Points redemption failed at Sofitel Sentosa Singapore

[aashish2137]

So I booked a junor suite at Sofitel Sentosa Singapore for 2 nights. It was almost 60k per night but since I was paying by points, why not splurge, right? Sure. I have stayed at 10+ Accor properties and always redeemed points for the entire stay at checkout so I didn't do anything different this time.

However, at the time of checkout, the front desk told me that the Accor system is facing an error and redemptions are not working. The bill was almost INR 150k. I told them to try again and contact Accor but to no avail. The manager showed me his screen and where he is getting stuck. Accor support was nonexistent.

Discussed my options with the front desk. Showed them my email to them where they confirmed that they will accept the bill through points redemption.

As for a resolution, I told them to keep the charge on my card and redeem the points when the system is live again but the hotel didn't agree to that. Finally agreed to accept the charge on the card, redeem the points later, and then the hotel would refund the charge. In my mind, I had accepted the cost already. But I immediately wrote the agreed resolution on an email to the hotel and the front desk manager acknowledged. Hoping against hope.

The system was fixed 4 days later. The front desk emailed me, fixed a time, then called me, started redemption while on the phone and charged 70k something points. Residual was SGD 7 charge which they deducted from the card charge and refunded the rest. The refund took 7 days but it finally reflected in the card 😀

Learnings:
1. Always pay by points at the time of booking. I was over-confident and didn't do it, but never again.
2. Always write an email to the hotel before arriving to confirm they will let you pay with points. This helped me explore options. Without this I would have to accept the charge.
3. Never rely on Accor support, it's absolutely useless, irrespective of your status.

 

[Anupama_Jha]

Useful info 💯 🙂

 

[elite34700]

Same experience with me at some Novotel properties in vishakapatnam and Vijayawada, however resolved them by seeking help from accor leadership. Made a few contacts too 😅

 

[Tocoliso]

How did you convince them to continue holding the charge on the card? I had same issue in Dubai but they denied and charged entire amount and after fighting a lot over email after 10 days they redeemed the points now. They are refunding me the charge back.

 

[aashish2137]

How did you convince them to continue holding the charge on the card? I had same issue in Dubai but they denied and charged entire amount and after fighting a lot over email after 10 days they redeemed the points now. They are refunding me the charge back.

They didn't hold. They said the moment they check me out, the hold will automatically convert to a charge. They agreed to charge the card and then refund. But didn't have to fight over it. They readily agreed to this and completed everything within two weeks.

 

[elite34700]

How did you convince them to continue holding the charge on the card? I had same issue in Dubai but they denied and charged entire amount and after fighting a lot over email after 10 days they redeemed the points now. They are refunding me the charge back.

Make sure to get the refund reference number , post that it should be good.

 

[drsel]

This is a good example of how to waste precious Accor points.
1.5 lacs or 70,000 Accor points for a 2N stay anywhere in the world is ridiculous

 

[nishank]

Did you use a zero forex card. as on one occasion axis charged me twice

 

[aashish2137]

This is a good example of how to waste precious Accor points.
1.5 lacs or 70,000 Accor points for a 2N stay anywhere in the world is ridiculous

To each his own. I treat award travel as a gift, not a birthright. Enjoy while you have it.

 

[aashish2137]

Did you use a zero forex card. as on one occasion axis charged me twice

Paid with Infinia, not Magnus. Somehow Magnus got decline, despite having sufficient credit balance and transaction limits. Infinia charged a forex fee.

 

[ismail]

Cant we do redeeming points for entire stay at checkin itself?

 

[aashish2137]

Cant we do redeeming points for entire stay at checkin itself?

No, you need to do it in the app while booking.

 

[akiratoriyama]

What's the benefit at redeeming after checkout rather than booking via points in the app?

 

[malavkarkar]

This is a good example of how to waste precious Accor points.
1.5 lacs or 70,000 Accor points for a 2N stay anywhere in the world is ridiculous

Sofitel is a luxury brand under the Accor umbrella. Some people, myself included, do prioritize luxury over other categories.

 

[drsel]

Sofitel is a luxury brand under the Accor umbrella. Some people, myself included, do prioritize luxury over other categories.

Yes we also stayed 2 nights at Swissotel Singapore for free, using 2 nights free stay.
It was fabulous but I wouldn't pay one and half lakhs

 

[Thomas244]

Redeem maximum while booking to avoid all this tension. At hotel when u checkin try clear some of it say u will pay final at checkout. This helps to be tension free. About amounts we want to enjoy it’s each our wish whether we want to stay at 60000 or 10000. Personally I booked a mercure for 5 days while doing activities and visiting zoo. Then went to sentosa island and relaxed at Sofitel hotel enjoyed the hotel by being at the hotel

 

[malavkarkar]

Yes we also stayed 2 nights at Swissotel Singapore for free, using 2 nights free stay.
It was fabulous but I wouldn't pay one and half lakhs

Swissotel is a premium brand. It's definitely good and all, 5-star hotels as well, but it's still a category below Sofitel. I would take luxury over premium any day, and don't mind paying the cost, be it cash or points. Some of the JWs and Luxury Collection hotels I've stayed at came with astronomical price tags and were worth every penny/point. No regrets, and this is exactly what I earn for.

 

[akiratoriyama]

Swissotel is a premium brand. It's definitely good and all, 5-star hotels as well, but it's still a category below Sofitel. I would take luxury over premium any day, and don't mind paying the cost, be it cash or points. Some of the JWs and Luxury Collection hotels I've stayed at came with astronomical price tags and were worth every penny/point. No regrets, and this is exactly what I earn for.

What exactly is the difference between premium and luxury? I've never stayed in a luxury hotel so curious.

 

[malavkarkar]

What exactly is the difference between premium and luxury? I've never stayed in a luxury hotel so curious.

Here are some differences that I've personally noticed.

Luxury properties offer you personalized services to begin with. The housekeeping is more intuitive, they pay more attention to what you want, like they read you and work accordingly. Sometimes the housekeeping would even leave subtle notes in your room, even turndown gifts or toys if you're traveling with a kid (I use my nephew a lot for this). Folks at one of the resort I stayed, they'd put heating pads on both sides of the bed during turndown service. The welcome amenities are better and more aligned to your preferences. Like I've set the preferred beverage in my Marriott account to sparkling wine, and this is what I always get at luxury resorts. They can set the minibar to drinks of your choice if you ask them to. If you're going somewhere remote or rather culturally rich location, you can expect traditional welcome rituals and ceremonies. Most of the check-ins happen inside your room/suite/villa.

Then there are butler services. The moment you check-in, a butler is assigned to you and you can directly communicate with that person. Not only they provide basic services like packing and unpacking, but they also work as your personal concierge. I've had one of the best experience at TA'AKTANA in Indonesia. I wanted to rent something to explore the island. I conveyed the same to my butler, he contacted an agency on my behalf and had a bike delivered at the resort. Next day I wanted to hire a full day private speedboat to explore nearby islands, and my butler arranged for the same. And on top of this, he offered to prepare a breakfast box for us since we were leaving quite early in the morning. Had a similar experience in Egypt. Unlike many locations, lounges there operate whole day with small bites and desserts, and whenever we'd head out for a day trip, our butler always arranged something for us. It's all these little gestures and invisible stuff.

Exclusivity is another factor, but it's not always guaranteed. Think of it as a difference between a crowded bar and a quiet bar. I often work when I travel, so this is a huge plus. Lesser the crowd, the staff would be more attentive in every matter. And people here are more willing, more open to do off-menu experimentation especially with drinks and this is one of my favorite bits.

And there's one more little thing I've noticed. I'm sure this doesn't matter to 99.9% people but sometimes my OCD gives me hell. We often drink some nights away at the hotel bars. At most of the premium hotels, by the time you reach your fourth martini, it starts arriving in a margarita glass. Things like that don't happen at luxury properties.

 

[drsel]

Here are some differences that I've personally noticed.

Luxury properties offer you personalized services to begin with. The housekeeping is more intuitive, they pay more attention to what you want, like they read you and work accordingly. Sometimes the housekeeping would even leave subtle notes in your room, even turndown gifts or toys if you're traveling with a kid (I use my nephew a lot for this). Folks at one of the resort I stayed, they'd put heating pads on both sides of the bed during turndown service. The welcome amenities are better and more aligned to your preferences. Like I've set the preferred beverage in my Marriott account to sparkling wine, and this is what I always get at luxury resorts. They can set the minibar to drinks of your choice if you ask them to. If you're going somewhere remote or rather culturally rich location, you can expect traditional welcome rituals and ceremonies. Most of the check-ins happen inside your room/suite/villa.

Then there are butler services. The moment you check-in, a butler is assigned to you and you can directly communicate with that person. Not only they provide basic services like packing and unpacking, but they also work as your personal concierge. I've had one of the best experience at TA'AKTANA in Indonesia. I wanted to rent something to explore the island. I conveyed the same to my butler, he contacted an agency on my behalf and had a bike delivered at the resort. Next day I wanted to hire a full day private speedboat to explore nearby islands, and my butler arranged for the same. And on top of this, he offered to prepare a breakfast box for us since we were leaving quite early in the morning. Had a similar experience in Egypt. Unlike many locations, lounges there operate whole day with small bites and desserts, and whenever we'd head out for a day trip, our butler always arranged something for us. It's all these little gestures and invisible stuff.

Exclusivity is another factor, but it's not always guaranteed. Think of it as a difference between a crowded bar and a quiet bar. I often work when I travel, so this is a huge plus. Lesser the crowd, the staff would be more attentive in every matter. And people here are more willing, more open to do off-menu experimentation especially with drinks and this is one of my favorite bits.

And there's one more little thing I've noticed. I'm sure this doesn't matter to 99.9% people but sometimes my OCD gives me hell. We often drink some nights away at the hotel bars. At most of the premium hotels, by the time you reach your fourth martini, it starts arriving in a margarita glass. Things like that don't happen at luxury properties.

Fairmont 5* luxury is superior to Sofitel 5* deluxe
Sofitel 5* deluxe is superior to Swissotel 5* premium
Swissotel 5* premium is superior to Novotel 5* basic

At Fairmont Mumbai, they wrote personal notes and gave us some chocolates and sweets in the room and had a minibar full of software drinks, but no alcoholic drinks.
The Fairmont butler give us a tour of the hotel but didn't pack and unpack for us.
They gave us a Fairmont suite with the best view of the airport
The best welcome drink at Fairmont Mumbai was Glen Livet, but didn't include any cocktails.
But the Fairmont Gold lounge for suites had all the best cocktails and starters.

At the basic 5* Novotel Juhu beach, they gave us a beach view room and offered the entire range of cocktails, and LIIT was too good.

At Swissotel Singapore, we got a room on the highest floor with the best view of Marina bay sands hotel and Gardens by the bay.
(Whereas the main USP of Sofitel was the Infinity pool and view from there).

The absolutely amazing view of Marina Bay sands Hotel and Gardens by the bay is the main reason why I choose Swissotel Singapore over Sofitel Singapore.

The second reason was that Sofitel Singapore needed extra payment of Rs.2200 per night as a supplement, when using the free stay voucher.
ZERO extra payment for Swissotel Singapore.

Also, the cocktails at Swissotel were fabulous and so were the cocktail glasses

Swissotel is a premium brand. It's definitely good and all, 5-star hotels as well, but it's still a category below Sofitel. I would take luxury over premium any day, and don't mind paying the cost, be it cash or points. Some zero extra payment first visit of the JWs and Luxury Collection hotels I've stayed at came with astronomical price tags and were worth every penny/point. No regrets, and this is exactly what I earn for.