Ok, let me try to do a comprehensive review... while I am in the hotel itself.
The hotel is located a bit away from the main action area of the city (it's by the outer ring road). The first look from outside will not impress you A LOT but it is very deceptive... because it is excellent from inside. Very lovely indeed. You will be pleasantly surprised.
There are no views whatsoever, and it probably talks about the location of the hotel.
There are 3-4 good restaurants and they serve good food. The restaurant Zafran is being advertised as a love story between Indian and Lebanese; however, they don't really have a full course menu for Lebanese. Not at this point of time at least. Maybe they'll have it soon.
The staff is courteous and friendly. Rooms are smashingly excellent.
The pool, spa, garden, bar, and gym are all state-of-the-art.Everything is wonderful...
But... here are some points I'd like to mention:
-The hotel transport is a bit expensive I felt. Even if you want to go 1 km, they charge 500 + taxes. They have different bands... and for 11-12 kms it goes to 1160 + taxes. I thought that was steep especially if you are travelling alone.
-I found the laundry charges way too exorbitant. Sample this - For a Pyjama, laundry dryclean and ironing will cost rupees 450, 600, and 475 respectively. Too much, I feel. Maybe they have to match their 5-star expectations.
-The wifi keeps breaking in between. It definitely needs improvement.
-There was a tv line breakdown this morning for few hours. It affected everyone. They said they have some problem with the cable. Well, I am not sure. Maybe it was an exceptional situation.
-Most importantly, the guest relations DO NOT pick the phone most of the times. I called them about 10 times in the morning... and there was no answer. No one even bothered to call back. When I finally got through to someone and complained, he just said 'sorry for the inconvenience'... and did not even bother to tell me why the call was not being taken. That was pretty ordinary I felt.
-My Internet wifi access was suddenly deactivated in the middle of the stay. I had to call and get it renewed. Unnecessary.
-My room keys suddenly stopped working in the elevator (you need your room keys to operate the elevator). I had to get the room keys reactivated. Unnecessary.
-There was a plumbing problem in my bathroom... which was repaired the next day.
The idea is not to talk bad things about the hotel... the hotel still remains excellent. I just want to make sure the small glitches in service are taken care of. I hope someone is noting.
