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 / 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.

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 / JW Marriott Grand Rapids

February 2015, Weekend, 1-night, King concierge guestroom 2311

The JW Marriott is my favorite hotel in downtown Grand Rapids, Michigan. I am no longer traveling for work, so we decided to enjoy one last stay at the hotel before I lost my Gold status. Here are links to reviews of some of our other stays: March 2014, September 2012, April 2011, and February 2011.

view from guestroom

Gold perks and check-in

A couple of days before our stay, I looked up my reservation online and saw that we had been upgraded to a concierge city view guestroom. When we arrived around 2:30 p.m., our room was ready. I needed to show my AAA card for the AAA rate we had booked, which I did not recall doing before. This was not a problem for me since I always carry my card with me.

My experience this visit was similar to previous stays. All employees were professional and gracious. The front desk agent walked to the lobby to hand me my key packet after check-in was complete. The next day, we were granted late checkout when I called to ask about this.

Guestroom 2311

This is the same guestroom we stayed in March 2014 and September 2012.

Grand Rapids, Michigan / JW Marriott

We have stayed at the Grand Rapids JW Marriott  several times, and this is our favorite hotel in the area. I had not started this blog yet, the first time that I stayed in this hotel after it opened in 2007. My Marriott status was Silver at that time, and we received a fabulous corner room on one of the higher floors overlooking the river. I have had Gold or Platinum status for all of my stays since then. I received an upgrade to the concierge floor every time except for when my status was Silver. This review was our first 2-night stay in this hotel.

Here is a link to some of my previous reviews: September 2012, April 2011 and February 2011. We also stayed in this hotel in 2010 and 2013; however, I must not have written reviews after those stays. 

March 2014, Weekend, 2-nights, Concierge king guestroom #2311

Status perks and check-in

sunrise from guestroom

The day before our arrival, I saw online that our guestroom had already been upgraded to a room on the concierge floor. I was checking because I had wanted to fill out the virtual concierge form to request early check-in; however, this option was not available less than 24 hours before arrival. A friend told me that he was able to do this on the day of his arrival; however, I did not re-check our reservation the morning before we arrived.

Even though I had not filled out the request form, we did not have any trouble checking in early. We arrived shortly after 2 p.m, and we were able to check-in. The agent provided friendly and professional service.

view from guestroom

Guestroom
Guestroom 2311 has a view of the city. I like to have a view of the city from the guestroom because then we can also see the sunrise, as well as the sunset and river, which are visible from the concierge lounge. I used to think that a river view guestroom was nicer; however, since the river is visible from the lounge, I like having a city view guestroom. I have actually never had a guestroom in this hotel that I did not like.

The guestroom had a wooden floor entrance where the closet and beverage center were located. The lighted closet contained hangers, two plush bathrobes, a folding luggage  rack, and an iron and ironing board.

The beverage center contained a single-serve coffeemaker with supplies, two small bottles of water, a steel ice bucket, glass glasses, and a small fridge. Condiments with the coffee included liquid creamer. A large safe was located in the drawer under the counter.

The marble bathroom across from the entrance contained a shower and a deep tub. Bath amenities, a scale, and a hairdryer were located on and under the vanity across from the tub. The towels were good quality. None of the guestrooms in this hotel that I have stayed in have very much counter space in the bathroom. The corner guestrooms have a larger shower. One frustration we had in this guestroom was flushing the toilet; we had to hold the handle down. This did not seem like a big deal at the start of our stay; however, by the end of our 2-night stay, it was somewhat annoying.

The bedding and bed comfort were superb. The sheets were good quality, and the guestroom was well-soundproofed. I was glad for the thick walls and sound barrier on the bottom of the guestroom door because we had two rooms of families next to us the second night (at least 4 to 10 kids total in the area). We heard a lot of conversation and doors shutting earlier in the evening, and fortunately, we did not hear anything after we went to bed that night.

Two nightstands with a clock and telephone were located on either side of the king size bed. Lamps were attached to the wall above the nightstands, and two reading lights were located at the head of the bed.

The guestroom also contained a bench at the foot of the bed, a chaise lounge, an end table with lamp, a soft straight-backed chair, desk and chair, and a flatscreen TV on an armoire. A second telephone was on the desk. The furnishings were the same as they had been in the other guestrooms we have stayed in.

Our room was not automatically cleaned during stayover. We had the "do not disturb" sign on the door in the early morning, until we left the guestroom shortly after 10:30 a.m. We heard and observed housekeeping in the hallway before we left, so we thought our room would be cleaned after we removed the sign and left the guestroom. When we returned around 2:30 p.m., our room had not been cleaned, and I did not observe a housekeeping cart in the hall. We observed a housekeeping cart in the hall a bit later when we left for the pool, and then we observed a small cart in the hallway, possibly the one used for turndown service, around 4:30 p.m. No one stopped at our guestroom after this, so shortly after 4:30 p.m., I decided that I better call for service. It was after 5:30 p.m. before our room was cleaned, and we received turndown service at the same time. Turndown service included two small chocolates on the tray.

Concierge lounge
Breakfast foods in the concierge lounge were the same both mornings: fresh fruits--whole and sliced, packaged yogurt, fresh yogurt with granola, cold cereals, cheeses, cold meats, salmon, hard boiled brown eggs, bagels, breads, and pastries. There was a cappuccino machine, in addition to coffee, tea, milks, juices, and bottled water.

The food both evenings was similar. There were two prepared food items: crostini topped with chicken, and  puff pastries the first night. The second night, the crostinis were topped with corn, and the second food item was some type of baked or lightly fried round cheese balls. Cheeses with crackers and dried apricots were also available. Dessert was brought out after 7:30 p.m. The food was a huge disappointment since we had received things like sushi, shrimp, and pot stickers in the past. Good quality beverages could be purchased for $5, and the first three beer or wine beverages were complimentary. The service in the lounge was excellent.

The lounge was accessible 24 hours. The cooler was stocked with non-alcoholic beverages, like soda and water, and there were three tins with snack foods--mixed nuts, and trail mix type foods.

Pool area
The pool and spa are located on the third floor. The pool and whirlpool tub were spacious, although the area was quite full with families every time that we tried to visit. We were able to use the whirlpool tub once. It was clean, and the temperature was perfect. We also used the eucalyptus steam room, which we thought was great. The pool towels were thick, plush JW embroidered towels.

Misc.
The Home & Garden Show, and the Little Black Dress Party were going on during our stay. The JW offered an excellent promotional rate the nights of our stay, which is why we decided to stay two nights instead of one. Parking is $16 a night for self-parking. I have seen parking discounts for the hotel in the past, although we did not see any for the nights of our stay.

The skywalk, which goes from DeVos Place to Van Andel Arena, is easily accessible from the second floor of the JW. The Marriott Courtyard is less than one mile from the JW via the skywalk. It has been several years since we have stayed at the Courtyard, and we have a visit planned there this summer. There are many restaurants, bars, museums, and more within walking distance of both hotels. We walked to the new Grand Rapids downtown market, which is just over two miles away. 

Grand Rapids, Michigan / JW Marriott

September 2012, Weekend, King concierge guestroom #2311

I gave a review of this property in February and April 2011, so this review is only a brief report of differences from those stays.

Status perks

This was my first stay at this hotel as a Platinum member. I had Gold status at the time of my other stays. The only difference in treatment was the Marriott offering of bonus points or an onsite amenity. I chose the amenity--merlot wine and cheese--which was a better value than I have received at other hotels. Usually, the wine is a half bottle, and the JW delivered a full 750 ml bottle of Canyon Road with the cheese plate.

Guestroom 2311

This guestroom is a non-corner city view room. It offers an excellent view of Rosa Parks Circle. I observed only one difference in the guestroom from my previous stays. The brand of bathroom amenities had changed--Aromatherapy Associates brands were provided this stay.

At check-in, I asked the agent if he had been able to give me a corner room, and he said that there were not any available on the concierge floors. He said he could give me a corner room on the 12th floor, and still code my key for concierge floor access, if I wanted. I initially said I wanted to do this, and then changed my mind after seeing the room on the 12th floor. The corner rooms I have been in on the concierge floors do not have connecting room doors; the corner rooms on the 12th floor do. And, even though 12 floors seems like a decent height, the view from the 12th floor is not nearly as great as the view from the concierge floor rooms. The corner room on the 12th floor had a river view; however, the fireworks would not have been fully visible from this room because other buildings would have obstructed the view.

Food & Beverage

The cheese plate delivered with the wine was excellent, and we also ordered a Club Sandwich from room service. The order taker happily accommodated my request for a different bread type when I placed the order. The sandwich was excellent quality and a great price--only $11.34 with the 20% delivery tip added--although it did not arrive within the stated time. I had been quoted a delivery time of "no later than 11 PM," which was about 34 minutes from the time I had placed the order, and it arrived at about 11:07 PM. The room service server apologized for the delay during delivery; however, I probably would not have placed the order, if I had known it was going to be over 40 minutes before it was delivered.

Concierge lounge

The concierge lounge offered similar foods and beverages as I have listed in my previous reviews, although the food items were not as impressive this time. There was not any sushi or seafood this evening, and the hot food item was not as good as the pot stickers we had during a previous stay. It was some kind of dough puff pieces that were not stuffed with anything substantial. The beverages and service were both excellent, as has always been our experience at this hotel. Beer and wine is complimentary, and high quality mixed drinks cost $5.

Our stay was during the Celebration on the Grand, and the view of the fireworks from the lounge was fabulous. Staff members turned out the lights in the lounge when the fireworks started for even better viewing.

Cancun, Mexico / JW Marriott

Christmas weekend 2011, 2-nights, Club 91 guestroom #1229

Arrival experience
A bellman requested our name when we arrived, and then we were escorted to the Club floor for check-in. Our guestroom was ready, and the check-in process did not take long.

Guestroom

Room #1229 is located directly under Club 91. Fortunately, the club was not open when we were trying to sleep because we could hear chairs moving around overhead. I had expected a guestroom on the club floor since all our reservation confirmations and correspondence clearly said: "Club level, premium ocean view," and, "Club 91 rooms are non-smoking and all located on the club floor." I inquired about our room assignment, and I was told that the rooms on floor 12 are also club floor rooms and that the rooms on both floors are the same. Guestroom 1229 looks exactly like the king room photo on the Marriott website. I thought I had read that the club floor rooms are larger, although I could not find this information after our stay. The information on the Marriott website lists all the guestrooms (except the suites) with the same sq ft descriptions. I thought it was odd that we had been assigned this room--close to the elevator and directly below the lounge--when my reservation details were noted with: high floor, quiet area, non-smoking. It seemed to me that we had received a standard king ocean view room, rather than a club floor "premium" ocean view room.

view from balcony

The guestroom size was sufficient since we also had a balcony with nice seating. It looked like all of the balconies were similar with the same furnishings. The view was good, although I expect it would have been better from the ocean front rooms. This room is located in the wing that is set back from the ocean. The view overlooked the small pool on the side next to the CasaMagna. Our guestroom also had a connecting door, and it smelled slightly of smoke. I called Club 91 (as this was our service contact), and I was told housekeeping would come to "spray." Someone did come and spray an undesirable scent that merely masked the odor. Later, it seemed as though the smoke smell was coming through the ventilation system, because I smelled it off and on during our stay. 

The bed and all furnishings were supremely comfortable, and we did not hear any hallway or neighbor noise. The room contained a couch, soft chair, desk and chair, flat screen TV on a large armoire, minibar, robes and slippers, and a safe. There was no coffee in the guestroom, and coffee was not available in Club 91 before hours. We did not have a safe charge on our folio. This may have been because it was included with our points redemption. Or, maybe it was included in the taxes that we paid on the $100 upgrade. Part of the Marriott website says that there is a charge for the safe, and some areas do not state this. I did not use the Internet because my status was Silver during this stay, and the charge was "around $14," I was told. We received turndown service the first night; however, we did not receive it the second night. I should have called to request this because we wanted to shower again the next day before checking out. In addition to the room refresh the first night, turndown service left two milk chocolates.

The large marble bathroom was impressive. There were two sinks in the large vanity, and a back counter and side shelf with enough room for our shower bags. The walk-in shower was across the room from a separate bathtub. The toilet was located behind a private door. A spacious closet, which contained the safe and a set of storage drawers, was located across from the bathroom. 

Club 91

After reading about what is provided in Club 91, we decided $100 a day was worth upgrading to the club floor, and it was the best upgrade money we ever spent! I can not say enough good things about the food, beverages, and service provided in Club 91. We would have spent well over the upgrade cost, if we had purchased the included items separately. Here is a brief summary and photos of some of the food and beverages provided.

Breakfast: 3 hot plates--eggs, meats, potatoes, and such; many breads and pastries; salmon with all the fixins'; cereals, yogurts, cheeses, and cold meats; high quality coffee and cappuccinos, juices, milk, and mimosas! 

Lunch: 3 main plates--small sandwiches, wraps, and such; salads, snacks, desserts, beverages.

Dinner: 3 hot plates, small portion sizes--steak filets, stir fry, fish, and more; many cold salad and seafood plates, desserts and cheeses.

Bar: Pretty much anything you wanted--champagne (yay, for me!), and brands such as Kahlua, Baileys, Tanqueray, and Absolut.  

Misc.: Bottled water and sodas were always stocked in the fridge. There were food items like fresh wrapped cookies available all day long. I was told that it was okay to take bottled water and coffee from the room. Even though our packet said not to take items from the room, I observed people taking food and sodas from the room as well. 

Club 91 bar

The service was great. Most times, we did not need to go to the bar for our beverages; staff members filled wine glasses and served drinks whenever they observed a guest waiting. We exchanged US dollars for pesos at Club 91 for the exchange rate of 13.95. This was a better rate than we got at our next hotel.

Pool & beach

Even though the pools are heated, I thought the temperature was a bit cool. The water temperature was hot in both jacuzzi tubs--perfect, we thought. There were cushioned lounge chairs around the pools and mesh lounge chairs on the beach. The pool towels were plush, and everything was clean and well maintained. 

The first morning, we did not have any trouble finding lounge chairs in the pool area under a hut overlooking the ocean (after breakfast around 9 AM, or so). The second morning was a different story. My husband went down before breakfast around 7 AM because we had hoped to get seats under a hut overlooking the ocean near the infinity pool. When he returned, he said we were lucky to have gotten the seats we had the day before because there were towels on most of the loungers in good locations. Later that morning, I heard people asking others what time they had come down to get seats. The poolside beverage service was great, and so were the Bloody Marys! 

Misc. & overall

We loved this resort and Club 91. I was slightly disappointed with our room and the fact that we did not receive turndown service both nights, but the rest of the stay was fantastic. The cost for us was 60,000 points +$100 (for Club 91) per night. I also had Marriott cash, so the cost was even less. If I had made better plans far enough in advance, I would have booked our stay for three nights at the JW. We had to pay $32 for the lousy shuttle service, which is free for guests staying three or more nights in a Club 91 guestroom. Our shuttle experience is covered in my Cancun airport review. 

view of the CasaMagna from our balcony

Originally, we had planned to stay at the CasaMagna next door because the rate was only 50,000 points per night (still a lot of points, although less than what it cost at the JW). By the time I decided we would be happier at the JW, I did not have enough points for three nights, and the cost for a Club 91 room was well over $300. I thought $100 per night was a great deal for the upgrade; however, I did not think our room and the club was worth $300 - $400 per night. There is a walkway between the two resorts, and I had read that guests can use both facilities. I also read that the pools are not heated at the CasaMagna, although we did not check the water temperature when we walked over there. From the outside, the guestroom balconies look larger at CasaMagna, and the pool area looks nicer at the JW. 

Grand Rapids, Michigan / JW Marriott

April 2011, Weekend, King concierge floor guestroom

I gave a review of this property in February 2011. This link will take you to that review. In this review, I am providing information about our stay that was different from the February stay. The February stay was on a Saturday, and the April stay was on a Friday.

Guestroom
I had received a corner room on previous stays at this property. The rooms were not on the top concierge floor, although my last room was on one of the concierge floors.

Shower on left

This time, I received a room on the top concierge floor; however, it was not a corner room. The room on the top floor was almost the same as the corner guestrooms, except that the corner rooms are slightly larger.

The shower in the corner room, as well as the seating area in the bedroom, were both more spacious in the corner guestrooms. The tub was the same size in both rooms. You should be able to see the room size difference, by looking at the photos in both reviews. For my next stay, I plan to request a corner room using the virtual concierge on the Marriott site before my arrival.

Concierge lounge

Sunset from Concierge room

The same beverages were included this evening, and this time we also purchased a cocktail. The beverages for purchase consisted of high quality choices at an excellent price. A Grey Goose martini cost $5.

Morning breakfast included the same options as our February stay, and evening snacks included shrimp and hot mini sandwich wedges, along with cheese and crackers.

JW from trail across the river

Misc.

Art Prize in front of The BOB

We walked the river trail behind the Marriott and across the river, which goes for several miles. Here are a couple of photos of the hotel and downtown.

Grand Rapids, Michigan / JW Marriott

February 2011, Weekend, King concierge corner guestroom

Status perks

I used a free night certificate and had Gold status during this stay. It was a Saturday night, we received an upgrade to the concierge floor, and the lounge was open on the weekend.

Guestroom

The concierge floors are on floors 19 - 23, and the concierge lounge is on the 23rd floor.

We received a corner river view room on the 20th floor. The room was in the same location as when we stayed at this hotel a couple years ago, except it was on a higher floor. I had Silver status during that stay, and we did not receive a concierge floor room then.

River view when looking straight down

The view from the room was great, and the room was comfortable. It contained a chaise lounge sofa and a soft straight-backed chair, along with the desk and chair. The bed was supremely comfortable, and the room was soundproof. There was even a soundproofing strip on the bottom of the door.

A laptop safe was located in a drawer in the beverage area outside of the bathroom. The beverage center included a single-serve coffeemaker with good quality coffee and a mini fridge. I was surprised that  liquid creamer was not provided. I was sure that had been provided the last time that we stayed in this hotel. Because this was a concierge floor room, there were two bathrobes for use in the closet, and two small bottles of complimentary water were provided.

The bathroom was large, although the counter space was limited. There was a full size bathtub, and I loved the large walk in marble shower. The bedroom floor was carpet, the bathroom floor was marble, and the floor outside the bathroom--between the bedroom area and door, was wood. Everything in the room was high quality and tastefully decorated.

Concierge lounge

We did not have any food or beverages except in the concierge lounge. I saw a sign stating that lounge access could be purchased for $25. I don't know if that was per person or per room. Beer and wine was included in the evening, and mixed drinks were available for purchase. Snacks included cheeses, crackers, sushi, pot stickers, and egg rolls. All of the hot items were not set out at once; items were refilled or replaced as they became empty. The food in the morning included cut fruits, yogurt, granola, cold cereal, salmon, bagels, breads, and pastries. Available beverages were coffee, cappuccino, espresso, orange and cranberry juices, and milk.

Overall & misc.

This is one of my favorite Marriott hotels, and we already have another reservation here in a few months. The downtown skywalk is accessible from the hotel. Self-parking was $16 per night.