Sofitel Rio de Janeiro Ipanema "Closed for renovation" Hotel 5 stars

My wife and two daughters (22 and 18 years old) spent 4 days here at the start of a couple of weeks in Rio. As the title says most things were good about the hotel. Our rooms were fairly basic and tired, but given the hotel is about to close, that’s to be expected (even though we weren’t advised in advance). The one issue was that the credit card we used to secure the payment on our rooms, and which we used only for that and nothing else during our stay and stayed in our safe, was cloned and deactivated by the issuer as someone had tried to get money using it at an ATM. The hotel staff didn’t seem to take this very seriously, which was disappointing.

Friendly and very helpful staff. Excellent location. Wonderful view of Ipanema beach and the “Dois Irmãos” mountain. Reasonable accommodation. However, the whole property is asking for a serious refurbishing. It is no longer a question of routine maintenance, the hotel needs to receive a real treatment to recover the level it should offer. However, as usual, the positive aspects were stronger than the more negative ones.

Outstanding customer service end to end

Very good service, as usual. Excellent location. The only thing I did not like, is that I could not drink my favorite drink as the welcome drink offered by the Hotel (contrarily to other Sofitel hotels, apparently there are limitations on the drinks you can choose). Otherwise, the type of hospitality you expect from a Sofitel. Will certainly be back.

The fixtures (faucets, showerheads and handles) are falling apart and very dated. Whenever you set the water temp, after a few minutes, it will go really hot and then suddenly really cold. It's like playing roulette while taking a shower. Very annoying. Besides this, everything else is ok.

The hotel is perfectly located right across the street from Ipanema Beach. Hotel staff is helpful and friendly, easy to communicate with in English, French, or Portuguese, and always available when you need something. We especially appreciated the team on the beach.

The hotel is perfectly located on Ipanema beach. My family and I enjoyed ourselves and felt safe throughout our stay. The hotel staff was very accommodating and exceptionally helpful. The concierge was excellent and gave us wonderful suggestions on places to eat and where to go. I highly recommend this hotel!

Hotel was clean. Great location. Nice Staff.

Hi the room was clean, except for strong mold smell. Quite strong in the room and in the 5th floor hallways. During the heavy rain, water leaked from ceiling. The view from the room was great.

We were very satisfied with all the services provided in the hotel. found the personnel well trained and picked by hand. From the concierge, desk people, bell help, door guys, breakfast group of people to the cleaning ladies. The only thing missing was the windows not being able to open not even a small crack; it leaves the room over time with a smell of closed in. Overall very positive experience. Will return and look for Sofitel else where.

Gentillesse

Leaves wanting from the door our. My hotel taxi to the airport was unprepared (no credit card machine, no awareness of scheduled protests), unprofessional (advanced his car on pedestrians so they would not further delay his trip, ignored me when I tried talking to him), and untrustworthy (because of his mishaps I had to withdraw cash to pay him). Terrible driver. I rode with him on June 30 on a car with a licence plate KRH7936

The only sore point is that I was asked for tips on two separate occasions after finishing dinners at the rooftop restaurant.

I believe it is the 15th time I have stayed at your hotel. you have a very good service and permanent quality which does not fluctuate. this is important as a guest knows what to expect and indeed receives it.

From the minute I arrived (3 am on a Monday morning) I felt right at home. All the staff I encountered from the front door to the Concierge team, the wait staff in the restaurant to spa were superb. They were all so friendly and extremely helpful, and made me feel right at home. The facilities were great, the breakfasts delicious, and everything was spotlessly clean. The little touches, such as the turn down of the bed with chocolate at night, were very nice and made me feel relaxed. I can't say enough good things about my stay with you over the period of a week. I would especially like to mention Silvio, one of your concierge team. I had the unfortunate experience of my luggage being lost in transit from Australia. The bags eventually arrived 5 days later but until then, Silvio was extremely helpful every day trying to assist me with the airlines in locating the whereabouts of the luggage. Every day he was very sympathetic to my situation and very professionally went about phoning every possible number he could (and frequently each day) to try to get answers about my luggage. His assistance was very much appreciated. I am aware he only joined your team several weeks ago, but he certainly didn't let this hinder his attempts to help me. During the time that he wasn't working his colleagues Juan and Estefanio were also very helpful and supportive. I would appreciate it if you could pass on my deepest thanks for their support and assistance whilst I stayed with you. Not only did they assist with the luggage, they were also quick to arrange taxi's and provide restaurant recommendations. I can't speak highly enough of their professionalism, and whilst this is their job they did it superbly. Thank you !