Atheneum Suites: Motown... Greekstyle?

December 14, 2004 at 8:16 AM | by mindswing | Comments (0)

When a Detroit local tipped me off to the Atheneum Hotel I was hoping for a little sophistication in the "plain oatmeal" Hotel Market that is Detroit. This hotel is billed as the only 4 star AAA rated hotel in Detroit. What I found was mixed, huge suites with luxurious bathrooms, overlooking a casino and strip club.

I travel frequently to Detroit for business. I usually stay in the Marriot dowtown but a collegue recomended the Atheneum Suites which are just a few minutes away. I reserved a room at $140 which seemed to be a decent deal on a crowded week in Detroit. While this hotel is rated 4 stars it definitely had it's problems. Excuse the dated analogy here, but I almost felt like I arrived in the alternate reality from "Back to the Future" where Biff runs the town from a Casino. Here is the good, bad and ugly.

The Good:

Interesting lobby

Massive suite rooms (easily 2x the size of Marriot)

Great bathroom

Friendly staff

Reasonable price

Well stocked mini-bar

The Bad:

Arrived to find the clock in the room set one hour late (dangerous)

Ethernet port was 20 feet from the desk.

Overlooking lame Detroit casino and strip club (I'm sure the laidies were world class)

For some reason it took me 15 minutes to find their website on Yahoo. (Even with such a unique name)

Sat on hold for 10 minutes whenever I called

The Ugly:

Decor needs work.

Glass blocks in the shower are so 1992!

Verdict: Stick with Marriot Renaissance Center

Unless you gamble a lot or feel the need for wide open space in your room.

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