HotelChatter

Hotel Bathrooms / Kimpton Hotels / Hotel Candy / Hotel Amenities / Hotel Minibar / Portland Hotels / Hotel Cats / Funny Hotels / → All Tags

Not Quite A Bathtub Full Of Candy, But This Made Us Smile

Where: 506 SW Washington St [map], PORTLAND, OR, United States, 97204

We came across this adorable email exchange a recent guest had with Hotel Monaco Portland in the weeks leading up to their stay, and thought we'd pass it along. Though Kimpton had us scratching our heads during the whole Elmo/NASA thing this summer, it turns out they actually have a pretty good sense of humor.

In the exchange, Kimpton asks an incoming guest if he would require any special services or amenities arranged prior to their arrival. The guest then jokingly invents two "absurd and outrageous" requests (a bed full of puppies, a bathtub full of Reese's Pieces), and suggests the hotel pretends he is in town to celebrate a "quintuple homicide acquittal."

The whole exchange was light-hearted and fleeting enough for the guest to have forgotten all about it by the time he checked into the hotel. So when he walked into his room, it was to his surprise that he found free Reese's Pieces, a handwritten note (congratulating him on his homicide acquittal) with a picture of a kitten, and a $10 minibar voucher. Not quite a bathtub full of candy, but way to go Kimpton!

more ›

Killer View / Portland Hotels / Hotel Restaurants / Hotel Rooftops / Hotel Bars / → All Tags

Looking Down on The Bricks in Portland from The Nines

Where: 525 SW Morrison [map], Portland, OR, United States, 97204

We are suckers for a room with a killer view.  We find that we are even more likely to forgive some minor hotel inconveniences if we can stare out the window at something pretty--yeah we are that shallow. Let's help out our fellow hotel mavens by uploading rooms with killer views to the HotelChatter/Flickr photo pool, or by sending the photo along to us. We will feature our favorites in this space from time to time. Remember to tell us the name of the hotel and the room number of the hot view.

The other month when we toured The Nines Hotel in Portland we took a ride up to their rooftop which houses the hotel's Departure restaurant and bar. We shot this pic of Pioneer Square and The Bricks (where people sit, eat, jam, veg, etc) from one of the outdoor decks. While views of the city from the guestrooms start at around $300 a night, anyone can head up to Departure for this killer view.

Below we have a bonus shot from the ground looking up at Departure!

more ›

Hotel Club Lounges / Photo Gallery / Portland Hotels / Luxury Collection Hotels / → All Tags

Inside the Club Lounge at The Nines in Portland

Where: 525 SW Morrison [map], Portland, OR, United States, 97204

Over on Jaunted, you can get our inside looks at some of the world’s best airline lounges, so we thought we’d do something similar here and start talking about some of the hotel lounges we’ve frequented lately for our new series on Hotel Club Lounges. Today, we check out the lounge inside the fashionable Nines Hotel in Portland, Ore.

The Nines Hotel has some of the prettiest hotel rooms we've ever seen. (You can check them out here.) Which is why we expected a little more flair inside their Club Lounge on the 12th floor. But alas, we'll have to make do with some plaid pillows.

All guests who book club level accommodations will get a guest room on the 12th floor as well as a daily light breakfast, mid-day snacks, hors d'oeuvres, chocolates and "cordials" and an all-day open bar. You also have a dedicated concierge at your disposal.

more ›

Portland Hotels / Marathon Hotels / → All Tags

Portland's Hotel Fifty Will Be About Five Seconds Away from the Pirate Festival

Where: 50 SW Morrison Street [map], Portland, OR, United States, 97204

Have you ever seen such a stunning hotel? Okay okay—we've seen better, but can you deny that the evening lighting on a modernist building such as Portland, Oregon's Hotel Fifty really brings out the magic of the architecture?

The updated property—which boasts amenities like Free WiFi and Simmons Beautyrest mattresses (oh, fancy), is not in the Pearl District as you'd first think, but instead right down along the Willamette River and Tom McCall Waterfront Park. Now here's why we're bringing it up now: if you're planning on watching or running the Portland Marathon on October 9 or heading to the Portland Pirate Festival which falls just after the marathon, you've got to scout hotels like now.

Sadly they're already all booked up the night of the 8th (but keep calling). Want to crash for the night of the 9th, though? Rates are very manageable starting from $139 per night.

[Photo: HotelChatter]

Hotel Restaurants / Ace Hotels / Portland Hotels / → All Tags

Lunch at Clyde Common at The ACE PDX Cost Just This Much

Where: 1022 SW Stark Street [map], Portland, OR, United States, 97205

We have a serious heart-on for the Clyde Common restaurant at the Ace Hotel Portland and it's easy to see why--we had lunch there for just $10. And it was a phenomenal lunch too as we ordered an aged monterey jack and marinated anaheim pepper grilled cheese served with fries, creme fraiche and the sweet harissa which our bro Jaunted told us all about the other month. Throw in a Coke and the bill came to $10 even. Swoon. Just another reason to love Portland in general, it's way affordable.

Want to know what it's like spending the night at the ACE PDX where rooms are as low as $95 a night? Check out our full review with video and photos right here.

Photo Gallery / Portland Hotels / Luxury Collection Hotels / Fashion Hotels / → All Tags

The Nines Hotel Is, Like, A Perfect 10

Where: 525 SW Morrison [map], Portland, OR, United States, 97204

Last week we gave you a little video tour of the prettiest girl in Portlandia, The Nines Hotel. But there's so much more to the room than what you saw on a few minutes of video and we've got all the eye candy for you to look at right here from the sumptuous beds to the jewel tone furniture, the Bee Kind toiletries, original artwork, local munchies in the snack bar and the cleverly hidden plug panels.

Again, this is a deluxe queen corner room on the 9th floor with views overlooking Pioneer Square. Superior rooms have the awesome atrium views while king rooms are slightly smaller.

Rates are totally doable too starting around $200 a night. But what really make The Nines a perfect 10 is the free WiFi. Sigh. We wish all hotels could be so nice.

Hotel Video Tours / Luxury Collection Hotels / Fashion Hotels / Portland Hotels / → All Tags

The Prettiest Girl in Portlandia is Dressed To The Nines

Where: 525 SW Morrison [map], Portland, OR, United States, 97204

Nearly three years after opening the Nines Hotel in Portland still looks fabulous. And considering that the hotel is housed in the former Meier and Frank department store, that's not really a surprise.

But what was surprising was just how many fascinating things there are all over the hotel. We got an in-depth tour earlier this week and could hardly stop clicking our camera. There's soo much to see here as evidenced by the hotel's awesome atrium action. But for today, we'll start off with a video tour of a deluxe queen corner room on the 9th floor with views overlooking Pioneer Square.

more ›

Hotel Toiletries / Portland Hotels / Toiletry Dispensers / → All Tags

Hotel Toiletry Conundrum: Dispensers or Bottles?

Where: 309 Southwest Broadway [map], Portland, OR, United States, 97205

Last week, we wondered if toiletry dispensers were unsanitary or not but over at the Benson Hotel in Portland, you won't have to worry about that since the hotel offers both toiletry dispensers and toiletry bottles. And with the good stuff too--Gilchrist & Soames.

There is one exception though. Unless you prefer using hotel soap, you will have to pump the dispenser for the shower gel as that was not offered in bottle form. Go figure.

more ›

Portland Hotels / Hotel Bicycles / Hotel Hell / → All Tags

Portland Really Loves Their Bicycles

Where: 309 Southwest Broadway [map], Portland, OR, United States, 97502

Speaking of Hotel Bikes....

Last month, Jaunted let us know that Portland, Ore. was incredibly bike-friendly as evidenced by this sign in the airport. And this bike love extends to the city's hotels as this is what we found chilling above the entrance of the Benson Hotel.

So will bicyclists want to stay at the Benson? Maybe bikers of a certain age would be happy here at this older luxury hotel which has modern amenities but a more "traditional" hotel feel. Yet regardless of whether you like older hotels or pretty young things, we encountered two pesky problems during our stay that anyone would hate.

While we loved the large, comfy beds, the free WiFi, the lounge act on Saturday night and the Gilchrist & Soames amenities, we had some crazy issues with our room key in that it never worked again after we first used it. Not even after getting three new keys made. Ultimately, we had to be moved to a new floor at 9:30pm at night (with a baby in tow.)

more ›

HotelChatter Video Tours / HotelChatter Reviews / Photo Gallery / Portland Hotels / Ace Hotels / Hipster Hotels / Budget Hotels / → All Tags

Inside The Ace Hotel in Portland, Oregon

Where: Portland, OR, United States

You've heard all about the Ace Hotel New York, we're sure, but what about the other three Ace properties scattered on the west side of the the country? There's just as many people strolling through the lobby thinking they're cooler or more influential than they really are, and there's still rooms chock-full of commissioned art and irreverent items like turntables or vintage furniture.

Thus, while recently in Portland, we hunkered down for two nights in a single room with shared bathroom at the Ace Hotel PDX. The damage? Only $95 per night, which bought us lots of surprising quiet, a desirable location, a hopping restaurant scene and...um, communal workspace.

more ›

Hotel Amenities / Hotel Minibars / Ace Hotels / Portland Hotels / Hipster Hotels / → All Tags

More Metal Thingies in Hotels, This Time at the Ace Portland

Where: 1022 SW Stark Street [map], Portland, OR, United States, 97205

Okay, it's official; we are totally on the look-out for hotel rooms that feature the little extra amenity of a wall-mounted bottle opener. First, we spotted in the business traveler-oriented, $300+ rooms of the Sofitel Heathrow Airport, and now one has made an appearance in the hipster-centric $95 rooms of the Ace Hotel Portland. Beer—it transcends all economics and demographics.

Truly, having a bottle opener fixed to the wall (and therefore not so easily stealable) makes total sense in a hotel room. No need to call room service at 2am when you've cut your teeth trying to open a bottle you thought was screw-top. And, if you have a special guest up to your room for drinks, the suave movement of popping the cap without having to fuss with a gadget is some minor James Bond seduction stuff. At least, to us.

more ›

Portland Hotels / Provenance Hotels / Hotel Employees / → All Tags

The Hotel Lucia's Way of Wearing a Shirt That Says 'Number 1 Dad'

Where: 400 SW Broadway [map], Portland, OR, United States, 97205

How often do you see a hotel flagrantly bragging about their employees? Almost never, because the job of a hotel is to focus on the guests and brag about them, right? Wrong, if you're Portland, Oregon's Hotel Lucia, because they have it written right on their exterior:

Through these doors walk the most outstanding Employees anyone could ask for
Hotel Lucia

We were just walking by this side, employee-entrance door when the bright green words attracted our attention. You don't even need to be a guest at the Lucia to smile about their employees, because this cute little gesture from the management says it all. We wonder if the workers even look at it anymore, or if employees of other hotels walk past and get a little sour. Regardless, this is something we've never seen before at a hotel, and good on them for showing a little public appreciation for their staff.

[Photo: HotelChatter]