Review: Sheraton Stockholm Hotel
My wife and I recently spent 2 nights at the Sheraton Stockholm Hotel, and my review of it will have lots of good things to say. I consider this an excellent property for using Marriott free night awards, and we had a great stay. Let’s take a look at the property, which includes our upgrade to a 1-bedroom junior suite.
Booking Process
My wife had 2 Marriott free night awards, which we used for this booking. Since these were extended into 2022, this worked perfectly for us.
Additionally, my wife has Platinum Elite status, which she earned nearly without trying. Between having 2 Marriott credit cards, Marriott gifting people free nights last year, and then some promotions she was targeted for last year, she made it to Platinum and chose Suite Night Awards as her gift option.
The hotel award price was 35,000 points per night during our stay, which is the maximum value of the free night awards my wife had. Cash rates were $189 / night. That’s a redemption value of 0.54¢ per point, which is a bit low for what Marriott points are typically worth.
We used Suite Night Awards for this booking, since those will expire this year. 5 days prior to our arrival, we received confirmation of the suite upgrade to a “Junior suite, view” (as opposed to the “Junior suite, courtyard”). We were upgraded beyond that, though; more on that later. In terms of redemption value, the suite we stayed in costs $1,300 per night.
Location
This was our 2nd stay in Stockholm after visiting northern Sweden and going to Helsinki, Finland. The Sheraton Stockholm Hotel is closer to the shopping and dining area and closer to the central station, so we preferred this location to the Hotel Reisen we stayed at previously (you can read my review of that property here). The hotel is in the Klara neighborhood of central Stockholm.
The Sheraton Stockholm Hotel also sits near the river, with some rooms getting a great view of the waterfront. That’s because the road separating the hotel from the river doesn’t have buildings on the other side, so there are unobstructed views if you get the right room. These rooms obviously come at a premium.
It’s an 8-minute walk from the Arlanda Express station (express train to the main international airport). Given the ice, snow, and salt on the sidewalk, we didn’t feel like lugging our stuff to the hotel. An Uber ride took just a few minutes.
Prior to Arrival
We had no communication with the hotel prior to our arrival. Other than booking and receiving notification that the suite upgrade had cleared, that was it.
Check-In
Given the size of the front entrance and its location, we had expected a bell hop or greeter of some sort to say hello at the door. It looks like it would have someone, but we didn’t see anyone.
We made our way into the entry via giant revolving doors and saw the reception area to the right.
The front desk agent who checked us in was fantastic. We liked him a lot. He was efficient and helpful but also really personable. He cracked a few jokes, and not in that “stop, these aren’t funny” kind of way.
Our friendly front desk agent offered a guided, detailed tour of the hotel, which is impressive, but we declined. Given that we had free breakfast included and lounge access, he simply asked if 1,000 points as the welcome gift was acceptable, and we accepted.
Near the reception, we noted the location of the Club Lounge, which we had access to whenever it was open. We ate breakfast there every morning, as well.
On the left side of the lobby, there is a business center and some stairs to meeting rooms.
Access to Guest Floors
The elevators are not grand, but they weren’t cramped. There are 6 elevators, so we never waited long to get one.
I will note that the elevator’s panel needs updated. The brass not only looks worn but also has references to SPG.
The hallways don’t have any decorations and are otherwise not very interesting, save for a few items in the elevator waiting area. We stayed on the 5th floor.
Review: Sheraton Stockholm Hotel, 1-Bedroom Panoramic Suite with View
We really liked our suite. It overlooked the river and was a corner room, so we didn’t hear noise from people passing by, elevators, etc.
Living Room
We entered into a small living room. There’s a couch, 2 chairs, and a coffee table arranged together. There was a welcome gift of sweets and a small bottle of wine, placed on the coffee table.
The end table in the corner had supplies for making coffee and tea, as well.
Along the other wall, there’s a TV on a stand. We never used this, since there’s also one in the bedroom.
Hall
The hallway to the bedroom includes the mini bar, mini fridge, safe, and the closets.
We also found 2 robes and 2 pairs of slippers here. These were excellent.
Bathroom
Along the opposite side of this hallway, there is the bathroom.
Given the size of the suite overall, we found the bathroom small in a “doesn’t seem proportional” kind of way.
The counter on the right has a sink and lots of toiletries. These are quite standard and decent quality, though nothing impressive. There’s also a makeup mirror and a giant mirror on the wall.
In the center, there is the toilet. Towels hang on a rack above it.
On the left, there is a tub-shower combo. It has an option for handheld and rainfall shower settings. However, the glass divider only covers about 1/3 of the length of the tub. Thus, we had to be careful about where the water was spraying to avoid soaking the floor in the bathroom. I’m not a fan of this type of divider in hotel bathrooms.
Bedroom
The bedroom is large and spacious. We liked it a lot. It definitely out-shines the small living room and small bathroom.
On the far side of the room, there are 2 chairs and a small table. These are near the windows, which have a view out toward the river.
Across from the bed, there is a dresser with TV on top. The dresser connects to a desk with a chair.
The dresser also has a great spot for your suitcase, so you don’t have to bend over while unpacking it. This picture shows the depth of the room pretty well. It was very spacious.
The king-sized bed is flanked by nightstands with lamps, plus reading lamps, light switches, and power outlets.
The bed and pillows were excellent. We slept really well.
I also really liked the fact that the light switches in this room were easy to operate and MADE SENSE. No tricky switches, complicated locations, etc. like I’ve had in other hotels recently. They did what you expected without any guessing.
Overall Thoughts on the Suite
We liked this suite a lot. The living room and bathroom were just OK. The bedroom, however, is amazing. It’s spacious, comfortable, has everything you could want. The hotel info page says the TVs are 55″ (I didn’t measure, so I’m taking their word for it). On cold winter nights, after we headed back to the room, we enjoyed watching TV and movies. Channels left a bit to be desired, but that’s not a big deal.
I would change the glass divider from the shower, but that’s my only negative comment for this room. Everything worked as expected, and we had a great experience.
Daily Breakfast
No review of the Sheraton Stockholm Hotel would be complete without mentioning the MASSIVE breakfast setup. We had free breakfast included each day.
We ate breakfast in the Club Lounge, which is adjacent to the reception desk. The lounge has a door to enter into the restaurant, and this is kept open during breakfast hours. However, eating in the lounge instead of the restaurant was quieter and emptier.
Both days, we were the only people in the lounge during breakfast. The lounge had supplies for juice, coffee, and tea, plus some fruits.
The breakfast buffet was impressive. They had a made-to-order area for eggs, pancakes & waffles. The buffet also had cold items, hot items, a cereal bar, tons of different breads, cold cuts, a yogurt bar — and a huge section of vegan stuff, which my wife and I happily devoured. European breakfast options for vegans absolutely put U.S. hotels to shame. It’s not even close.
Service at breakfast wasn’t anything special, but we also didn’t really need much service. We asked for coffee, the waitress brought it, and that was the extent of our requirements. On arrival each morning, someone noticed our entrance, greeted us, and asked for our room number. Since our key gave us access to enter via the lounge, they didn’t need to bill us or check a list of who paid for breakfast, etc. That made everything really simple. Our limited interactions were positive, though.
Note on Other Public Spaces
Due to Covid restrictions in effect during our stay, you needed a reservation time for the gym and the sauna. These both exist at the hotel, but I didn’t visit them. I didn’t want to take a time slot from someone just to get a picture.
From the images on the hotel website, the fitness center looks big and has a lot of equipment. I didn’t find any sauna pictures, however.
Since we didn’t have a rental car, we didn’t use the underground parking garage. However, it’s nice to know this is available, rather than looking for street parking or off-site parking nearby.
Check-Out
Check-out was simple and smooth. Since we had no bill to pay and had used free night awards, we simply dropped our keys in the box in the lobby. A friendly woman at the desk saw us and asked for our room number. She marked us as “checked out” in the computer, and we headed out the door. Super simple.
Final Thoughts
We liked this hotel a lot. The hotel amenities are quite good. The breakfast is the highlight, for sure. In our suite, the living room and bathroom seem a bit small for a suite, but the bedroom (where you’ll spend most of your time, anyway) is huge and excellent. Service was good at breakfast and check-out; service at check-in was phenomenal. Given the option between this and the nearby Hotel Reisen (Hyatt property) we stayed at previously, we would return here.
Bottom line review: the Sheraton Stockholm Hotel is a great use of Marriott free night awards. Service is good, and if you get a suite upgrade these are excellent. However, I wouldn’t cough up the 35,000 points per night required. When spending actual points, I try to be more frugal.
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Nice review. I will be in Stockholm in May and will look into this hotel. Currently booked at Hilton but will compare. I’m Hilton Diamond and Marriott Titanium so will also compare what that means.
One thing I disagree w you on is if this is a good hotel to book w points. Agree the 1 night rate isn’t good (although not sure you included taxes which should be factored into overall value). However if you stay 5 nights on points and get 5th night free it moves the needle to where it is a reasonable value. At least IMHO
Very nice makes you want to stay here ! Amazing the difference in traveling international versus domestic when it comes to status benefits. Even more in the ME3 countries and Asian