Sheraton Lagos Hotel, Ikeja – Lagos, Nigeria

Dubbed as one of the few hotels in Nigeria that has stood the test of time, the Sheraton Lagos Hotel, Ikeja is a one-stop shop for everything lodging, food, events, recreation activities, and much more.

I recently spent 16-nights at this hotel and this review is based on my experience during my entire stay. It’s going to be a long read, but I’ll try my best to keep it as brief as possible.

For its’ close proximity to the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (LOS), the Sheraton Lagos Hotel is a preferred hotel for many airlines, expats, and tourists. To be precise, the hotel is about 5 miles (8 kilometers) from the airport. Although, depending on what time of the day, driving to/from the airport could take you between 15 minutes to an hour, or even longer.

 

ARRIVAL AT THE HOTEL:

While safety is a major concern in Lagos, and Nigeria generally, I felt very safe throughout my entire stay here at this hotel. Right from the front gate on Mobolaji Bank Anthony Way, security guards will ask you or your driver to pop the hood and trunk of your car open. They will also check the undercarriage of your car for safety reasons.

After this, and prior to gaining entrance into the lobby, your bags will also go through a baggage scanning process from the bomb squad, while you yourself is required to pass through a metal detector.

You’ll also find the presence of policemen stationed inside and outside of the hotel. Though, some guests may have issues with all the security protocols as it can be inconveniencing, but if you are familiar with the security situation in the country, then I think you’ll appreciate all the multiple security layers the hotel has in place.

HOW I BOOKED THIS STAY:

A little backstory before we continue. I originally booked a 1 King Standard Room about 4 months before my stay for 68,000 Marriott Bonvoy points (for 5 nights), and I was informed by the Marriott Ambassador team of their intent to reach out to their colleagues at the Sheraton Lagos Hotel on my behalf to upgrade my room to a Junior Suite. I found the offer to be generous, especially since it came from Marriott without me asking, as this was even 4 months before my arrival. 

The Sheraton Lagos Hotel amazingly upgraded the room to a Junior Suite right away. That’s the end of my backstory.

CHECK IN EXPERIENCE: 

The lobby at the Sheraton Lagos Hotel has lots of space to spread around, and there are ample seats in different areas. After approaching the front desk to be checked in, I was attended to by Efe, whom after checking my passport, politely directed me to the 6th floor for executive check in.

Though I had received a notification from the Marriott app about 8 hours earlier that the room was ready, on getting to the 6th floor I was assisted by Olagoke, who stated that the suite wasn’t ready yet. He then assigned me another room on the executive floor for the time being while they get the suite ready.

To overcome jetlag after the 10-hour flight from San Francisco to London, and another 6 hours flight from London to Lagos, I spent some time at the lobby playing snooker. 

Fast forward to 3 hours later, Olagoke personally came looking for us at the lobby to inform us that the suite was ready. Upon entering the room on the 6^th floor, I realized that my already upgraded Junior Suite had been further upgraded to their Diplomatic Suite. Talk about a Vice-Presidential treatment.

THE 1 BEDROOM DIPLOMATIC SUITE:

The Diplomatic Suite at the Sheraton Lagos Hotel is the hotel’s second-best and second-largest suite. To have been upgraded me in the same suite for the entire 16-nights was not only impressive, but generous of the hotel. As at the time of this stay, the cash rate for the Diplomatic Suite was $1,110 per night. A standard rate here ranges between the high $200s and low $300s.

The very spacious living room in this 1 Bedroom 1.5 bathrooms Diplomatic Suite featured a couch, accent chairs, a coffee table, a glass table with 2 chairs which can as well be used as dining/worktable, a wet bar area with stools, a large built-in LCD TV, and of course, a visitors toilet.

The bedroom featured a Sheraton king size bed, 1 nightstand with lamp on each side of the bed, an accent chair, and another large built-in LCD TV.

My favorite part of the suite was its’ bathroom. This roomy marble floor bathroom featured a deep soaking bathtub, separate walk-in rain shower, a glass-enclosed toilet, double vanities, and a walk-in closet. Bottled water was also made available in the bathroom. Something which I recommend you use when brushing your teeth (if you’re ever at this hotel, or any hotel in Nigeria).

FOOD & BEVERAGE:

The elite breakfast offerings at the Sheraton Lagos Hotel did not disappoint in any way. The food in the Sheraton Club was the same as in the Pumpkin Leaf restaurant downstairs. During my entire stay here, I didn’t have any reason to go eat at the restaurant. The food and the vibe in the lounge, both at breakfast and at evening happy hour was superb in my opinion.

During this trip to Lagos, Nigeria, I also spent some time at the Lagos Marriott Hotel Ikeja, and I must say, the food and overall service at the Sheraton was better. But don’t quote me on this one, as this is just my own opinion.

Prestige provided us an excellent service every morning in the lounge during breakfast, while Dammy and Samuel rendered us an amazing service during the Happy hour which runs daily from 5pm – 7pm.

HHOUSEKEEPING:

Daily housekeeping was offered with deep cleaning of all surface area throughout the entire suite. Bed linens were also changed daily. Idowu, Austin, and the rest of the housekeeping team did a great job in keeping our suite spotless.

Michael E. on the other hand, deserve an award for the housekeeper of the year. One fateful morning, he saw my brother sleeping on the couch and he immediately swung into action. Without asking, he quickly arranged for a rollaway bed, prepared it in one corner of the living room, and went further by bringing a case of bottled water (12 counts). Words cannot describe how professional he is, and how diligently he took his job. Thanks to Michael for such a memorable customer service.

OTHER ACTIVITIES & AMENITIES AT THE HOTEL:

During our stay, we attended the Friday night event with a live band performance and it was quite fun. 

I used both the gym and the tennis court a few times during my stay. Both amenities which are located all the way at the back of the property. The gym is a little on the smaller side, but it got the job done. There were treadmills, bikes, free weights, etc.

This review of the Sheraton Lagos Hotel wouldn’t be complete without mentioning Jonathan from concierge, who made himself available for every of our requests from the very moment we stepped our foot in the lobby. He personally took us on a tour of the hotel ground.

Also, not forgetting Temitayo, the Club Floor Manager, whose customer service and managerial skills are of a world standard.

The cage around the swimming pool at the Sheraton Lagos Hotel in my opinion, was an eyesore. I believe the pool would be better off without the cage. I just don’t get the reason/motive behind after many years of existence, suddenly, the hotel decided and said, “let’s cage this darn pool.” It’s funny to me.

The business center at the hotel provided us nothing short of a frustrating experience. There was a kiosk located in the lobby, which was out of order, but has a notice directing guests to use the hotel’s “IT office.” The only way to print at this so-called IT office is to email them your document, be it confidential or not. The staff at this office could also be more professional.

MY VERDICT:

We had an amazing stay at the Sheraton Lagos Hotel, Ikeja. As aforementioned, we received a generous suite upgrade into their Diplomatic Suite, the food was great, most of the staff members were amazing and made our stay memorable. We felt at home here throughout our entire 16-nights stay.

For a Lagos, Nigeria hotel, this hotel didn’t let us down. We felt very safe being here, especially with the level of security measures in place. The team here are also doing a great job keeping the hotel in a good shape despite its’ age.

As I also mentioned up above, there are rooms for improvements. The service at the business center could be better simplified to offer a frustration-free experience. The caged pool should also be uncaged to give that poolside a pleasing taste.

Finally, this hotel has become one of our go-to hotels when in Lagos Nigeria, and we can’t wait to be back.