My wife and me just spent the festive season at the Vanderbilt-All in all a truly amazing holiday - they do such a good job there that one can't help but enjoy oneself to the max. Recently renovated the hotel is absolutely gorgeous. There is a good balance, in both rooms and public areas between new and modern design and comforts with classic old mansion hotel style and elegance.It's a Museum! We were welcomed with Champagne by the General Manager Marina and it seemed that everybody knew us already by name. Brandon the bellman took good care of our lugagge and our car, even washed it for us.
We stayed in a Junior Suite 500, not the highest cathegory but were impressed. Spaceous room with high ceiling, two TVs and a bathroom with all amenities and enough space for my wifes belongings.
The receptionist Joseph was very helpfull and was able to provide us with great sugestions in regards to sights and resatuarants. Christmas Eve and Christmas Day we were at the hotels restaurant Muse.It was both days very busy but Joseph managed to get us a table. An amazing kitchen and very attentive service. As my wife did not drink any wine it was great to see that they were serving about 20 different wines by the glass. Breakfast was a celebration! Before I could ask for an Espresso, Anna offered us a glass of Champagne. There was a good selection at breakfast with fresh fruits, Greek yogurt, cereals, French croissants and cold cuts.Upon departure we even got two bottles of water and coffee for the road.
My wife insists on returning in the summer, I hope we will be able to return as the 33 rooms are sold out quickly over the summer weekends.

This review - in fairness - is only as a result of being asked (amazingly) by the Vanderbilt Grace to do so. There's some VERY good, but (especially at the level this hotel purports to operate, and matches with its costs) there's some unforgivable.

The back-story. Our first New Year together, we elected to stay for the night (highly recommended, and (under previous ownership) very much enjoyed by my partner). Surely a no-brainer. Then, at the hotel's suggestion, we cancelled dinner arrangements elsewhere to enjoy the "Gala Dinner". With the Muse being full, they were extending the offer to the Conservatory - same conditions, same menu, same attire (several checks were made by us as they first said "black tie", then mentioned "casual", and when we specifically asked... "black tie").

The Room. Lovely. Perfect blend of modern yet classical. Not much storage space (especially in the bathroom, where if a man struggles to find a spot for his razor and deodorant, a woman is in deep trouble!).

The Food. Perfect. Everything was of the best quality and perfectly prepared, and presented... at dinner. Breakfast was the epitome of disorganization and slowness - night and day.

The Event. Not great (both subjectively and objectively), but with sweet moments. The dinner, while delicious, was (as I mention above) served in the Conservatory. It turns out we missed the "change of attire" call... to casual. We were seated next to a family, dressed in jeans and tee-shirts, with two young kids that were so tired one of the parents had to eventually take one of them to their room. I have no issue with the family. In fact, we both felt hugely sorry for the position THEY found themselves in - they were so embarrassed. However, I'm amazed to find a hotel selling $125+ dinners on New Years Eve without hinting that those guests will be likely to share it with very young children - unfair to all. New Year came along and, while it was sweet to see that many of the hotel staff came "home" to celebrate (we actually really enjoyed hanging out with them in the main lobby - cooks, serving staff, and more - as the ball dropped), it was slightly odd to watch the bar staff fill staff glasses to the brim (repeatedly), and then carefully measure out the exact prescribed amount for the few paying guests... huh?

The Other Event. Not good. At about 3:00 am, water started streaming from the room above into the bathroom in our suite! The occupants were taking a shower, the pipe broke, the rest is obvious. Reception staff did promptly arrive, brought lots of towels, and then (pleasantly) told us to "have a nice day"... amazing. The following morning, no mention, no apology, nothing.

The Staff. Extremely pleasant/nice, but clearly without direction or purpose. There seemed to be little/no management, and the staff were drifting around being (like I say, extremely) "nice"... that's not enough.

Overall, if you want the visuals of decadence and wealth, you won't go wrong with the Vanderbilt Grace, and the staff are the most pleasant you'll find. If you want the service and overall quality-of-experience that should accompany those visuals, and from a hotel that commands top prices and claims to do so, don't bother. This place has the bricks and mortar (and, let's be clear, excellent kitchen staff), and well-meaning staff. It does not have the processes and attention to detail that is simply a prerequisite for those who spend many hundreds of dollars per night for a bed. I wish them well, if they're listening.

Before I continue, we are not hard to please and certainly do not write dishonest negative feedback. In fact, the hotel encouraged me to write the review of our 5-night Christmas stay, visiting from the UK. We are seasoned travellers and always aim to ‘go with the flow’.
The good points…..fantastic meal & service in the Muse restaurant on 26th Dec; prompt & great responses to issues (read on); lovely reception rooms & public areas; great pool and nice gym with efficient air-con. On the poor side….cool reception on arrival; receptionist continued to work for several minutes before asking ‘Can I take your surname?’….no welcome or smile….welcome champagne offered once the receptionist seemed less preoccupied ; our first room had 1 single drawer (with no handles so couldn’t open it!), a wardrobe with doors that did not close. We were kindly & efficiently moved to a lovely alternative room.
Champagne breakfast was so quiet…a little too quiet, festive music to break the silence would have been nice; no Christmas specials on the breakfast menu for the 5 days; poinsettia plants & decorations in the breakfast room were very tired…. there was a dead plant each morning oh dear. Staff were mostly quiet. Lack-lustre experience.
Christmas Day….we were the unfortunate couple who had the last 7pm booking for dinner that evening; the tiredness of the staff & service showed; no welcome from any of the staff as we arrived at the bar; waited 15 minutes for menus; starters were lovely but my goose order was so oversalted; how I hated to complain & return the food on Christmas Day of all days; the second plate (by which time my partner had finished his meal) was totally raw & the manager acknowledged this with many apologies; the alternative meal was chicken with risotto. Pudding arrived but was totally frozen solid. Not the meal or experience we expected from Muse. Huge disappointment.
We returned to our room to find that housekeeping had broken one of our Christmas decorations into three pieces (handmade by our niece) and the pieces left on the side for us to find. My partner had to visit reception and ask for it to be mended. Only half of the evening turn down service had been done so we also had to request clean cups & new refreshments. Lounge area completely ignored.
To compensate for a very poor end to the day, we were offered a meal again at Muse for the 26th Dec. We were reluctant to accept at first but the staff insisted that they would make it special and they certainly did. Very attentive service (there was only 1 other couple dining that evening ;-)) and the food with wine pairing was really lovely. No complaints at all and how we wished that it had been the same for Christmas Day. A bottle of wonderful champagne and handmade chocolates were also presented to us.
I doubt we would return to Grace Vanderbilt for Christmas but perhaps a weekend stay. For a memorable, home from home Christmas it has to be The Three Chimneys on the Isle of Skye, Scotland. They even pack a small Christmas stocking for each room to open on Christmas Day and there’s magic reindeer sparkle dust to sprinkle on ground outside your room on Christmas Eve so the reindeer find their way! Small touches make all the difference and the huge breakfast buffet food is extraordinary.
The Vanderbilt was low on Christmas spirit and attention to detail.Such a pity.

Had an Amazing time from the moment i walked in the Hotel. The Service was top notch, everyone was very helpful with whatever we asked. The room was setup very nice, and smelled great!! The best part was when my girlfriend and I went back to the room after a night out, to find our bed setup with a warm Teddy bear, a plate with Chocolates and 2 bottles of water. The only thing they didn't do it tuck us in lol. Had a really great experience and I would def recommend it to anyone if you are in the area. For the price you can't beat the service and atmosphere. I really felt like royalty!!