Yee-Haw, Opryland Is A Special Hotel After All
Written: May 20 '07
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Product Rating:
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Pros: The service is amazing and the grounds are lovely....
Cons: ...but the food is awful and you'll want your own wheels to explore Nashville.
The Bottom Line: If you haven't stayed here yet, do so at least once, if just for the service and grounds.
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| Joubert's Full Review: Gaylord Opryland Hotel |
My pre-visit perception of Opryland was formed by The Grand Ole' Opry and grainy Hee Haw reruns. I recall a visit there when I was a child, but Nashville's Parthenon made a bigger impression on a young Greek kid.
While not a world class resort like California's La Costa or Colorado's Broadmoor, Opryland's service nearly makes it equal to those properties. Picture a sprawling property with an enclosed environment -- essentially the biggest atrium I've ever seen -- and a small conference center, and Opryland quickly becomes Nashville's destination property.
The atrium-like enclosure is by no means confining. Judicious lighting and landscaping leave guests with the impression they're outside. You can walk the winding paths a lot, but perhaps the most amusing time is spent watching total strangers ask each other for directions despite more signage than the waning days of a political campaign.
Set Apart By Service
This wasn't the stereotypical Southern hospitality dotted by "Sir" and "Ma'am". The front desk staff was cheery and helpful at check-in and stayed that way no matter what time of day I spoke with someone. They even upgraded my room.
Why?
I have no idea. I was making polite conversation with the desk clerk, the hotel probably wasn't as full as it ordinarily is and I mentioned my Hilton Diamond status. Bang. I was in a room twice the size of my colleagues' with a dining room table for four. Maybe the desk staff wanted me to know that they could shine with Hilton. I certainly didn't complain about their use of empowerment.
Great service didn't end there. Housekeeping was outstanding. I actually worked in the room one day while the housekeeper was cleaning the room. I'll normally excuse myself, but this time I needed to be on a landline for a conference call with no exception. Watching her, I realized that I don't clean my house that well, even when my mother is due for a visit. In fact, I've paid people who haven't cleaned my house that well. And the cleaning was just as thorough every day, not just when I was in the room.
The facilities staff was also friendly and helpful. One especially nice staffer came to my room at 10:30 p.m. on a weeknight to help fix my Internet connection. The best part -- he actually knew what he was doing, and I was zipping along at broadband speed in minutes instead of dialing a call center in Canada.
The other thing I noticed that was Ritz-caliber service. An example: dial any internal number for help. No one said, "That's not my job" or "You've dialed the wrong number, sir, here is the correct one." Instead, folks just said, "Yes, sir" and made it happen. In my own business, I look for people who make things happen, and I sure wanted to bring a few of the Opryland folks home with me.
Not All Perfection
There were some minor annoyances. The television reception was fuzzy for some reason despite swapping sets. The food was not very good at most place, even the small carts dotting the pathways. Full meals were just plain terrible -- weak ingredients, boring menus and lackluster presentation.
Perhaps most unforgivable, even in my big room, was that the coffeemaker was in the bathroom. I remain on a one man crusade to get America's lodging establishments to remove coffeemakers from bathrooms and put them in the main room. The thought of brewing coffee in a machine that has faithfully sat in a public restroom, no matter how well that room was cleaned, disgusts me.
Extra Credit
Swimming pools and health facilities are found throughout the property. You'll prefer the well equipped areas to the small, expensive shops, and they're better for you too! Perhaps my favorite amenity was the airport shuttle bus. Leaving every 30 minutes, this vehicle is a real bus, a big one too, and I saw plenty of folks constantly arriving and departing.
The Bottom Line, Wrinkled Sheets and All
You owe it to yourself to stay here once. All the better to stay here if there is a conference here and someone else is paying the tab. If not, judge how much time you'll want to be in Nashville's bubble.
Five Things To Remember From This Review
1. The service is amazing.
2. The grounds are lovely, but confuse many visitors.
3. You'll find free broadband in the room and a smart staff to help you if needed.
4. The food isn't very good in most of the facilities.
5. The self-contained enclosure is not stifling, but actually makes you believe you're outside.
Recommended:
Yes
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