Review Protea Hotel Fire&Ice Durban Umhlanga Ridge

General Impressions:

For the property:

For the staff:

Details:

Duration of stay: 2 nights / after Safari

Check-in / Check-out:

Check-in Process:

Check-out Process:

Concierge Service: N/A

Staff @ Front Desk:

Bonvoy recognition:

At Check-in:

In General:

From Protea Hotels:

Posting of points & nights:

Room / Bathroom:

Bed, quality of sleep:

Bathroom, Shower:

Room Atmosphere:

WiFi / Internet:

Housekeeping general:

Cleanliness:

Food & Beverage:

Breakfast:

Bar:

Restaurant:

Lounge: no lounge

Staff:

Paul‘s Mix:

Pool, Spa:

Hotel Location:

Mojito Rating :

General Customer Care:

Staff attitude, interaction and responsiveness:

Social media interaction:

General Info:

The hotel is located north of Durban in the Umhlanga Ridge area. There are many restaurants and shops around the hotel which can easily be reached by foot and also the big shopping mall is just next to the hotel.

There is no public transport so you will need a rental car to move around.

The Hotel has a Total of 205 rooms including suites.

Check-in:

The check-in was fantastic. The staff was super attentive and friendly. They interacted with us all the time and were talking us through the process. They wanted to know how our trip has been this time and his we have been.

Check-out:

Check out was great too. The agent was super friendly and efficient.

Staff at frontdesk was always helpful and friendly.

Everytime we passed the frontdesk they always had the time for a chat and/or asked if everything was okay.

The bell boys are amazing and always lend a helping hand for everything.

Marriott Bonvoy Recognition:

At check-in the Hotel adhered to all Marriott Bonvoy procedures and all benefits received automatically.

We were asked which benefit (points or breakfast) we would like to have and they upgraded us to the junior suite which is their Lofts.

This time also the welcome amenity was back in the room. It was a lovely plate with fruits and sweets and a nice handwritten card from the GM.

The missing amenity on the last stay must have been a glitch or a last minute room change.

A huge and massive down turn with the Marriott Bonvoy program is how Protea Hotels and Marriott International are treating its most loyal customers.

At Protea Hotels you will only get an Elite Night Credit for every second night and only 5 base points per dollar spent.

If someone stays 150 times for a single night at a Protea Hotel he/she will receive 0!!!!!! Nights credited to her account. This person will not even be platinum whilst a North American Member can buy a credit card for 650US$ and is Platinum.

Eligible nights and points:

The points, nights as well as the qualified spend was posted to my account 24 hours after my stay. Unfortunataly it is the 4th year in a row that the hotel does not post it correctly. They only post the amount for the room rate but never for the F&B spend. Every single year we have to request the Marriott Bonvoy team to correct our balance. Would be nice, if the hotel would get some training in correctly posting points and revenue.

Room/Suite:

The entire hotel still is in amazing shape and the team and maintenance does an amazing job in keeping up the property.

The Theme they have chosen throughout the entire property is beach / surfing.

The junior suite we got is absolutely fantastic in size and has a warm and welcoming atmosphere.

The suite is held in blueish colours with lots of wood and many small and bigger surfing accessories. The room felt super comfy and the huge ceiling to floor window let in a lot of light.

As said the Junior Suite is their Loft, which is over two floors. On the entry level you will find a kitchenette, a full bath with shower and a beautiful living room. I love the modern furniture, decoration as well as the plants used. It is these elements which make the room homey.

On the upper floor there is a smaller bedroom with a king size bed, sort of a walk in closet with a desk and the full bathroom.

Careful the rooms facing to the street are really noisy, so if you want to have a more quiet one you can ask for one facing the Courtyard.

Bathroom:

The junior suite has 2 bathrooms. The master bathroom on the upper floor is equipped with a shower and bathtub and the one on the entry level of the suite is a little bit smaller with a shower only. The bathrooms are modern and both have a rainfall shower with awesome pressure.

Housekeeping:

Housekeeping does a great job and the rooms were always tidy and impeccable clean

F&B:

The bar has a great atmosphere and super friendly and efficient staff. It is a very modern and inviting bar. This time they were fully stocked and also mojitos were available.

We had a few different drinks at the bar and they were all good.

Breakfast is served in the Restaurant on the first floor. It was again simply amazing.

The quality of the food is great, everything was fresh and tasty. The presentation of the food is done with love and is beautifully appointed. The staff is top.

What we liked most, all egg dishes are prepared fresh for each guest, including scrambled eggs.

Both nights we had dinner at the a la carter restaurant on the ground floor.

The food was simply amazing and super tasty. Presentation on the plate was top and also the service was outstanding.

The new executive chef has done an amazing job and the entire kitchen team has climbed the ladder.

In general we think that the F&B department has further improved compared to last stays.

Staff at all outlets were super friendly and offered an outstanding and exceptional service.

They interacted with the customers and always had time for a chat or a smile.

Executive Lounge:

No Lounge at Protea by Marriott Hotels

Pool / Spa / Gym:

The pool is rather small but fully ok for a city property. There are enough sunchairs and other options to relax around the pool.

The gym is on the 7th floor. It is on the small side but has great equipment. The small pool. Has gone on the rooftop which was exchanged with a deck where they offer also yoga sessions.

Social Media:

Social media is done on a bare minimum. The hotel itself hardly posts anything.

This time the hotel interacted with us and also commented on posts.

Summary:

All in all another fantastic stay. Great hotel hardware with a modern and a great atmosphere.

Staff was amazing again on this stay at all touchpoints.

We can fully recommend to stay at this property and are looking forward to see them again in a few months time.

Notes:

- Paul the Sheep does not get any benefits from the Hotels/Airlines etc.

- Paul will always pay for the services in order to be able to rate freely and truly about the experiences.

-If you are interested in more details, please send us a private message and I will be happy to share more information and pictures.