Sheraton Rio Hotel And Towers Rio de Janeiro

Greetings,

I stayed five days at the Sheraton Rio Hotel and Towers during May 2004.

I found the hotel to be above average for Rio but certainly not 5 or 4 stars as they would have you believe. I found the staff to be very polite and helpful, the rooms, though dated decor-wise, were comfortable. I enjoyed the large lower-level pool (or pools rather) as I get so weary of these tiny bird-bath sized pools placed precariously on the rooftops of so many smaller hotels. The health facilities were fine and the breakfast buffet was quite good. The downside, if any, was the Sheraton's distance from so much of what one would want to do or see. This is easily remedied by hiring a taxi (which are numerous and fairly inexpensive as long you do not get a "flat-rate" taxi). The restaurante in the Sheraton is adequate and very expensive but such is the nature of hotels when they know your other dining options require a drive elsewhere. This is a good hotel for families and travelers who just want a nice place to decompress. All in all I would recommend the Sheraton Rio to others but there at least a handful of better places to stay depending upon your wants, age and travel needs.

Well, I guess I was lured by the $110 rate and the promise of a private beach in Leblon. First of all this hotel is NOT in Leblon, more like half way between Leblon and one of the largest favela i.e, slums in Rio. In fact our "partial ocean view" also had a fantastic sight of the favela. In Rio all the great real estate is taken by the slums. Rich people live in the flatlands, slums are in the hills with ocean views.

Things got off to a wrong start when it took over an hour to check in. There was actually a long line and only 2 people working at 4pm. Our room wasn't ready even though we were there an hour after posted check in time.

We never had fresh towels, in fact one night they forgot towels all together. I got stuck in the elevator for 10 minutes (terrifying) on the 22 floor. There were hoards of Americans (mainly overweight) with 2.5 kids running around. Not exactly a vacation in my book.

Anyway, I hear the best places to stay are the apartment/hotels which is my bet next time.

Sheraton Rio Hotel and Towers was an excellent hotel to stay at for our first trip to Rio. My friends and I stayed here during our 8 day stay in Rio for Spring Break. As with any hotel, there are positives and negatives. I believe the positives definitely outweigh the negatives. However, on my next trip to Rio - which will definitely happen - I will not stay at this hotel.

The hotel accomodations are above par...the spa is excellent and clean. The workout area is better than those offered in many luxury buildings here in NYC. The pools are great but why go to the pool when Rio is a beach city. The "private" beach on the property is not really private as the Cariocas have their own way of accessing the property but to me that only added to my vacation. The one drawback to the beach is that the sun is lost behind the mountains by about 3pm in the afternoon which makes for a short tanning day. You are better off going to Ipanema Posto 9!!!!! While there look for the stand that sells those AWESOME meat sandwiches.

The food at the hotel is expensive because they know you can't leave the property easily for food. The hotel staff is BEYOND helpful and friendly, much like all Cariocas. The bar staff was helpful and reccommended other drinks besides the famous Caiprinhia. Don't get me wrong, I lived off of those drinks for 8 days.

The rooms are GREAT...our room had a view of Christ the Redeemer and the span of Leblon and Impanema beaches. Large with a huge TV and minibar...

Beware of taxis that attempt to charge you a flat rate that is RIDICULOUS to get to nearby places such as Ipanema. HOnestly, my friends and I walked to the corner and flagged down our own cabs that used the meter or we took the vans that stopped by. The vans costed 1.50 Reals to get as far as Copacabana (one-way) and they are quite the "local" thing to do.

I suppose the biggest drawback to the Sheraton is its' location. All other hotels are on the boardwalk and literally across the street from the beach. Nonetheless, it was a great stay.

I must say that I would recommend this hotel to elderly people and families that do not want to deal with the hustle and bustle of the local beaches such as Impanema, Copa or Leblon. But, if you are there for the partying etc...stay on the strip. I recommend a hotel across the street from Ipanema. Copa is nice but Ipanema is better...if you are going to stay on Copa stay at the Copacabana Palace or at least have dinner there, we did!

Hope this helps.

Having read the reviews we decided to book Towers Room (equals a Club Floor Room or an Executive Room in Intercontinantal or Marriott) to prevent our stay be spoilt. Taking into consideration that these rooms are supposed to be the best rooms a hotel offers I am glad we did it. These rooms are okay, clean, but in urgent need of renovation. The hotel was built some 30 years ago, and it seems nothing has been changed or replaced ever since. Consequently, the pool area also reflects just that - 2 uninspired pools amidst concrete. The most irritating thing was the permanent extremely loud rock music down there. I came to the pools to relax, but that was impossible. Talking to the staff was senseless. They either pretended not to understand or referred me to the management, who claimed most guest would expect that. Well...

All in all, a much better choice (and for less) is the Intercontinental in Sao Conrado, also off the beaten track, but you need to take a taxi anyway, regardless where you stay, because both hotels are not in walking distance to Leblon or even Copacabana. Should you fly to Rio for the first time and want to be in the centre of all, book a hotel in Leblon, not Copacabana. Leblon is the place where the locals are. Copacaban is just for tourists.

Hope this comment helps.

We recently returned from almost a week at the Sheraton Rio & Towers. We absolutley loved Rio and will return; the same can't be said about the Sheraton.

We went with our children, ages 10 and 9. We chose the Sheraton because we were told it really is the only "resort" style hotel and it is close enough to everything for short taxi rides. Both are true. The hotel is resort like, to a point. It has two large pools and a third for kids. The outside area is pretty and well kept. Many chaise lounge and shade. The view is very nice and the beach is great. Although it isn't private (we did not care) and is of a nice size, it isn't Copacabana, Ipanema or anything like that. And, that is the rub. If traveling to Rio there is little reason to stay at the Sheraton, unless you have kids. For our children it was perfect. Safe, large pools and there were some other kids around, altough not many. It appeared that the hotel was mostly filled with large convention groups (e.g., Roche from Spain), many elderly folks in transit to a Holland America cruise, many Brits and assorted others.

It is the physical plant and related areas where the hotel loses my vote. The property is old and, although has been renovated many times, the entire lobby shouts tired 1970s chrome and glass. It desperately needs a renovation, as do other parts of the hotel. We had booked a room in the Towers, the business floor of the hotel. We were all able to stay in the same room. The room was small but well enough appointed. What was unforgivable were the beds. They were both sagging and practically on the floor. I've traveled extensively and those were likely the worst I have ever had. We slept in the room two nights and upgraded to a large suite - at a higher price. The suite was very nice but again, in need of some work. The AC in the living room did not work and was never fixed. The bathroom smelled moldy. Although for the extra money we were promised fruit and other "goodies" in the room, they never arrived. There is an area for use by Towers guests only for bkfst and drinks during the day. Bkfst was mediocore and drinks and snacks during the day were limited and consisted mostly of a few finger sandwiches, which quickly disappeared along with fresh orange juice. No soda; no water. I believe one night, a Friday, they had someone making fresh Caiprahinas (sp?) (Actually, the Caiprahinas at the Sheraton were fantastic, some of the best in Rio.) The hotel has two old computers for internet access on the Towers floor which we used. Upon checking out we were informed there was a daily internet usage fee and were billed accordingly. Nowhere but nowhere was there any indication of a fee. I don't mind paying, its just please tell me in advance. Although the staff at the hotel was uniformly nice, the service was far from five star and most staff seemed happy enough to have little contact with guests, yet the hotel charges essentially five star rates. The concierges on the Towers Floor had few recommendations for dinner, etc., and the concierge on the main floor appeared consistently over worked. The food at the hotel generally was adequate, no more. The large bkfst buffet in the main dining room was just OK. Lots of options, none memorable, save for some excellent home baked mini-breads and cakes. However, very good pizzas are offered by the pool. About $10 each. There is also a large buffet every day poolside and it appeared rather desultory. Taxis are needed to go anywhere. They are inexpensive but, traffic going the very short distance up or down the hill from the hotel to Leblon can be very bad in the afternoon.

We used Riovip tours and they were first rate. Luciano and Regina, the guides were excellent.

In short, if you have kids in tow the Sheraton is a good choice, but only for that reason and only if you get a good rate. Even with kids we will stay in Ipanema next time. Rio is a beautiful and memorable city with exceedingly warm people. We highly recommend a visit.

We are staying at the Sheraton Hotel in Rio, and after staying for 4 nights at the Sheraton Barra, The one in Rio is a DUMP!, the staff is unfriendly, there is no preferred guest room. Internet is non existent and the only option is for roughly $12 USD you can access it via wireless for a few hours, since the rate expires at midnight - yet they advertise it as a daily fee. The only access is in the, at best unpleasant lobby (everyone smokes in it and it's dirty). This is the worst Sheraton Hotel I have ever seen, and We have stayed at Starwood Properties from Four Points to the W. It's a shame that it carries the Sheraton name since We usually like all Sheraton hotels.

We decided to check out one day early, this is simply unbearable... We are going back to the Barra Sheraton.. it's further but 100 times better.

The Sheraton is a mediocre hotel, it takes full advantage of it's position away from the main tourist area. It is far safer to get a cab and the in-house car service, which of course you are persuaded to use, is extortionate. It is much better to ask the concierge to hail you a yellow taxi from outside...just as good and a third of the price.

Food is very poor quality at very expensive prices. Get a taxi to Ipanema and have some churrascaria...again for a fraction of the price.

Very nice hotel. We enjoyed the "resort" feel of the hotel, with it's several bars and restaurants. I was surprised that the employees didn't know English very well, however. I was also disappointed that they wanted 30 reals (about $10) a day to use their fitness room! In addition, it is not really within walking distance to Ipanema beach, which is too bad, because the "big" beaches are a lot more fun. The hotel closes down their beach, along with the pools and bars, quite early. We advise purchasing your own alcohol at the supermarket and keeping it in your mini bar. The food was good and reasonably priced. Rooms were spacious and clean, and the views were wonderful!

I agree with the other reviewer in that the rooms were a tad shabbier then what I'd expect from a Sheraton. With that said, the public areas are beautiful, the food is excellent, the pool is fantastic and the view towards Rio and Copa is straight off a postcard. What I liked about the location is that you can escape the craziness and insanity at the end of the day. I'd definitely stay here again. The rooms were allright. But it's Rio, so how much time are you going to spend in the room?

The Sheraton has it's own beach which is nice but teh hotel is not up to service standards of what is expected of a "Sheraton" The hotel is a bit away from most attractions. Not very safe at night!!! Hotel not well lit up at night. If you are looking to relax and spend some quite time in Rio then this hotel is for you... but why visit RIO? You wnat the action of it all I would not stay here again. I would find a hotel on Copacabana! The food at this hotel was below average. The fitness centre is and part of hotel but is a privately run... GO FIGURE!! 20USD charge per day!!!