The Watermark Hotel & Spa on the San Antonio River Walk is a wonderful hotel. My wife recently treated me to a five day vacation here for my birthday. We both enjoyed the hotel and the River Walk area. It’s located on a quiet area but close to a number of shops and restaurants.

Good:

The staff was polite, friendly and helpful. They helped us a number of times with directions. The room was clean and bright. The bathroom was huge with separate bath & shower. The nicely appointed room had good bedding and comfortable seating. A newspaper was waiting at the door each morning. Nice presentation of room-service. The tomato soup at the restaurant was excellent. The Spa treatment and facilities were outstanding and very relaxing. The Spa staff was super.

Negatives:

Concierges could have been more helpful. It seems they had a number of concierges on staff and they did not communicate with one another. This resulted in some miscommunication. Room-Service lost our order one morning causing a delay and incorrect breakfast order. The oyster bar at the restaurant causes a smell not only in the restaurant but in the adjoining entry to the lower hall and lobby on the River entrance. The hotel charges a ten dollar fee for internet access per day. Parking in the area is a problem. Public garages and lots are available. This maybe your best bet as the cost for valet parking is $28 per day. The biggest negative was that the staff at the front-desk did not inform us at check-in of all the facilities and services available to guests. We assumed we had access to the state of the art fitness center and the roof-top pool and hot tub. What we did not know was we had access to the hot tub, sauna and steam rooms and relaxation areas within the spa itself. The day before our departure we booked the “Texas Two Step” , a couples Swedish Massage. This was one of the highlights of the trip. But it was the Spa staff that told us that guests of the hotel could use the spa facilities as part of your stay and that Spa services were not a requirement to use the facilities.

The River Walk area:

Cheap shopping and excellent restaurants line the San Antonio River Walk. The busiest section seems to be between the Watermark Hotel & Spa / Omni and the Hilton. The Hyatt seemed to be the heart of the action but the lobby and décor gave us a sense that the hotel was dated and needed renovations. Hotel Contessa and the Westin are on a quieter section, but still a 5 minute walk to shopping and restaurants. The patio area in front of the Westin and along the river was one of the prettiest along the River Walk. The bar next to the Hotel Valencia Riverwalk pours stiff drinks. The Bloody-Mary’s were the spiciest we have ever had. Hotel Valencia is also the closest to the Majestic Theater were we saw an excellent production of The Phantom of the Opera. For dining try Mi Terra at Market Square El Mercado and on the River walk, Boudro’s is excellent, especially the freshly prepared table-side Guacamole. If you’re in the mood for drinks, Swig is a good spot to enjoy watching the crowds pass along the river.

Bottomline: Poor value for the price. They do not understand what a luxury/quality experience means.

My wife's birthday is Valentine's Day and she loves nice hotels. This means we go to a fair number and can objectively evaluate. She had once mentioned the Watermark so I brought her down on President's Day Weekend. Strangely, we paid $300+ for weekend nights and $500+ for weekday. Having stayed at some of the World's finest hotels for less than that I had high expectations. These were not met.

Good: The staff were polite, friendly and some very helpful. The hotel is attractive and the rooms newly appointed. The location is great - but there are many nice ones nearby.

Negatives: Several broken items in the room. Some, like a scale, were no biggy. Others, like the alarm clock, were significant when a scheduled wakeup call was not made. We did not get our room cleaned one day - until we left a tip for housekeeping and made another request. Creamer and coffee for the in-room coffee maker required 2 calls and a visit to the desk. Newspapers had to be asked for - some guests got, some did not. Extra water (San Antonio water is very hard), which is free, required teeth pulling. We had planned to have brunch with some friends who drove up from Houston (5 people total) and the concierge could not arrange for a table at any time the next morning - in the Watermark OR the sister property across the street. There were several other small issues. We did make requests but I did not complain till asked in an email - then, when I described the above, the manager called. He offered to have us come back to try the hotel again - a nice offer but disengenuous - he never followed through - which seems about right for this hotel.

I think if I had paid $250/n I would be ok with all this - but when I think of many of the places I have stayed at that price and the service and amenities I have gotten elsewhere, at that price or above - it would be a stretch.

I think you can do just as well across the street (Omni) and not feel cheated. Same location same views, half the price.

San Antonio IS worth visiting - the riverwalk and old neighborhoods, the BBQ belt and Austin are very nice. Just stay somewhere else....

I literally cannot believe that this spa has been on any 'best of' lists. If you like superficial, passive aggressive Spa employees then you will love the treatment you receive. My husband and I live and San Antonio and loved going to the Watermark as a treat on the weekends. We accept the overpriced services and mandatory gratuity (for our convenience,as they say) because it is the only place in town with a very nice hot tub, sauna and steam that you can get before your treatments. We have dropped quite a bit of money there since we would treat ourselves every few months and you would think they might have just a little CRM but they still do not know us from Adam. The last few times I have gone there the facilities have not even been operating and the staff just stares at you blankly when you do not want to be in a locker room with Maintenance men fixing all the problems. They do not have the courtesy to call you and let you know before you drive down there for your appointment and then, this last time, when I told them I did not want to keep my appointment (the locker room was literally filled with maintenance men, nothing was useable and I was 2 hours early so I could enjoy the facilities as a Valentine present) they told me they could not guarantee me a refund! I told them they were insane and left.

The customer service is NON EXISTENT. We literally kept going back even though we were getting this treatment because there is nowhere else in town. This last time put it over the top. It's not just their lack of service to let you know their facilities are broken. It is offensive for me to check in 2 hours early and for them to smile at me and lead me into a locker room that is partitioned off because so much work and noise is going on and for them to keep looking at you with that blank smile.

Great place to stay on the river walk. Very close to the better restaurants on the river. The rooms were very comfortable and clean. Slight problem with the valet. Needed to pick up my car early in the morning, and it took almost 10 minutes for them to retrieve it. Then, when they finally brought it, it had a large dent on it. Still waiting to see if they are going to accept responsibility.