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KC's Hotel Phillips Semi-Unwillingly Makes An Appearance in 'Bruno'

Where: 106 W 12th St [map], Kansas City, MO, United States, 64105

Ha! Kansas City's Hotel Phillips is a movie set hotel now. Kinda involuntary. And they're pretty pissed about it.

According to the Kansas City Star, the hotel is a pretty significant part of a scene about halfway through Sacha Baron Cohen's (yes, the Borat dude) Bruno — and the staffers at the Phillips are notsohappy about it, because they "signed a waiver under false pretenses."

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Tags: hotel news / Kansas City hotels / new hotels / → All Tags

HotelChatter Reports :: Hilton Makes Good on the New (Old) President Hotel

Where: 1329 Baltimore [map], Kansas City, MO, United States, 64105

[Fearless Hotel Maven Tim Leffel spends some time in Kansas City, checking out the rebirth of a roaring 20s hotel.]

We love to see an old hotel come back to life, especially when the developer manages to preserve what's great about the original structure, while bringing the rooms up to what we expect in the 21st century.

Kansas City's newest hotel, Hilton President Hotel gets it right. The elegant 1926-era lobby is full of gilded columns, carved cornices, and well, personality. Iron railings and marble extend up to the mezzanine and the refreshingly quirky meeting rooms have original flooring and replica chandeliers.

The rooms are all Hilton modern, so no sacrifices come bedtime. The original room count of 453 was cut down to 213 for the new version, but with fake doors in the hallway showing where all the original rooms were. (To give an idea of how guest expectations have changed, the original President hotel was the first in the city to be able to make ice!)

More on the New (Old) President Hotel post-click.

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Living Large at Hotel Phillips

Where: 106 w 12th street [map], Kansas City, MO, United States, 64105

The hotel rate disparity between large coastal cities and the U.S. heartland is a thing of wonder. At Hotel Phillips in downtown Kansas City, "worlds of fun" come cheap.

This is one of those boutique hotels that makes you repeatedly rub your eyes in disbelief. First when you see the lobby and your room, then again when you see the oh-so-small bill when you check out.

The art-deco hotel managed to survive decades of urban renewal and offers one of the best values anywhere, despite a AAA 4-diamond award and enticing rooms.

Now that summer is here, it's time to cut loose, grab some cotton candy and corn dogs for their "Worlds of Fun" package. For $179 you get not only a stylish room with character, but two all-day tickets to the local amusement park, complete with a few gut-wrenching roller coasters.

Screams of joy by day, refined luxury after. Not bad for less than two hundred bucks a night.

And remember you're not in Kansas anymore because this Kansas City is actually in Missouri.

Image via Scutter/Flickr

Related Stories:
· Hotel Phillips reviews [TripAdvisor]