be clearly disclosed at the time of booking — not after arrival. This felt like a hidden cost. Additionally, having to walk five minutes across the street to park the car was very inconvenient, especially in cold and rainy weather. Lastly, the hotel restaurant was significantly overpriced for the quality offered. Overall, this experience did not meet reasonable expectations for cleanliness, transparency, or customer service. The lack of follow-up after reporting serious health and safety concerns is especially disappointing. Read less