Seattle, Washington / Renaissance

May 2011, Memorial weekend

Status perks

I did not initially receive any perks as a Gold member. In fact, I did not even receive the corner suite I had reserved until after I inquired about this. When the front desk agent provided our keys and said we had a king room on one of the higher floors, I said, "We have a corner king executive suite, don't we?" She said that there were not any available. I told her that I had booked an executive corner suite; the Seattle Pride Package. She checked the computer again, and then provided keys for a corner suite on the 19th floor, along with a coupon booklet. This was not as high of a floor as we had originally been given; however, it was a suite.

The agent did not code our keys for access to the concierge lounge, nor did she mention it. She had talked about how to access the Internet as a Gold member, so I thought that maybe the lounge was not open for the holiday weekend. Later that day, I learned that the concierge lounge was accessible for water and soda even though it was not staffed, so I stopped back at the front desk to inquire about this. The employee at that time, apologized that we had not been given access at check-in, and she coded our keys for lounge access.

Guestroom

facing entrance &
connecting guestroom

The guestroom was comfortable; however, it was not as impressive as I had expected. The room description on the website and on our reservation confirmation listed the room as 497 square feet, and the room we received was NOT 497 square feet. It was more like 350 square feet. When looking at a photo of a king corner suite on the website, the description is 335 square feet, although all the other areas list the suites as 497 sq. ft. I am not sure if there are two different corner suite rooms, or if the description needs to be changed on the website. It is possible we received a king corner suite (335 sq. ft.) instead of the executive king corner suite (497 sq. ft.) that we had reserved since our room was not on the concierge floor. The website only lists five suites though, and I could not find two different suite types. I wish I had been more diligent about the details and differences at the time of our stay, because I would have inquired whether we had been given the correct room type. I did not scrutinize all the details until after we had returned home. My suggestion for guests who reserve an executive king corner suite--bring your printed reservation with you!

facing toward beverage center
across from bathroom

There was a comfortable sitting area when entering the suite, which included a couch, floor lamp, one end table, desk and chair, and flat screen TV. The suite had a connecting door to the guestroom next door. I liked the exterior wall of windows, which made the room look larger.

The bathroom was located between the sitting area and the bedroom, and there was a beverage center and closet across from the bathroom. The small fridge never got cold, and we tried adjusting the thermostat several different ways. The safe in the closet was large enough to hold a laptop. A second smaller flat screen TV was located in the bedroom. It was mounted on the wall in the corner since the bedroom was quite small. There was just enough room to walk around the foot of the bed, with a small nightstand on each side of the bed. Large windows made up both exterior bedroom walls; however, they needed to be cleaned. There was a nice suitcase bench/window seat on one wall. This guestroom did not have any Renaissance bathrobes, which I observed other guests wearing to and from the pool. I missed that because I had packed light this trip, and did not have a warm swimsuit coverup to wear.

bedroom

I had filled out the Virtual Concierge form online a few days before our arrival, requesting turndown service and early check-in at 1 p.m. Since our key packet had not been prepared, and we were initially given the incorrect room type when we checked in at 1 p.m., I was not too confident that we would receive turndown service that evening. When we returned from dinner, turndown service had been provided. Amenities included two local chocolates, and two bottles of water. Our room had not been refreshed. I'm not sure if the bottled water was part of turndown service, or if those had been delivered to the room because of my Gold status. The water bottles were not left next to the chocolates.

Food & Beverage

view from lounge/dinner

Marriott had an online offer for a free entree for Gold members--buy one, get one free. We dined in the R View restaurant/lounge on the top floor that evening. The food was excellent quality, and this was an excellent value with our coupons. The only disappointment was that I ordered the Seafood Cioppino, and the restaurant did not have any mussels. Extra fish was included in the dish to make up for this. My husband ordered the Halibut, and we had two Happy Hour beverages. We also had a free appetizer coupon with the Seattle Pride package we had booked. Since the restaurant was not open for lunch the next day, our server let us use the coupon for the Slider Sampler to-go. The Slider Sampler included two each of the following sliders: salmon, chicken, and beef. They were delicious! Seating in the lounge was self-seating, and we chose a table on the highest level with corner windows. We had an excellent view. The windows were much cleaner than the windows in our guestroom.

Pool

The pool and hot tub were located on the top floor just down the hall from the restaurant/lounge. The exterior walls were all windows with another great view. We did not stay long because the hot tub was not very warm. We were fortunate that we had been able to enjoy the view without a lot of commotion while we were there. There was only one guest/child in the pool area when we first arrived. We observed several families and children heading to the pool area while we dined. I had noticed when we reserved our room at this hotel, that not many hotels in downtown Seattle have a pool or hot tub.

Business center and Concierge lounge

I was finishing up some business at the start of this leisure trip and needed to print several documents. First, I tried to print them in the concierge lounge. The desk computer required a signon, and I did not notice the computer for guest use, which was turned off against the wall. I then tried the business center on the bottom floor, and found there was a charge for printing documents. I stopped at the Concierge stand in the lobby to ask if he knew the signon for the concierge lounge computer, so I could print from there. He told me about the guest computer in that room that was against the wall, and he also showed me a computer in the lobby near the front desk. I was surprised to learn I could print as much as I wanted from the lobby computer for no charge! I used that computer and did not try the one in the concierge lounge.

When I first checked the fridge in the lounge after the Front Desk agent coded my key for access, it was empty. Later that day and the next morning, it was stocked with bottled water and soda. I was happy to be able to get a couple bottles of water during our stay. The room looked comfortable, and there was also a table and seats outside. We had thought we might take advantage of the sitting areas to relax that evening; however, we ran out of time.

Overall
I was happy with our room for the price we paid. I was glad I had not paid full price because I would have been seriously disappointed. Before I discovered the Seattle Pride Package, all the room rates I found at this hotel were over $200, and the corner executive suites were over $250. My husband always likes to have a pool, so I booked this hotel mainly because of the pool--and, because I am a Marriott Gold member.

Our room rate with the package was $151, which made this stay a good value. Other than the free appetizer coupon that we used in R View, our package did not include much of anything except a better room rate. The coupon booklet we were given with the appetizer coupon contained mostly ads for Happy Hour specials, and a couple small discounts. We used only one of the discounts; 15% off at Sazerac. Since we only stayed at the Renaissance one night, we used our coupon after we checked out because we stayed at a different hotel for two nights after this stay. That review will be next!

Seattle, Washighton -- Light Rail from SEATAC to downtown

I read many different comments about the ease of using the Light Rail to get downtown before we took this trip, so I am sharing our experience.

Here is a little information about us and our situation: We are two healthy adults used to walking. We often take brisk 4 - 6 mile walks for exercise, in addition to leisure walks for entertainment or pleasure. I am a frequent traveler used to different airports and many modes of transportation; often lugging around a laptop and luggage. I have visited all 50 US states--Alaska was the last state for me, which we visited on this trip. My husband has also experienced many of these things, and we both look forward to new experiences.

We had two roller suitcases--one large and one small, and two carry-on size bags--one laptop and another shoulder bag, which could be slid on the roller bags. I also had a small purse. Our flight was due to arrive before 11:00 AM, so we had decided that for $2.50 per person we would take the Light Rail. Our destination was the Renaissance, which is less than 1/2 mile [4 - 5 blocks] from University Station. Not far, although it was uphill, which we were aware of before making this choice.

Departing from SEA airport

We flew Delta, and our luggage arrived at baggage claim 4. The signs to the rail were well posted and highly visible (I had read that signs are not visible), and it was easy to get to. We went up the escalator right next to our baggage claim, walked the perimeter of the parking garage, and crossed a short overpass to the rail station. It would have been a very short walk directly across the parking garage; however, we opted to take the bit longer way around on the sidewalk as was intended for pedestrians.

There were three self-serve kiosks after we got to the station to purchase tickets. I observed a group of people standing near a counter north of the escalator, so there may have been additional kiosks as well. I thought the ticket purchasing instructions were easy and purchased our tickets in less than 30 seconds. Apparently, other passengers did not have the same experience, because we waited in line over 10 minutes behind 4 or 5 passengers, and one of them walked the line after he had made his purchase to give away extra tickets he ended up with. You can use cash or a credit card at the kiosk. After we had our tickets, we went up the escalator behind the kiosks to board the train.

The train ride

We rode on Saturday of Memorial weekend. Since I have never been on the Light Rail before this trip, I do not know if our experience was different because of the holiday weekend. It would have been an enjoyable ride, except that it was extremely crowded. There were no seats when we boarded. There were passengers taking up available seats with their luggage and such, so there could have been more people sitting down. At most of the stops before we got off, more people boarded, and hardly anyone got off. The ride was smooth, quiet, and passed pretty quickly. We got off at University Station.

Arrival downtown and walk to hotel

There are a couple different street exists from the station. I had looked at the street and station maps before the trip, so I knew which street corner was closest to our hotel. We were the only passengers who took the elevator up to 3rd Avenue and Seneca. Nobody collected our tickets on the train or after we got off. I don't know if the ride was free Memorial weekend, or if the train always operates on the honor system.

Yes, the walk to our hotel was uphill, and many people advised visitors NOT to walk with luggage from the train station. We did not have any difficulty, and we did not regret our decision. We did not see any taxis when we came out of the station, which surprised me. Maybe the exit we took was not the normal station exit.

Overall

I was happy with the ease and speed of the trip. It looked to me like the train ride was quicker than a car ride would have been. I think if you don't have much luggage, and know where you want to get on and off the train, taking the Light Rail is the way to go. The comments I read online before making this trip did not help me at all. If anything, they made me question whether the signs I was reading at the airport were correct, since many people had made this trip sound like a difficult task.

I thought this was an easy trip--the signs in the airport were visible and easy to understand, and the kiosk ticket purchase was easy as well. I would do it again, as long as I did not have much luggage. The only suggestion I have for travelers, is to make sure you look at the street and station maps before your trip. Here is the link to the downtown stations:

--> http://metro.kingcounty.gov/tops/tunnel/tunnel-stations.html

Grand Rapids, MI--GRR airport hotel / Crowne Plaza

May 2011, Weekend, 1-night, King executive floor (?) guestroom 

Status perks

This hotel is usually one of my first choices when I need an airport hotel because I have always been upgraded to an executive or club floor room in the past. The agent did not recognize my status or provide any information about the guestroom during check-in, so I was not sure if I had received an upgraded room or not.

Our stay was Friday of Memorial weekend, and there were only 11 rooms rented that evening. (I learned this from a front desk employee later). Imagine what an impressive review I would be writing about this property, if they had opted to give a Platinum member, an upgrade to a suite or better guestroom.

Guestroom

I did not take any photos this stay, and I neglected to write down the guestroom number. I believe we were in a guestroom on floor five in C-wing. I do not know if all of the guestrooms on floor five are executive rooms, or just some of them. This guestroom seemed smaller than others we have stayed in.

When I made this reservation, I had requested a high floor, corner room, in a quiet area. Although I  received a guestroom on the top floor, it was next to the elevator. I do not think there were any other guests in this hall, so the guestroom was in a quiet area, even though it was next to the elevator. It was not as nicely remodeled as some guestrooms I have stayed in, and there was only one soft chair in the room. I have stayed in other guestrooms at this hotel with a couch instead of one chair. That would have met our needs better, since there were two of us. It had a balcony overlooking the back courtyard.

Club Lounge

The Club Lounge remodeling had been completed, and the lounge was in use, although it was not open the evening of our stay. Sometimes, the room is still accessible for bottled water and such. I tried my key in the door, which did not work. Later that evening, I inquired about the Club room, or discount coupons in the hotel lounge. The front desk agent--who was different than the employee who had checked me in--gave me a couple of beverage coupons for the hotel lounge.

Food & Beverages

The service, food, and beverages in the lounge were excellent. I have liked every food and beverage item I have tried at this hotel since the lounge and restaurant were remodeled. We shared a chicken jerk sandwich, which was plenty large enough for two. The bartender let us use our beverage coupons for upgraded beverages.

Business center

I was able to print something in the business center without any difficulty or a charge. I have stayed in some Crowne Plazas that charge for printing. There was not a copy machine in the business center, and the front desk agent made a copy of two items for me. Front desk staff were also happy to let me leave a package I had scheduled for pickup the day we checked out.

Hotel shuttle & misc.

The morning shuttle was prompt, as was our pickup from the airport when we returned.

One reason I usually choose this property over the nearby Hilton (now a DoubleTree) is because of the perks I normally receive. Since I did not receive any perks this time until after I inquired, I am undecided about which hotel I will choose for future airport stays. The room we had was acceptable, although I did not understand why staff would have chosen not to give us a better room when the property was nearly empty. I'm sure we would have been more comfortable in a room with more space and a couch. I appreciate that the Front Desk agent gave us beverage coupons after I inquired about Platinum perks; however, I never like it when I have to request these things. It is much more impressive when perks are given without prompting.

Tupelo, Mississippi -- Hilton Garden Inn

Status perks

I received the standard two bottles of water that I always receive from Hilton at check-in, and a basic king bed room, which is what I had reserved.

Room

The room contained a soft chair and footstool, desk and chair, and fridge and microwave. I didn't think the room offered the best comfort for working. Neither chair was very comfortable. The desk chair was an ergonomic chair; however, the material was rough, so it was not comfortable when I was wearing shorts. It had not been cleaned very well (hairs on the seat and back), so I tried sitting on a towel, which helped some. The sleep number bed was comfortable, and I slept well. The Internet connection speed was good. Even though the diagram on the guestroom door showed my room as one of the smaller rooms, I was happy with it because it was on the top floor at the end of the hall. I did not experience any noise or disturbances.  This was great considering the hotel and lounge were extremely full one of the nights during my stay. I later learned there had been a Poison concert next door that night! I guess I should have asked what was going on that evening.

Food & Beverage

I had a couple different food items in the evening and was impressed with the quality. I had the wedge salad, a berry salad, and an ahi tuna sandwich on three different evenings. Both salads were large potions, prepared with fresh ingredients, and flavorful. The ahi tuna was also excellent. The sandwich comes with fries, and I was able to get it with fresh vegetables after I inquired about a different side item. It was a good sized piece of grilled tuna on a french roll with cucumber dressing. House wine was discounted on Wednesday evening. This was also the evening of the concert, and the service was excellent this evening, even though the restaurant and lounge were extremely busy. The service was acceptable the other two evenings, although it was better the night it was busy. I had the same bartender every time, so I guess he works better under pressure!

Little splits of Korbel were available in the beverage center next to the front desk for $4.25, which I thought was a great deal.

Fitness center

The room contained three cardio machines and a weight machine. There was one working TV and remote, fresh water, a scale, and towels. The cardio machines looked into the inside pool area. The room temperature was quite warm, so I never stayed more than 1/2 hour. I did not have any trouble finding an open machine when I visited in the afternoon or early morning.

Business center

The business center was well stocked with many different business supplies: tape, stapler, post-it notes, envelopes, pens and pencils, and paper. There were two working computers and a printer. I also used the copy machine without any trouble.

Overall

I was happy with the bed comfort and location of this hotel. The staff were friendly and helpful. There is a fabulous restaurant next door called the Fairpark Grill.

Grand Rapids, MI / GRR airport hotel -- Staybridge Suites

Status perks

I received a coupon good for two items at the Suite Shop.

Room

I was disappointed when I saw that my guestroom was right next to the elevator and not on the top floor, because it's usually noisy in this area. When I make a reservation, I always request a room in a quiet area away from the elevator on the top floor; however, I have found that some hotels read the guest comments, and some do not. This was a Sunday night stay before an early flight I had, and I was not going to be there long, so I did not request a different room. The room was a studio king bed room with a full kitchen. It met my needs for the short stay; however, if I had planned to be in the area working for a length of time, I do not think I would be happy at this hotel. I did not think the couch or desk chair were very comfortable for working, and the room was a bit noisy--from guests in the hall and above me. The bed was comfortable, and I liked the fact that the large window had a screen and opened.

Food & beverage

This hotel does not provide food on Sunday evenings. An evening reception is included Monday - Thursday. Breakfast was included in the morning; however, I had to leave before then. I inquired about a breakfast to-go bag, and was told that is not offered. Sometimes, when I ask about this because of an early departure, the employee has let me grab something from the pantry.

Pool and outside area

The outside pool and hot tub had just opened for the summer the weekend of our stay; however, neither were usable. The pool was dirty, and the water in the hot tub was not warm. The outside seating area, tables, and grills for guest use were excellent. The seating was comfortable, and there was plenty of room.

Hotel shuttle and misc.

The hotel shuttle was very prompt in the morning. In fact, the driver took me right away after I checked out at the front desk, even though I arrived downstairs a few minutes early. This is one of a few hotels where I often stay when I have an early morning flight. 

This stay was similar to my other stays. I have always received the two Suite Shop items for being a Platinum PCR member, and I don't usually receive a room upgrade or a room on the top floor like I request when making my reservation. I received a room upgrade once at this hotel when I specifically requested it at check-in. Our son was staying with us that time, so I wanted a room with a bedroom, if it was available, and it was.

My husband was disappointed that he was not able to enjoy the pool and hot tub during  this stay. Especially since I had called the hotel that morning to ask if the pool area was open yet. I had been told it was opening that day. Apparently, some of the little details did not get completed on time.

Mt. Pleasant, Michigan / Hampton Inn

Status perks

We did not initially receive any kind of upgrade or extras for being a HHonors Gold member. A few years ago, we had received a fabulous corner room with whirlpool and kitchen area at this hotel, so I asked about an upgrade at check-in. After checking on the computer, the agent said she did not have that room type; however, she could upgrade us to a king whirlpool room.

Guestroom

The large guestroom was on the top/3rd floor, and near the end of the hall, which is the location I prefer. It was spacious and comfortable. The desk chair, chair and footstool, and bed were comfortable and clean.  There was another straight back chair with a cushioned seat, which we did not use. The large flat screen TV was visible from all areas of the guestroom, including the tub. There was a nice suitcase bench in the room, and we liked the walk in shower in the bathroom. There was not a tub in the bathroom, which did not matter to  us. We prefer the walk in showers instead. The large window in the guestroom opened to the outside, and there was a screen. We slept very well, and did not hear any noise from the hall or other guestrooms. By the looks of the parking lot, this hotel was fairly full during our stay. The Internet connection speed in the guestroom was satisfactory.

Food & Beverage

The breakfast included with the room was very good. I had cheesy omelets, and sausage that reminded me of Hillshire Farms sliced links. There was also yogurt, cold and hot cereals,  waffles, and more. The strong coffee tasted even better than I am used to receiving at Hampton Inns.

Misc.

This is a short review because we did not use the pool, fitness center, or business center during this stay. We stayed one night while visiting the Soaring Eagle casino, and did not spend a lot of time at the hotel. The hotel offers shuttle service to the casino, which runs until 11 PM. We initially thought we would use the shuttle service; however, we decided to drive ourselves since it was only a mile or two down the road. 

This hotel used to have a 24-48 hour cancellation policy (I do not remember for sure if it was 1 or 2 days); however, that was not the case during this stay. When I made the reservation a week in advance, it had the basic "until 6 PM" cancellation terms. We stayed on a Thursday night with a great AAA rate of $89. We considered staying at the casino hotel; however, rates there were over $100, and the casino hotel does not follow the Michigan no smoking laws.

There used to be a full service Holiday Inn between this Hampton Inn and the casino, which closed down and was then purchased by the casino a few years ago. That building has now been torn down. I find it disappointing that the only full service hotel in this area is the casino hotel.

Delta and American Express team up to give away 100,000 miles!

Delta and AmEx are giving away 100,000 miles to four lucky winners on Facebook! You can enter, if you have a Delta AmEx card and Facebook account. The four entries with the most "likes" will each win 100,000 miles. If you don't have a Delta card, you can vote for my photo! I entered one of the photos from my Marco Island review on this blog (shown above).

The link to my entry is below, if you don't have a card and want to vote. If you want to enter the contest, just choose "Enter Your Photo" at the top of the page instead. You can vote once a day ~ Good luck to all! 

Dream & Redeem - Vote or enter the contest