Grand Rapids, Michigan: City Flats Hotel with Expedia through AARP

October 2024, one night, weekday

Guestroom diagram in CityFlats hotel Grand Rapids, Michigan

Reservation process

This is the first time I have used Expedia, and based on this experience, I will never book through them again. The only reason I booked this way, is because I had a $100 credit from AARP. I saved a little money in the end; however, the process was not worth it. The biggest headache occurred when the $100 credit did not process correctly. First I spoke with AARP, who could not help, and then it took me an hour on the telephone with Expedia to get this corrected! The first person I spoke with was going to have the hotel cancel the reservation and have me re-book (I was on hold while he attempted this). Lucky for me, hotel staff did not answer, because the same thing probably would have happened during re-booking. After a supervisor got on the telephone, this person was also unable to correct the error. The supervisor eventually ended up crediting me back the $100. Whew! Another reason not to book through a third party, is that if you have a membership, the hotel will not credit any earned points for the stay.

View from guestroom 502 in CityFlats hotel Grand Rapids, Michigan

Arrival and guestroom 502

Our room was ready when we arrived, and the check-in process was quick. The guestroom was very small, and the view was lousy.

Guestroom 502 in CityFlats hotel Grand Rapids, Michigan

Grand Rapids, Michigan: Holiday Inn Downtown

 April 2022, weekday, 1-night, king premium room 606

I have previously written several posts with information about downtown Grand Rapids. I suggest clicking on the Grand Rapids label at the bottom of this post, if you are interested in more detail than what is provided here. This is just a brief post to share a few updates about the Holiday Inn Downtown.

Reservation info

When IHG remodeled this hotel in 2020, the guestroom descriptions changed slightly. This guestroom used to be called an executive suite, and now it is called a premium room. The agent actually referred to the room as an executive room when I checked in. 

Using points for a stay at this property is a great value, because you can choose any room type at the time of booking. The value was even better this stay, as IHG had lowered the points needed at many of their properties. We booked this room for only 23,000 points, and it is usually 40,000 points.

Holiday Inn Grand Rapids Downtown, king premium guestroom 606

Grand Rapids, Michigan: Downtown Dining, Breweries, Happy Hour

December 2021 4-days

Bloody Mary special at Slows Bar-B-Q downtown Grand Rapids, Michigan

We visited Grand Rapids Downtown Market a couple of times this week. The market is less than half a mile from Canopy by Hilton, where we stayed for two nights. Local foods for sale included things like bakery items, seasonings, cheeses, meats, beverages, and more. The market opens at 11 AM, and was fairly busy both days we visited. Although all of the food looked amazing, we did not make any purchases in the market. We had Bloody Mary specials ($6 each!) at Slows Bar-B-Q in the market during one visit. The beverages were made with their own mix, which, unfortunately is not bottled for sale. Slows Bar-B-Q opens at noon.

East West Brewing Company in Eastown Grand Rapids, Michigan
Vegetable Pakoras and beers (below) from East West Brewing Company

We visited Elk Brewing Company (opens 2PM) and East West Brewing Company (opens 3PM) in eastown. This is an easy 4-mile walk roundtrip from Canopy by Hilton, if you do not mind walking. If you prefer public transportation, The Rapid has a couple of stops close to both breweries. Elk Brewing Company is listed in the HopPassport. This brewery honored the half price discount on tier 1 and 2 beers. East West is in The Reel Craft Pass, and they honored the discount on any draft beer. Their food is delicious, although we thought the beers were a bit odd.

Both foods from New Holland Brewing - The Knickerbocker

Grand Rapids, Michigan: Canopy by Hilton Downtown

December 2021, 2-nights between Christmas and New Years

This was another new Hilton hotel for us; our first stay at Canopy by Hilton. Although we had some miss-communication about our perks, overall, this was a fabulous stay. 

Check-in, diamond and AmEx perks

Hilton says they are now allowing diamond members to see available upgrades three days prior to stays; however, my reservation did not show any upgraded rooms to choose from when I looked at the app to check-in the day before our arrival. I called the hotel to ask about checking in beforehand, as I did not want to lose any possible upgrade opportunities. After a brief hold, I was told we had been upgraded to a suite. The agent said our suite would be ready any time after 12:30 PM. 

Umbrella from gift shop in Canopy by Hilton Grand Rapids.

I made this reservation through American Express travel, in order to take advantage of a promo they were offering with a pre-paid rate booked through them. The promo included an on-property credit, which the front desk agent did not mention when we arrived at the hotel. Instead, she told us about all the great places to eat nearby. After I told her we had planned to eat in the hotel, since we had a food and beverage credit, she then briefly mentioned this. When I asked about my diamond breakfast perk, she said I would not receive that in addition to the AmEx credit. The on-property credit we received in the end was generous, so we did not really need the breakfast perk, also. During the stay, however, I was confused about what I was supposed to receive. Three different front desk agents told me three different credit amounts. When I checked out, the manager clearly explained the credit. He then gifted me a Canopy umbrella, since I still had funds left. Nice, I thought! He added that as a diamond member, I would have received a room upgrade, without having to book through AmEx, and also my breakfast credits. We are already thinking about visiting this hotel again on our next overnight stay downtown Grand Rapids.

View from desk in suite 832 Canopy by Hilton Downtown Grand Rapids.

Suite 832

This is an wonderful top floor corner suite! The view is amazing. Unfortunately, we did not get a sunrise or sunset from our room, as the dreary weather did not cooperate. 

View from living room toward bedroom in suite 832 Canopy by Hilton Downtown Grand Rapids.

This suite has a large entry, two bathrooms, a kitchen area, living room, hallway, and bedroom. The main bathroom is huge.

Second bathroom from entry hall in suite 832 Canopy by Hilton Downtown Grand Rapids.

There is a connecting room door to suite 830 in the entry hall across from the second bathroom. This is on the wall to the left, just outside the photo above. I could hear guests in that room through the door, when we were in the entry or second bathroom; however, this was not bothersome, as we could not hear anything when in the living room or bedroom.

Kitchen area in suite 832 Canopy by Hilton Downtown Grand Rapids.

I thought the kitchen area was perfect! It included a Nespresso machine with supplies, stainless steel ice bucket, glasses, ceramic coffee mugs, fresh water decanter, sink, and fridge drawer. There were hooks to hang our coats on the wall across from the kitchen counter.

Nespresso machine and glass water bottle in suite 832 Canopy by Hilton Downtown
Grand Rapids. Ceramic mugs and glasses were in the cupboards above the counter.

Grand Rapids and West, Michigan: World of Winter and Outdoor Dining

 December 2020 - January 2021

I am sharing a few of our outside experiences during COVID-19 in Michigan. Restaurants, bars, breweries, wineries, etc. have all been closed in Michigan since mid-November. The current reopen date is February 1, 2021.

Rosa Parks Circle where ice games were set up
(photo taken before games were out)

Grand Rapids World of Winter

We visited Grand Rapids two times after Christmas; once in December, and once in late January. We were surprised to see the city so empty after Christmas. Downtown was mostly empty in January also, although the area was getting a tad busier on Saturday afternoon before we departed. 

Before our second visit, we had seen photos online of some of the ice games, such as fuse ball, and bag toss. We had hoped more of the ice sculptures might be out early (they are usually out around the start of February); however, they were not. In fact, we did not see a couple of things that were on the World of Winter calendar, even though the start date for them was before we were there: the Ice Piano (Canal Park), and Grand Illuminations (Gillette Bridge behind DeVos Hall). The Singing Tree was not lit or signing when we walked through Canal Park. The original start time for this display was 11AM, so possibly it shuts off overnight until 11AM, although it does not specify that on the calendar. We walked through Canal Park in the late morning before 11:00. Our favorite display was the interactive seesaws--much cooler than portrayed in the video above! Yes, we went on one. 😊

Blue Water Bridge in distance

Grand Rapids, Michigan: Amway Grand Plaza Hilton Curio Collection

January 2021, Friday, one night, King guestroom #929

Grand Rapids sunset from our son's house, since we missed it
downtown. This was our stay after the Amway!

Reservations, arrival, diamond perks

This was our first time staying at this property, and I had a difficult time choosing a room type when I made the reservation. I ended up just going with a king guestroom, as I was unsure what the actual differences were between the several different king guestroom descriptions. I received a welcome email from the front desk a few days before our stay listing COVID-19 guidelines and limited amenities. At that time, I learned the tower wing, which is where the fitness center and pool area are located, was closed for remodeling. We were somewhat disappointed, as I had not noticed that when making the reservation. I replied to the email, asking a few questions, and requesting late checkout. I received an immediate reply, which answered my questions, accommodated the late checkout request, and assured me we would be assigned a nice remodeled guestroom.

The morning of our stay, I received a text via the app telling me to check in. The guestroom being assigned to me was 929, which looked like a small corner room on the app, so I replied to the agent via chat before checking in. I inquired about the guestroom and an upgrade. The agent assured me that guestroom 929 is a nice remodeled corner room with a sofa. She said there were not any upgrades available. I used my phone for the room key, so we did not stop at the front desk when we arrived. Shortly after we arrived in the guestroom, I requested a bathrobe. An agent immediately delivered the robe, along with my diamond perks: breakfast coupons and bottled water.

Entrance door in main hall above.

Private hallway below.

King guestroom 929

This guestroom is in the Pantlind section of the hotel on the 9th floor in the northeast corner of the building. The hotel has 29 floors, although I think this section has only 12 to 15 floors (I do not recall exactly how many floors were above ours in the elevator). We had a view of the downtown buildings across the streets. We could not see Rosa Parks Circle from the guestroom; the lighted [Valentine's Day] heart dome on top of the building across from Rosa Parks Circle was barely visible from one of our windows.

Chicago, Illinois: transportation, attractions, dining, Happy Hours

December 2019, Weekdays-weekend between Christmas and New Years

We spent three days around Chicago during our two-night stay. Following is information about some of the transportation we used and places we visited.

Sun rising in St. Joe; taken from Pere Marquette Amtrak ride en route from GRR.

Transportation

We took the Amtrak Pere Marquette route roundtrip from GRR. If you make a reservation in advance, the adult Smart Fare cost is usually $28 one-way, or 1,208 points. We were able to redeem points for part of the trip. The Christmas light decorations along the way were beautiful on the return trip. Both trips were uneventful, and we arrived on time. The train was 100% full on the way to Chicago, and it was not very full on the way back to Grand Rapids. This is the perfect situation for this trip. Grand Rapids in the first place to board the train when departing, so it was not a problem finding seats together. There are always many trains leaving Chicago, and it is nice when this route is not full, because Union Station is chaotic when it is. Click on the Amtrak label at the end of this post, if you are interested in more information from previous trips.

In Chicago, we took Uber from Sheraton Grand Chicago to Garfield Park Conservatory. There was a sign for Uber pickup in front of the hotel and Shula's Steakhouse (which is in the hotel). After I scheduled the ride, I sent a text stating our exact location in front of Shula's, because there are different street levels in Chicago, and GPS does not recognize that. The hotel concierge had mentioned rides and the different street levels during one of our conversations, and then I realized that was why my map app had been confused during some of our walks! 😁 We did not wait long, and the ride took less than 20 minutes. The cost was $12.71 pre-tip. We rode the Green Line train back to Chicago, which took about the same amount of time. You can purchase tickets from a machine at the station. The cost was $3 each for a single ticket (the website says $2.50; not sure why the price difference). The security person working in the station told us the ticket could be reused for the next two hours. There is a shelter and heating lamps in the platform waiting area. Trains run about every 10 minutes on weekdays.

My favorite room at Garfield Park Conservatory!

Garfield Park Conservatory, parks, attractions

Garfield Park Conservatory opens at 9AM, and we arrived about seven minutes early. Fortunately, the weather was nice, because there was not a covered waiting area. Others were waiting before we arrived, and they opened the doors a couple of minutes early.

Grand Rapids, Michigan: Embassy Suites Downtown

April 2019, 1-night, weekend, king balcony riverview #740

We had initially planned to stay at this hotel on April 19th with points after the grand opening. At the last minute, we won tickets to a show at 20 Monore Live, and learned this hotel was opening before the grand opening day with a staycation discounted rate for Facebook followers. We booked that rate, and stayed here the first weekend in April before the grand opening instead.

Looking out of guestroom 740 Embassy Suites Grand Rapids

Diamond perks and check-in

I was able to reserve a balcony riverview room with the promotional rate when I made the reservation. I chose my room when I checked in on the app before we arrived, although the hotel floor plan was not loaded yet, so it was difficult to decide which room to choose. I have included a room diagram photo farther down in this post for reference. The check-in process when we arrived was professional and efficient.

Bedroom and balcony guestroom 740 Embassy Suites Grand Rapids

King balcony riverview guestroom 740

We loved this guestroom! It was comfortable, well insulated, the view was fabulous, and it there are several extra features in the guestroom, and in this hotel.

Nightstand showing features in guestroom 740

Some of the cool features we liked in the guestroom:

Grand Rapids, Michigan: DoubleTree by Hilton GRR airport

February and March 2019, Weekend, 1-night each, Executive king guestroom #322 and #156

I have stayed at this property several times from 2010 to the present. I stayed when it was a Hilton, when it was transitioning from Hilton to DoubleTree, and since it has fully changed to DoubleTree. You can find previous posts with additional hotel and room details (guestrooms 114, 300, 356, and 411) by using the search bar above, or by clicking on labels at the end of this post.

Copy of text conversation with hotel during February stay

Diamond perks and check-in

In February, I chose king guestroom 449 on the app when I checked in before arrival. We had had a guestroom in this hotel with a fridge before; however, none of the information on the app told me if the rooms had a fridge, so I asked about this when I received a welcome text before my arrival. At that time, I was told I had been upgraded to an executive king guestroom. When I arrived at the hotel, my room had not been assigned, and the agent said something about two queen beds. My February reservation was for one king bed, so I did not understand why she said that. I mentioned the text from the day before, which said I had been assigned an executive king room. The agent looked like she did not know anything about the text conversation. She assigned me guestroom 322. I received two beverage coupons, and would have also received breakfast, except we were leaving early in the morning.

In March, my reservation had been made for two queen beds. When I tried to check-in online, the only choices showing were that room type, even though I tried to apply other filters. I did not complete check-in, and I did not receive a welcome text before my arrival. The agent assigned me a king executive guestroom on the bottom floor when I arrived. We arrived after the 4:00 PM check-in time, and she told me that was the only king executive room currently available. In addition to the beverage coupons, I was able to enjoy breakfast the morning after my March stay.

Guestroom 322 at DoubleTree GRR

King executive guestrooms 322 and 156

Both of these guestrooms have a small fridge, and there were two bottles of water in the room. Neither of these rooms had been assigned to me before my arrival, so water must be standard in the executive guestrooms. The window from both rooms faces the courtyard.

View from guestroom 156 at DoubleTree

Grand Rapids, Michigan / Lodging, Dining, Brewery, Meadery, Distillery, and more!

September 2018, Weekend, 1-night, 2 days

You can find more posts about the Grand Rapids area by clicking on labels at the bottom of this post. I am sharing a few brief details about new experiences here.

View from guestroom at JW Marriott Grand Rapids

JW Marriott, 2-Queen bed guestroom #1318, Gold status

This is the first  time we have stayed in a room with two queen beds, and it is also the first time I did not receive an automatic upgrade to the concierge floor at this hotel. I did receive an upgrade to a river view guestroom. I am not sure if three adults in the room had something to do with the concierge upgrade. After I inquired, the front desk agent said there were not any concierge floor rooms available with two queen beds; however, she would code our keys for access to the lounge. We were not in the hotel that evening, so we missed the concierge social hour. It was nice to have access in the morning for speciality coffee and continental breakfast. The only difference I could see between a king and queen guestroom is that the queen guestroom contained a chair and footstool instead of a chaise lounger. Both beds were super comfy, as usual!

2-queen bed guestroom at JW Marriott in Grand Rapids

My Marriott app has not been working properly since the Marriott-Starwood merger. Following is what happened this stay: After I checked in on the app, it was still saying I needed to check-in. Additionally, the guest information showing was incorrect after I checked in; it said 1 guest on the app, and 6 guests in my website confirmation. My reservation had been made for 3 guests, and the hotel confirmed it was correct on their end. When I arrived, I was told that it showed I had checked in. I did not receive a notification that my room was ready via the app, and I never received a bill after checkout. Usually, I receive a bill via email after checking out on the app. I had the same check-in and similar checkout app experience with a recent Marriott Courtyard stay.

Hog Heaven pizza at Mitten Brewing Company

Grand Rapids, Michigan / DoubleTree by Hilton Grand Rapids Airport

September 2018, Weekend, 1-night, King guestroom #300

I have stayed at this hotel at least four times, and this was my second stay after the property became a DoubleTree.

Gold perks and check-in

Check-in was efficient, and the DoubleTree cookie was delicious. I had reserved a queen guestroom, and received an automatic upgrade to a king guestroom. Two bottles of water had already been placed in the guestroom before my arrival. I also received beverage coupons to use in the lobby lounge and breakfast coupons. When the agent learned I would be leaving before breakfast in the morning, he gladly offered bonus points instead. The offer of breakfast and then points puzzled me, because I have always chosen extra bonus points for my stays, rather than breakfast. Fortunately, I checked my online profile after this stay, because all my bonus point preferences had been lost or reset, and continental breakfast or snack was checked under "my way" preferences. If I had paid closer attention to my receipts and points as they posted this year, I would have noticed this sooner. This change had been made sometime between the middle of February 2018 and the beginning of May 2018. I changed my choices back to points, and will pay closer attention going forward.

Guestroom 300

King guestroom 300

This guestroom is on the third floor at the end of the hall. The room location further reflects staff member's attention to detail, because I always request a top floor room in the corner or at the end of the hall, as it is usually quieter. I think I have stayed in this exact room before when this property was a Hilton; however, I could not find a previous post for this guestroom. Sometimes, when I get busy, I do not always post a review after my stay. Guestroom 411, which I previously stayed in at this DoubleTree, seems like a slightly larger room with a small fridge.

Grand Rapids, Michigan / Breweries

April 2018

I am sharing some growler refill information, and Happy Hour menus I had not been able to find before our most recent visit to Grand Rapids. To see more details about the area and additional establishments, click on one of the labels at the bottom of this post.

Atwater Brewery in GR

Atwater Brewery in GR

Atwater has Happy Hour every day from 3PM - 6M! 😄 The Happy Hour menu above was on the table when we visited. Service was excellent, and the beer was even better (well...both were excellent). Atwater Brewery also carries Ice Box Brand ice cream bars. This is the second brewery I have been to that sells them. Beer and ice cream does not seem like a natural and complimentary combination, to me, although I have not tried it. The ice cream bars look delicious, and I am planning to try one on my next brewery visit. Since I will be visiting Muskegon before I get to Grand Rapids again, I think I will try one with a dark beer at Pigeon Hill in Muskegon.

The Knickerbocker Happy Hour menu

The Knickerbocker New Holland Brewing

One of my favorite dark beers is Dragon's Milk made by New Holland. I think Dragon's Milk Reserve flavors are amazing. My personal favorites are raspberry and cherry. If that is too sweet or fruity for you, try it mixed half-and-half with regular Dragon's Milk--delicious! Cherry was available during our visit; however, it was the only beer not included in Happy Hour pricing. Again, I am sharing the Happy Hour menu from our visit, as I could not find this information online. 

Decal and crowler from Perrin Brewing

Grand Rapids, Michigan / Holiday Inn - GRR Airport

February 2018, Weekday, 1-night, King suite #230

Platinum perks and check-in

I redeemed points for this stay, and received an upgrade to a suite before our stay. I called IHG to make the reservation, because the site was not functioning properly when I tried to make the reservation online. When I called, I found out it was because the only available room type with points for three guests, was a queen-bed handicap guestroom. The agent said he could reserve that for me, and he suggested I call the hotel directly to see if they would upgrade me to a king suite because of my status. King suites have a sofa bed, whereas, a standard king guestroom does not. I called the hotel, and the agent happily fulfilled my request. At check-in, I received 500 Platinum bonus points, which posted to my account right after we checked out.

King suite 230

There are three floors at this hotel, and the agent had told me the suite on the top floor was not ready yet. We had arrived about 15 minutes early of check-in time, and gladly accepted the one on the second floor.

The suite was comfortable, and we loved it. The only thing we did not like about it, is that the lighting over the table in the work/sitting room was extremely dim. I am not sure how anyone could hold a meeting at the table. A guest we chatted with in the bar that evening commented that he did not like that the door into the guestroom opens into the bedroom instead of the sitting room. This suite served our purposes well.

Wet bar area in the work/sitting room

The workroom contained a small fridge, sink, table with four or five chairs, TV, work desk, and sofa sleeper.  A K-cup coffee maker with supplies was on the sink. I am guessing there was supposed to be a trash liner in the large trash can in this room. The lid was not set on all of the way, as if housekeeping had not completely finished up before leaving the room.

Room with sofa sleeper and table

Grand Rapids, Michigan ~ Holiday Inn stay, Happy Hour and dining info

December 2017, Weekend, 2-nights

Covered Sky Walk between Amway parking garage and hotel.
Beautiful corridor covered wth snow and decorated with blue lights.

We did not get to all of the new locations we wanted to visit this trip, although we did make it to a few, and we went on a brewery tour at The Knickerbocker New Holland Brewing Company (details at the end of  this post). We love Grand Rapids!

Holiday Inn executive guestroom 711 and facility

I redeemed points for both nights of this stay. I like that I am able to redeem my points online for any room type at this hotel. We stayed in this hotel few times before this stay; in executive rooms 511 and 811, and in non-executive rooms prior to that. I did not take any hotel photos this stay. I am sharing some new hotel information, and you can find more info about the hotel and photos in blog posts from February 2017, and April 2014. 

I observed only a couple of changes in the guestroom since our last stay: The bed pillows are an improvement, and are much nicer quality than pillows usually found in Holiday Inn hotels. A recycling basket had been provided by the desk. The coffee items, which had changed before 2017, were the same as they had been last time: Keuring coffeemaker (yay!) with disposable cups, rather than glass glasses and ceramic coffee mugs. 😐 The Internet connection speed this visit was extremely slow, and we did not experience this during previous stays. Be aware that the hall noise outside the executive guestrooms can be bothersome, as the rooms are located directly across from the elevators. Another thing to be aware of, if you do not like to stay in hotels that accommodate pets; there were several dogs in this hotel during our stay, and I never encountered this on previous stays. One dog was left in the guestroom down the hall from us both evenings, and barked continually when the guests were gone. Fortunately for us, there were a couple of rooms between us, so the barking was not too loud when we went to bed. Unfortunate for the poor dog though! And, for any guests closer to the room.

Grand Rapids, Michigan / ArtPrize, JW Marriott, Knickerbocker Brewing Co, CityBuilt Brewing, Fountain Hill Brewing Co, Atwater Brewery

October 2017, Weekday-weekend, 2-days

One of my ArtPrize favorites!
Not because I am a horse fan; because of the quality/how real it looked.

ArtPrize Nine

We visited on the last Friday and Saturday of ArtPrize, after voting had ended. In previous years (this was our 6th visit; not all consecutive years) when we visited on Friday during the day, the crowds had been minimal. This year, it was busy, busy, busy! There were many students and group tours on Friday, and Saturday became crowded after 11:00 AM. I think I preferred ArtPrize when it was smaller, and more centralized to the downtown area. This year, exhibits could be found as far away as Fredrick Meijer Gardens and Gerald R. Ford International Airport. We did get to see a lot of cool art, some of which I am sharing, along with additional information in this post.

Inside Gerald R. Ford Museum.
You may be able to read the artist's statement, if you click on the photo to enlarge it.

Grand Rapids, Michigan / Judson's Steakhouse in The Bob

September 2017, weekday evening, birthday dinner

Advance reservations

We have been to most of the venues in The Bob several times, although this was our first visit to Judson's Steakhouse. It was my husband's birthday, and the free lobster dinner that Gilly's used to give customers had been taken over by Judson's.

I found this out when I called The Bob to make a reservation and confirm that Gilly's was still offering the free lobster dinner. I was able to make the reservation for the day after my husband's birthday, as his birthday fell on Labor Day, and The Bob was not open.

View out the window from our table

Dining atmosphere at Judson's Steakhouse

The atmosphere inside the restaurant was pleasant. We had a good view from our table, the acoustics were good, and the seating was comfortable.

Menu in the restaurant

Downtown Grand Rapids, Michigan / Holiday Inn, Boat Show, 20 Monroe Live, Happy Hours

February 2017, Friday afternoon - overnight

View from Holiday Inn guestroom 511

Holiday Inn, King executive suite 511

This was our third or fourth stay at this Holiday Inn, and our experience was pretty similar to our past stays. Here is a link to photos and my 2014 post for executive guestroom 811. The only real difference in the guestroom this time was that the in-room coffeemaker had been upgraded to a Kuering K-cup machine. I was surprised there were only disposable cups in the guestroom, as there had been ceramic coffee mugs in 2014.

Coffeemaker in guestroom 511

Downtown Grand Rapids, Michigan / local breweries, Homewood Suites, and JW Marriott

December 2016

You can find more details about the Homewood Suites, JW Marriott, and local tid bits downtown Grand Rapids in previous blog posts. Click the links above, or click on any label at the bottom of this post. I am sharing newly discovered information and hotel guestroom photos in this post.

Old door made into a table at Atwater Grand Rapids

Downtown Grand Rapids breweries and Happy Hour specials

We visited Atwater Grand Rapids Brewery, which opened in the fall of 2016, for the first time. The brewery is located on the northwest corner of Monroe Ave. and Michigan St.—very close to DeVos Place. It is worth a visit to this brewery just to see the decor. Tables, and the front of the bar were constructed from old pieces of wood, such as house doors and cabinet doors. Some of the light shades were made from barrel halves. The table picture I posted above does not clearly convey how cool the inside of this brewery looks.

Atwater Grand Rapids Sampler

Grand Rapids, Michigan / Homewood Suites by Hilton Grand Rapids Downtown

September 2016, Weekday, 1-night, 2-bedroom suite #627

The Homewood Suites by Hilton Downtown Grand Rapids opened the summer of 2016, and I had won an overnight stay during a Facebook promotion.

View from bar on floor 2, which is above the Ottawa Ave. entrance

Arrival and check-in

When we entered from Ottawa Ave., we were a bit confused about where to check-in. We observed a baggage storage sign, and a hotel elevator sign for the guestrooms; however, we did not observe any signage for the check-in area. ArtPrize was going on during our stay, and it is possible we missed a sign, as there were many pieces of art in the lobby. Check-in is located on floor two, and you can get there via the guestroom elevator, or the stairs (straight ahead when entering from Ottawa Ave.) shown in the photos here.

Another view of the lobby from the bar on floor 2

The check-in process was efficient, and I received two bags with bottled water and Oreo cookies for being a Diamond member. The front desk agent told me I had received a room upgrade, although she did not tell me what kind of room she was assigning us. I did not realize there was any confusion with the upgrade until we checked out (more about this later). The room I had won was for a studio suite. After I made the reservation through the hotel, I looked at the upgrade options online. I then contacted the hotel manager to ask if I could upgrade to a two-bedroom suite and pay the difference. At that time, I was told I could not do that, as the certificate was only good for a studio guestroom. When I was told about the upgrade during check-in, I assumed it was a complimentary upgrade because of my status.

Guestroom 627

I learned suite 627 is a two-bedroom suite when we arrived at the guestroom. It was spacious and comfortable. The entrance door opened into the kitchen and living area. The kitchen contained a full size fridge, electric burners, microwave, dishwasher, table with two chairs, cupboards stocked with dishes, and a coffee maker with supplies. There was a welcome letter with a bag of bottled water and Oreo cookies on the table for another guest who had Gold status. I do not know if this was left behind, or if there had been some kind of guestroom switch at the last minute. I did not really think much about it at the time.

Suite 627; view from entrance