Janice T.
Yelp
An unexpected lovely staycation. I was able to experience a one night stay via a hotel rewards certificate. Cristina was incredibly friendly & helpful at check-in & throughout the stay. Upon arrival I was warmly and energetically greeted with a smile and enthusiasm. She asked a few friendly questions and informed me of the hours of the glass gallery, restaurant, parking and other pertinent hotel info. As a Bonvoy Elite member, she was able to provide me with an upgraded room with a view of the USS Wisconsin & river view. She even followed up with a phone call to check up on the status of our room.
The room was super spacious, with plenty of natural light from the two windows. As the evening drew to a close I was able to witness the beautiful hues of purple,blue and orange sunset and the lights from the USS Wisconsin.
I had a two queen bed room and the comforters and bed were as soft and comfortable with many pillows and simple but clean lines. The room was very nicely and elegantly decorated without being ornate. The frosted armoire with the soft close drawers and nice robe gave the room a homey feel. I appreciated the separate hallway leading to the bathroom. I was extremely fascinated with the cool looking sink located outside the bathroom! The sink bowl lit up and had a sensor. The bathroom itself was very spacious as well with subway tiling with a classic look. I especially appreciated the commode not being literally next to the shower. The shower was huge with a rainfall shower head and a shower wand with controls. The toiletries, all high end. It was extremely nice and helpful to have a square table with three shelves next to the shower to place my clean clothes and towel on before entering the shower.
Most importantly, the AC was AWESOME!! If you can't make your room feel like Antarctica temperature wise, it drops the stars down for me, regarding hotels. I need to sleep with the room super cold and then bundle up under a nice fluffy comforter. Sounds crazy, but that's how my body works. I actually had to turn up the temperature some because it got so cold. We utilized the coffee maker and the illy coffee was grand! The retro mini Frigidaire kept the drinks extremely cold. LOVE IT!!
Sadly, my husband wasn't able to join me on this staycation, so my sister was able to share in the experience of the beauty of this hotel. Sister time it was!
We explored every floor of the hotel to see the different glass work on each floor and to check out the fitness room which is quite extensive with free weights, circuit weights and cardio equipment. Each floor contains an OASIS, which provides complimentary fruit, like apples and bananas and bottled water. We were able to check out more glass work displayed near the conference rooms one level up from the lobby. These were quite impressive. Once we went to the lobby we headed to the Glass Gallery that has two floors with even more interesting and impressive pieces. You have to see it in person to believe it! I'm not talking about vases, but full glass sculptures by world renowned artists from Holland, Czech Republic etc. I took so many pics and videos I ran out of space! The Glass Gallery is quite the treat! They have a small card you can scan to learn more about the pieces. I actually ended up finding the book that was for sale in my room and read through some of it, learning about the artists. It was pretty cool. The hotel itself is located in the historic Royster building and they managed to maintain some of its original charm with the stairwells and old school mailbox and chutes and exposed brick.
I know there are lots of options off Granby street to dine, but we decided to check out the food fare in the hotel restaurant. While the menu is limited, the food is very tasty and exquisite, but also with a high price tag. The restaurant was nice to experience at least ONCE, but if you want to dine for less there are plenty of other options within short walking distance. Speaking of distance, this boutique hotel is centrally located from lots of restaurants, shops, the mall, the Norva, the Wells Theatre, the Half Moon Cruise Port, Waterside, if you're from out of town. I would highly recommend staying here whether you're from out of town or a local looking for a staycation, for its beauty, charm, cleanliness, but most of all its staff with their excellent customer service, including their restaurant staff. They truly know how to make guests feel welcomed.
*Parking is next to the hotel but is $19 for unlimited in and out privileges per day, but you must bring your parking ticket to the front desk to have it validated and scanned. Thank you Glass Light Hotel for a phenomenal stay!