portland Travel Guide
Tags: New Year's Eve 2009 / Portland Hotels / Luxury Collection Hotels / Green Hotels / → All Tags
Alice in Eco-Land: Head Down the Rabbit Hole at The Nines for NYE
Five, four, three, two, one...Happy Sustainability! Er, New Year! Papers and cable networks have been abuzz with stories about Copenhagen's Climate Conference, which wraps up today and coincides with news about LEED-certified hotel The Nines' New Year's Eve party plans.
We'd expected the color palette for said event to be green, naturally (ba-dum-bum), but instead we're seeing shades of blue, blue, blue for the Alice in Wonderland-themed bash. (Tiffany blue also happens to be the hue of choice for The Nines' rooms.) The sixth floor of the hotel will be transformed into a veritable Wonderland, with entertainment courtesy of a local marching band. Don't worry, we don't think they'll spontaneously burst into a school's fight song; we're told it's swinging big band tunes they're playing, instead.
Tags: Hotel Rumors / Standard Hotels / Hotel Hype / Andre Balazs / Hotel News / → All Tags
Cheerio and Hola! Standard Hotels to Open in London and Costa Rica
[Update]: A Standard rep says that London and Costa Rica are high on Andre's list but "as of now there are no confirmed plans." So expect these to open, as reported, "eons from now."
We always suspected that hottie hotelier Andre Balazs would soon be expanding his Standard Hotels brand but we haven't quite been able to follow his mysterious plans. We thought for sure Seattle and then we thought definitely somewhere in the Caribbean with his Maison Tropicale.
But now the PX This blog writes that Standard Hotels will be taking their show on the road to London and Costa Rica.
Your beloved chain of snazzy flophouses, by your favorite cute diminutive hotelier, is expanding to include locations in both London and Costa Rica. Plus, you can probably expect to see some familiar faces to welcome you with open arms when the awesome formidable projects are finally (eons from now) consummated.
Ugh. We were excited until we read "eons from now." But we're gonna guess that the London property will be very much like the Standard NYC (A future HC headline: "Brits showing off naughty bits!") and that Costa Rica will be more of a retreat a la Standard Miami.
We've put in a call and an email to the Standard Hotels rep and we'll update you when we have new info. Until then, send us your own scoop or drop your thoughts in comments below.
Tags: Pet-friendly Hotels / Kimpton Hotels / Portland Hotels / Pet Concierges / → All Tags
Hotel Monaco Portland Puts A New Lab In The Lobby
There are a lot of things we like about Kimpton Hotels, such as the "Forgot It? We Got It?" toiletry-supply service. We also love that the chain is so pet-friendly that The Muse Hotel in New York once hosted a sloth. We'll settle for taking our dog, but even when we can't, Kimpton covers that too. Just like when you forget your toothpaste.
Eight Kimpton properties have "Directors of Pet Relations" on the premises—dogs who essentially hang out in the lobby looking cute and rubbing up against guests in search of treats. The lineup includes a Bulldog, Bichon Frise, and pocket-pup Pomeranian. You can see their adorable mugs here.
This month, a new member joins the pack: yellow Labrador retriever Timmy will join the staff of the Hotel Monaco Portland with a red-carpet debut on Thursday, October 22. Local celebrities on two and four legs will be on hand to welcome Timmy to the hotel, with funds from the party going to Guide Dogs for the Blind.
Tags: Hotel Bikes / Hotel Swag / Ace Hotels / Portland Hotels / Hotel News / → All Tags
Portland's Ace Hotel Enters Fall With New Bikes And Artisan Booze
Ah, fall in the Pacific Northwest; it just makes you long to be outside, wearing your favorite flannel shirt and dreaming of chai tea. Luckily, The Ace Hotel in Portland, Oregon anticipated this and they've amped up their offerings for a refreshed and outdoorsy autumn.
First up are their new, specially-outfitted-for-Portland Swobo bicycles. Now we've all heard about the classic cruisers availabe at New York hotels, but Portland requires something more rugged, more street and trail-ready, and they've found it in their new fleet of six Swobos, with the customizations done by six different Portland bike shops. If you're a hotel guest, then you can feel free to borrow them for the day for free, and take in the fall foliage under your own power.
Tags: Green Hotels / Portland Hotels / Luxury Collection Hotels / LEED Hotels / → All Tags
Green is the New Black at the Newly LEED-Certified Nines Hotel
If there's one thing Portland is known for, it's being green—literally, of course, with all of those lush Weeping Sequoias dotting its landscape, but also in the environmental sense. Long before Al Gore's An Inconvenient Truth made being eco-friendly chic, Portland was a city leading the green revolution, and its building practices have been a part of this wave.
Take The Nines hotel, for instance, which we raved about after paying it a visit upon its opening last fall. In addition to personal notes from maid service and free WiFi, we can add yet another point in its favor: The Nines recently earned LEED Silver certification from the U.S. Green Building Council.
Tags: Hotel Bicycles / Aloft Hotels / Airport Hotels / Portland Hotels / → All Tags
The PDX Aloft Hotel Introduces New 'Bike and Fly' Program
Aloft Portland Airport at Cascade Station is trying to make transportation even easier for PDX residents with the country's first ever “Bike & Fly” program. With the purchase of a one-night stay (starting at $130), guests departing Portland International Airport can stash their bikes in a secure bike parking storage area for up to 14 days. The city’s MAX light rail line conveniently stops right in front of Aloft.
This all sounds good and green, but we’re having a hard time wrapping our head around why anyone in the Portland area would want to plunk down $130 to store their bike and what instances would require an overnight stay on an outbound itinerary? Wouldn’t it be more economical (and easy) to simply take MAX light rail line straight to the airport, suffer through TSA and call it a day?
Tags: Digital Nomad Hotels / Hotel WiFi / Hotel Lobbies / Portland Hotels / → All Tags
Digital Nomad Lobbies: Portland Harbor Hotel
There has been a lot of talk recently about the lifestyle of digital nomads -- folks who work from wherever they might roam. HotelChatter has been covering hotel wifi since the beginning, but as we cited in our 2009 annual hotel wifi report times they are a changin'.
The biggest change on the tech side is the growing popularity of the usb broadband card. As more and more people buy into these cards (and more and more GMs pray to the hotel gods they do) there are a growing number of digital nomads that no longer tap into a hotel WiFi network. Instead, these nomads are in search of killer hotel lobbies to comfortably work in. That's right, digital nomads have no problem coming in, kicking back on hotel lobby couches and doing an hours worth of work. So once again hotels have a choice -- welcome these folks, pay no mind to them, or actively try to kick them out.
With this in mind, we figured it was time for us to start rating hotel lobbies on their digital nomad quotient. First up, the Portland Harbor Hotel.
Tags: Hotel Bookshelves / Hotel Amenities / Portland Hotels / → All Tags
Bringing Sexy (Books) Back at The Heathman Hotel Portland
Flipping pages in bed isn’t exactly our idea of foreplay, but for solo travelers and super geeks, The Heathman Hotel offers a “Books By Your Bedside” package. Home to one of the country’s few catalogued hotel guest-lending libraries, this package includes accommodations for two, a tour of the hotel’s library, a hardcover edition of a book written by the hotel’s most recent guest author and other goodies.
Authors Anthony Bourdain and David Sedaris both made appearances at the hotel within the past two months. Thomas L. Friedman, a popular environmental writer, as well as Annie Leibowitz, the famed celebrity photographer, were at The Heathman back in April. Michael Pollan graced Portland with his politically-correct presence in January, along with Calvin Trillin.
Tags: 100 or Less / Lists / Portland Hotels / → All Tags
Five PDX Hotels for Less Than a Benjamin
Wah! You want a getaway, but your wallet says no. Skip the guilt trip and take a mini-vacay to Portland, Oregon, where plenty of hotel rates are caught in a budget-friendly fiscal time warp.
Here are five of our fave Portland hotels for under $100 a night.
Tags: Hotel Restaurants / Portland Hotels / Hotel News / → All Tags
The Nines Hotel's Departure Restaurant Drops Anchor in Portland
Hot on the heels of the NYT’s gush-fest, the Nines Hotel in Portland has opened Departure Restaurant + Lounge for dinner and happy hour. Roosting from the 15th floor, the rooftop spot proffers a bird’s-eye panorama of Portland's bridges and mountain peaks beyond. Chef Bryan Emperor, a transplant by way of NYC and Virginia, serves a "modern Asian menu" with a "casual dining experience akin to a neighborhood pub." (Translation: Southeast Asia fare, Japanese-style Izakaya.)
Conceived by the Denver-based Sage Restaurant Group, the restaurant's name and aesthetic is a nod to the days when Portlanders took the monorail in the Meier & Frank Building (where the hotel is housed) and "when an 'around the world' ocean voyage was de rigueur for the modern traveler." That means worldly accents like marine teak decking, sailcloth panels, nautical map murals, ship portals in the corridor leading to the restrooms, and a teak-clad "smokestack" that floats above the bar.
Tags: NYT Reviews / Portland Hotels / Boutique Hotels / → All Tags
NYT Also Wowed to the Nines by the Nines Hotel
There are very few things a hotel geek loves more than a chic hotel that lives up to all of its own hype. Throw in an eco-friendly sensibility, free Wi-Fi, and a leathery library, and we're positively smitten — and it seems the New York Times is on the same page.
This past weekend, a Times-er checked in to the Nines Hotel in Portland and, like us, gushed about the "fanciful" hotel's location, design, service, and amenities.
For the uninitiated, the Nines Hotel occupies the top nine floors of downtown Portland's historic Meier & Frank Building, with Macy's taking up the first five levels. The Nines is seeking LEED Silver certification, which translates to green touches like dual-flush toilets. The NYT particularly spotlights the hotel’s arty side ("a 419-piece collection by artists with local ties," "striking" art like a 30-foot chandelier by Melody Owen) and design (including a light-flooded atrium complete with "sheer-draped glass gazebos").
Tags: Green Hotels / Portland Hotels / Hotel Service / Checking In On / → All Tags
The Avalon Still 'Green' When It Comes to Service
What's a hotel got to do to stand out these days? Certainly being a green hotel—even if you are the tenth LEED-certified hotel in the United States—isn't much of a cache anymore; at least that's how it seems to be when we check in with Portland's Avalon Hotel and Spa.
Because environmentally-friendliness aside, it's service that matters, and judging from certain reviews on TripAdvisor, it appears not much has changed from our stay at the Avalon a little over a year ago.
Then, we found it to be "relaxing, romantic…though their maid service needs to improve," a sentiment echoed in more recent reviews. "It's really quite nice…[but] service leaves a bit to be desired," says one. "Service was reasonably efficient…I might stay there again if the price is right or place improves," reads another.
So while it's great to be tuned into the green movement--and have a relatively affordable rate of $155--you might want to also check in with your customers every once in a while.
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