19103 Travel Guide
Tags: Hotel Openings / Philadelphia Hotels / Kimpton Hotels / → All Tags
Philly’s Hotel Palomar Opens This Thursday
While we wait patiently for a slew of hot new hotels to open in New York City, there is movement over in Philly, with the opening of the city’s first Kimpton property, the Hotel Palomar, this Thursday.
And we’re not the only ones excited about the opening. Just ask Ed Grose of the Greater Philadelphia Hotel Association. He told the Philadelphia Inquirer yesterday:
“Having a property like Palomar by Kimpton come to Philadelphia confirms that we have made it as a city.”
Tags: Hotel Openings / Kimpton Hotels / Philadelphia Hotels / Hotel Opening Rates / → All Tags
Hotel Palomar Philadelphia to Open October 15th
In a move that makes us happy (hard to do on the day after a three-day weekend marking the end of summer), we've just heard that Kimpton Hotels will open their Hotel Palomar Philadelphia on October 15 in the City of Brotherly Love's Rittenhouse Square neighborhood.
Not only will the Palomar be the first Kimpton in Philly, but also the first Kimpton to receive LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) certification from the U.S. Green Building Council.
By the looks of the room renderings we’ve seen so far, the décor will reflect the property’s green cred. The exterior looks pretty exciting too: the hotel is situated in the landmark Architects Building, built in 1929, and known as one of the city’s best examples of Art Deco architecture.
Tags: Celebrity Scoop / Hotel News / Jamie Foxx / AKA Hotels / → All Tags
Jamie Foxx Has a Security Issue at AKA Philly
We joke about stalking celebs 'round here quite a bit — but we promise we'd, like, never actually go stalk them. We're not nutjobs. Poor Jamie Foxx got quite a scare earlier this month when a stalker made his way into the actor's room at the luxury extended-stay AKA Rittenhouse Square in Philadelphia.
It all went down at the AKA Hotel in Philadelphia on March 22 -- sources say Jamie had to physically struggle to shove a 49-year-old perp out of his room, after the guy tricked Foxx into thinking he was Beyonce's producer.
We're told Jamie realized something was wrong as soon as he opened the door, but the suspect quickly tried to push his way inside. Fortunately, Jamie overpowered him and slammed the door in his face.
Ew. Who let that guy in, anyway? Hotel security, where were you on that one?
In other news, we have finally heard of someone who has stayed at an AKA Hotel. We'd contact him to see what he thought of the place, but, you know, maybe something sorta tainted the whole stay for him.
Tags: Hotel Hell / Hotel Technology / Sheraton Hotels / Snapshot / → All Tags
Sheraton Philly Forces Guest To Charge Laptop in Bathroom
On any given trip, how many gadgets do you travel with? We'd be willing to bet you've at least got a cell phone every time, a laptop some of the time, perhaps an iPod, a curling iron, an electric shaver or even a little personal DVD player if you're into that sort of thing, right? And in your hotel, you'd probably be in need of an outlet or two to plug in said gadgets or at least recharge them overnight, correct? Correct.
And haven't we all been in hotel situations where we've had to crawl under desks or bedside tables or unplug lamps because of a shortage of outlet options or an illogically placed, inconveniently-located socket? It's the worst. You'd think your traveler-of-2009 needs would be considered when hotel rooms are being built or renovated these days — but, miraculously, sometimes they're not.
The next time you're crawling under your desk to plug in your laptop, just remember this photo and remind yourself that it could be worse: you could be faced with no outlets and all — and left with no choice but to plug your stuff into the bathroom wall.
This was posted to Flickr by cubemate, who seemed to have no other outlets in his hotel room at the Sheraton Philadelphia (tags for this shot included "rundown," "atrophy," "missing," and "smell.") He adds:
It was the "3V" floor. If someone of ill repute were to show up smelling of vice, vomit and vermin, I imagine this is where you would put them.
Wow, seriously? Looks like someone might need a renovation soon.
[Photo: Cubemate]
Tags: Philadelphia Hotels / B&Bs / Hotels Under $200 / → All Tags
Who Knew? A Small Four-Room B&B in the Middle of Philly for Under $200 a Night
There may be nothing worse than finding a hotel that looks amazing online, but when you go to vet that amazingness through past guest reviews, you find zilch. We don't mean you find zero people who have nothing nice to say; instead, you find no one has said anything at all. Which is the case with Philadelphia's Lippincott House.
The bed and breakfast is one block from Rittenhouse Square, which--as anyone who's been to Philadelphia knows--is the place to bunk in Philly, either for the night or permanently, thanks to the area's many Victorian mansions.
The Lippincott House was constructed in 1897 and only has four rooms, some with fireplaces and all with individual bathrooms and WiFi, starting at $175 per night. The property also has a banquet room, games room and theater-style media room. Each afternoon between 5 p.m. and 7 p.m., the place serves up complimentary soft drinks and cheese.
Sounds great, right? Expect that the absence of reviews on this place have us wondering if it's some sort of metropolitan mirage.
Surely someone who has stayed there has something to say. If that's you, please tell us!
Tags: Philadelphia Hotels / Hotel Contests / → All Tags
Win Two Nights at Philly's Rittenhouse
The History Channel recently rolled out a contest offering the grand prize of a two-night stay at The Rittenhouse Hotel, one of Philadelphia's schwankiest hotels.
The contest ends on July 11, with the winner notified around July 14.
This is a good deal since the hotel has garnered all kinds of awards, including kudos from travel mags Travel + Leisure and Conde Nast Traveler.
And the location is right in the heart of the city center. Rittenhouse Square is in a sense its own destination, with shopping, galleries, music, and serious restaurants. It also has history -- it's one of the five original squares designed by William Penn, the state's founding father.
Plus it's a five-minute walk from Amtrak's 30th Street Station, and just under a half hour from Philly International Airport.
Not to mention the room rates start at $260 a night for a standard room, so you definitely can't beat the price -- FREE! Try your hand at winning here. Add it to your favorites, since you can enter once a day between now and 7-11.
Looking for something a little more exotic? Enter the Layover Nation Contest here.
Tags: Philadelphia Hotels / Hotel Opening Rates / Hotel Openings / Hotel News / → All Tags
Philadelphia's Independent Hotel Opens Just in Time for Independence Day
Just in time for the Fourth of July, Philly's Independent Hotel opened its doors on Thursday -- which has nothing to do with Independence Day, really, but the timing is good.
The 24-room boutique property -- which used to be the Inn at Locust -- is located in Midtown Village and features a three-story mural of Independence Hall done by a local artist.
Philly's uwishunu blog has a few more details:
Guest rooms feature hardwood floors with New Zealand Wool area rugs, custom window treatments, Robert Allen custom bedding and Serta Presidential mattresses. Each room include=s a variety of unique features such as fireplaces, exposed brick walls, cathedral ceilings, French windows or loft bedrooms.
The hotel is also serving free breakfasts every morning and hosting a free wine and cheese happy hour once a week (how Kimpton-like!)
We found out via the Independent's very own blog that they're really getting into the Independence Day spirit: for July 4th weekend, the hotel is offering a special rate of $139 per night (!); reservations can be made here.
Tags: Hotel Restaurants / Philadelphia Hotels / Westin Hotels / → All Tags
Mixed Reviews: Westin Philadelphia's City Grange Restaurant
While we wait patiently for Stephen Starr's new project, the Philly hotel restaurant scene is offering up something to tide us over. The Westin Philadelphia recently opened City Grange, with its locally sourced menu and New American cuisine. (How many times will we hear "local-and-organic" this year?)
But when it comes to hotel restaurants, says a reviewer at Philadelphia's City Paper, it's a trend worth following:
Hotel dining can get pretty generic, so it's good to give visitors a taste of aged Pennsylvania cheddar and chickens from Lancaster. I brought along a California martini fiend who was happy to discover Philly's own Bluecoat gin.
We love sampling the local specialties wherever we wake up. But the cooking's got to be up to snuff, and the early reviews of City Grange are mixed. Sounds like a tune-up is in order before the Westin's restaurant becomes Pennsylvania's locally sourced standard bearer.
[Photo: Ryan Charles]
Related Stories:
· City Grange [Official Site]
· Grange Days [City Paper]
· Hotel Restaurants coverage [HotelChatter]
Tags: Sofitel Hotels / → All Tags
The Sofitel Philly Might Just Be as Good as People Say It Is
According to the city's tourism bureau, "Philly is more fun when you sleep there". We know this, of course, from the dozens of billboard advertisements around New York and other east coast cities. Luckily, we can vouch for the legitimacy of this statement having spent many nights enjoying good ole fun in the City of Brotherly Love. And Oscar De La Hoya totally knows what we are talking about.
So, if you're going to take the plunge and spend the night, and are not lucky enough to have friends that owe you one, than you will need a place to stay that is convenient, reasonably priced and can provide a little luxury.
The number one hotel choice for Philadelphia on Trip Advisor is the Sofitel Intrigued by this pick we decided to investigate since we all know how off the mark TA rankings can be.
While the Sofitel's location, just two blocks from Rittenhouse Square, is definitely a pretty part of town, those looking for rocking nightlife might be slightly disappointed by it's proximity to the clubs, which tend to be a bit further south. But, since not everyone is a night owl we won't discriminate.
Next, what's the damage? TripAdvisor lists the rack rate as $262, but we are pretty sure you can do better than that looking on Hotwire. Judging from reviews and experience an off-season price of around $150 is a reality.
Lastly, the hotel's American contemporary décor is likely to cater to most peoples' tastes. It's classy, but not overstated and it really feels like a touch of the luxe life. So, unlike Westchester, Philly is more fun when you sleep there, and even more fun at the Sofitel.
[Photo: Sarahlou82]
Related Stories:
· Oscar De La Hoya's Kinky Photoshoot at the Ritz-Carlton Philly [HotelChatter]
· Hotels in Philadelphia [HotelChatter]
· Sofitel Philadelphia reviews [TripAdvisor]
Tags: Philadelphia Hotels / Hotel Art / Westin Hotels / Snapshots / → All Tags
Snapshot: The Uwishunu Room at the Westin Philadelphia
The Westin Philadelphia underwent a major room renovation using close to 30 Philadelphia artists, designers, savoniers, sculptors, furniture designers, and photographers. But it was only for one room--Room 414.
The hotel asked local artists to come in and redesign a room that was all about Philadelphia. The effort is part of uwishunu, the Philly insider's blog which sort of doubles as a hip interactive tourism campaign for the city. And indeed, it's run by the Greater Philadelphia Tourism Marketing Corporation.
They had already created a "Live like a Local" hotel package but decided to go one step further and create a uwishunu hotel room. Luckily, the Westin Philly was happy to participate. Anyone can book the room but there's no option on the hotel website for this room so it's probably best to call in person: (215) 563-1600.
Thanks Caroline!
Related Stories:
· It's a Hotel Room Makeover, uwishunu-style [uwishunu]
Tags: Green Hotels / Four Seasons Hotels / Philadelphia Hotel Reviews / → All Tags
Four Seasons Philadelphia Gets Greener and We Don't Mean Richer
Perhaps bored with the usual hotel green policies like the note cards to remind you to keep your electricity and water use down and those that encourage you not to ask for new towels or linens, a hotel in Philadelphia is taking a different route in being green--composting.
The Four Seasons Philadelphia takes all leftovers to Pennsylvania farmer Ned Foley who turns it into compost.
In a waste audit of the Four Seasons last year, [a consultant] found that the hotel was doing a good job of recycling paper, cardboard, bottles and cans. But that amounted to only 3 percent to 5 percent of its waste by weight, because so much of what was going into the trash bin was heavy food.
The Four Seasons started working with Foley in February and diverted 10,000 pounds of kitchen waste from the landfill for the month. Based on that, [it's] estimated that the hotel's recycling rate for the year would be in the 30 percent to 35 percent range, and would save $15,000 to $20,000 in dumping fees.
Even better the Four Seasons agreed to take some of Foley's compost and use it in their flower beds and herb gardens. Not that we like to get all soft about the Four Seasons (their Hotel WiFi policy is horrible) but being green is just one way into our hearts.
Related Stories:
· Hotel table scraps turned into compost [Cumberlink via Philly Inquirer]
Tags: Anti-View / → All Tags
Room with an Anti-View: Club Quarters Philly
You know the scene. You open the door to your brand new hotel room, run over to the window, open the blinds and bam, you are hit with the anti-view. Maybe you are looking down a dirty alley, witnessing a drug deal, staring at an air shaft in the face, or seeing a brick wall. Whatever you are viewing it is not extremely pleasurable. Help out your fellow hotel mavens by uploading your anti-views to the HotelChatter/Flickr photo pool, or by sending the photo along to us. Remember to tell us the name of the hotel and the room number with the not-so-easy-on-the-eyes view.
Hotels in Philadelphia seem to do very little to make us want to visit there. Yes, we know its the birthplace of our country, and there's all sorts of history there like Ben Franklin, Liberty Bell, Rocky, blah, blah, blah. But there isn't one hotel in the city that we are dying to check-into. And Club Quarters is one of these offending hotels.
We know the hotel is small and that not every room can have a window but must they really throw it in your face with curtains and a chair next to the wall?
What's worse is this is sort of a club members only kind of hotel for business travelers and their family and friends. So you or your company have to belong to the group to get this hotel "view."
Related Stories:
· Club Quarters reviews [TripAdvisor]
· Kyrion Photostream [Flickr]
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