Think the trick is to sign up as a Starwood Preferred Member - or at least say you are. Stayed at one a few years back, but couldn't find my membershirp card, so signed up again. When I checked in, they couldn't locate me, but signed me in as a preferred member anyway.
The Good: I was in the South Tower (27th floor), which, according to other reviews, was most recently updated. I felt the room was huge - Preferred Member?. The bathroom seemed large enough and I had no problems with hot water. The room was clean and well stocked. The bed was very comfortable and had about a dozen pillows.
The hotel is connected to Bryant? Tower and Plaza of the Americas. As I was there for business, this was an excellent conveience.
Dallas offers excellent public transportation. Access to the Train to the West End, where there is a variety of restaurants/bars is within a block. There is an old time trolly - you have to walk about 7 blocks to get it, but it's free and well worth it - takes you to another part of downtown Dallas with other restaurants/bars. Please tip the conducter.
The Bad: Although the TV was a huge LCD, the cable line up was limited. About 20 "channels" 10 in analog, then the same 10 in digitial. There were no heavy drapes to block out the morning sunlight if you wanted to sleep in. There was Wi-Fi connectivity, but you had to pay for it, as well as local calls. As a Preferred Member, I was given access to the continental breakfast for free.
In the rinky-dink little town where I live, the cheapest of hotels offer these services for free. For the price of the room, these should be free.
You could hear doors "slamming" all night. My first thought was why are people slamming their doors? But, that was just the nature of the heavy doors.
The Ugly: The hotel lists several different "restaurants." However, the list hasn't been updated as most of them are now closed. Of the remaining, most close around 7 pm - as do most of the restaurants in the Plaza Food Court. The "Sports Bar" has four average sized TV's in a grid against a wall. This was closed by 10 PM. A sports bar that closes at 10PM? (Actually, it seem to be the norm in Dallas, places closing early.) The sole restaurant that has extended hours has a VERY limited menu and is quite overpriced.
I didn't make it to the pool area or hot tub, as business needs superceded.
I had no problems checking in or out. I called for a wake up call, came about 5 minutes later than the time I requested, but the clock could have been off. Asked which cab service was best and found out there was a shuttle every 30 mins to the airport - I don't recall this being mentioned in the services of the hotel.
Summary: Not a bad experience - of course, I didn't have to pay for it. For an upscale holel, you pay far more than for what you recieve. Instead of a Hotel, it seems to be more geared as a Convention Center.
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