W Austin — Hotel in Austin

It saddens me to even write this review because I was so excited about renting the grand cabana, but my experience was less than ideal.

To set the stage, this was a surprise birthday party for my husband. We invited our closest friends to spend a few hours at the pool to get some sun and have some drinks. Our rented time was 3pm - 7pm. The coordinator I was working with (Jorge) told me my party could arrive early to get settled in at the cabana while my husband and I arrive at exactly 3pm for the surprise. Great! I texted Jorge the day before to ask if we could have 4 buckets of truly ready for the group. No response but the text showed it was read. I called the morning of the event to reconfirm, no response. I texted again to ask about the buckets, no response. Whatever. Well, when the group got there they were told there was another party still occupying the space and once they leave they'd have to clean it, then we could start using it. We didn't get in until 3:15pm ish. Not a big deal. I was kind of annoyed that wasn't communicated since I specifically asked Jorge if everyone could arrive early but there's nothing I can do so moving on.

We're finally told the cabanas ready. As we're putting our bags down a security guard apologized and said the fans not working as well as the tv. Tv's not a big deal, but the fan? Come on. We paid really good money to be there for two of the biggest amenities not to work. I asked the security guard if he's able to discount the cabana to make up for the tv and fan. He tells me had I booked directly with the W verses resort pass he could but because they're a third party there was nothing he could do. That was odd to me because when I called the W to book the cabana they told me to book through resort pass. Fast forward a few minutes, the security guard tells me his boss offered to buy us around of frozen drinks. I personally do not like frozen drinks because of the sugar so I asked if we could do another drink. He tells me yes. I said great! We'll put that order in after the 4 buckets come. He walks away, comes back and says he's sorry again but his boss disapproved us getting a different drink and we had to take the frozen drinks. Once again, I'm annoyed.

We order 4 buckets 2 vodka highnoons and 2 trulys. The waitress tells me they are out of truly and they only have one flavor for white claw. At this point, I'm really frustrated. I tell her we'll switch the 2 trulys to white claw and we'll still take the 2 vodka highnoons. The server comes back and there's tequila highnoons in the bucket - LOL. I brought it to her attention and all she said was "Ops. Keep those and I'll go get 5 vodka highnoons." She comes back with THREE vodka highnoons. I asked where the other two were and she said she'd bring the other two later. Like why? That made no sense.

I knew we had a $500 minimum to hit when I purchased the cabana so I let my group know that if they plan to order additional drinks or food to please do so through our server. Well, after the buckets were delivered she barely checked on us so people started going to the bar. The group spent plenty of money but just not with our server because we couldn't find her. We an hour left we still had a good amount to spend to hit the limit. My husband and I pulled our server to the side and told her we've been trying to order through her but we couldn't find her and it doesn't make sense for us to spend the rest of the money aimlessly because we're technically held accountable for it and she wasn't present. She apologized and said that was fine and she would close out our tab even though we didn't meet the minimum.

All in all there were just so many inconveniences. Communication and planning could've been a lot better. We still enjoyed ourselves minus all that nonsense but I hope writing this review will help with future...

Best hotel in Austin hands down 👏🏻 there is no better vibe or staff in ATX (or at any W that I’ve stayed at). I’m a local who often does staycations so trust me, the location and vibe are such a perfect blend of W quality and Austin chill. The W always feels like home but the W Austin staff take that assignment above and beyond!! Literally where to begin …

Bryan at the front desk was an absolute angel and set the tone for our most perfect stay!! We checked in for my bday on Friday night and he literally made the weekend (starting with our champagne at check in🍾🥂). He gave us a top floor room and personally brought up a tray of deserts to get the party started!!! Bryan made us laugh and smile literally all weekend, helping with whatever we needed - showing us the secret bar and making sure we were all setup to have a blast!!! He also was so great in helping us get space in the secret lounge even when we had quite a few friends join us 🙏🏼 I feel like he worked 24/7 but even still he was always there at the desk and so positive / full of energy to help!

Our room was adorable, so well decorated and the whole hotel vibe was on point. The whole staff seriously could not have been nicer or more fun. Other honorable mentions would be for our guy Scott at the Wet Deck - he helped us feel right at home in the hotel guest cabanas and kept checking in to be sure we were having fun (we love you, Scott!) also, the mocktails at Wet Deck are great - they have ritual liquors which was so clutch for our recovery day after a late night!

Yousseff was the best luggage partner and balloon / champs delivery guy (which by the way - their gift deliveries are INCREDIBLE! My friend called in last min for a champs delivery and they tied on helium bday balloons and everything!)

And lastly at the spa, she said her name was Consuelo and she was the nicest women of all time. She went out of her way to make sure I was acquainted with the spa and comfortable.

We have friends that live in the residences and the staff is always so kind to them as well - they know everyone’s names and carry that attention to creating a home into the hotel too. Thank you to the whole staff, especially BRYAN!

Most positive review I’ve ever given. So proud this hotel is a part of our city ✨ Can’t wait to be back for our...

Recently completed a 2 night stay here. Fairly neutral experience.

We booked a “Spectacular Room, Guest room, 1 King” and that's what we received at check in around 3PM. We asked if any upgrades were available, and they said they could put us in a “Cozy Corner” suite if we waited a few hours, but our assigned room was on a high floor and we didn’t want to wait so we stayed with the Spectacular.

During check in as a Titanium member, we were given a guitar pick key card which gave us 15% off (maybe 10%, I already forgot) food and any non-alcoholic drinks . There was no mention of elite breakfast during check in, but reading posts above maybe there is elite breakfast?

We noted coldness from the front desk associate- it felt very transactional and not too welcoming.

After checking the room out, the Spectacular room wasn’t much different than the entry level “Fabulous Room” I had last time I stayed, so I’d suggest saving your money. The room was comfortable and had a great view of the river and the park. I don’t think they use the same beds as other W properties- this one felt a bit firm around the edges and I didn’t sleep as well as I usually do at other W locations. The shower took quite some time to get warm, ~1 minute.

We spent some time at the pool on our second day. It's starting to show its age, and a lack of care. The chaise lounges were worn and many had torn fabric. There were plenty of leaves, garbage, and cigarette butts on the pool deck too. It really needs a thorough cleaning. The pool itself was nice. Service at the pool wasn’t great either. There were three people working at the pool, and other than us there was a cabana with about six people. We wanted food and drinks but after some time none of the staff checked on us so we went up to the bar and ordered. After this they checked on us every ~20 minutes.

After checkout we realized we left a jacket in the room, and we were able to easily arrange it to be mailed back to us. Sterling from the risk team was incredibly helpful with this!

Overall the stay was fine, and I’d stay here again, but really wish they would clean up...