Carrie C.
Yelp
Booked this hotel because of the 2 king beds vs 2 queens at other hotels and proximity to downtown/Riverfront Park.
The good: love the king beds, location, 4-star feel, height/city view, the gym here is the best hotel gym ever, option to valet park, room size is great, free water in the room, lots of restaurants within walking distance, easy access to food options within the hotel and walking. When I looked on a map I saw everything I wanted was walking distance but when I arrived it's CLOSER than expected, so that's fantastic! Riverfront Park is across the street! Nordstrom (other end of town) easy to walk!! Downtown is much smaller than expected, so location here is prime!! Staff here is wonderful! 5-star service all around from every encounter. When I say the gym is the best ever, I've stayed at a lot of hotels with gyms and this is one of the best!! (My other favorites are in Dallas and Vegas). I didn't expect as much, as this is a smaller city, but the WOW on the hotel gym is outstanding!! Having 2 King-size beds for a "standard queen" is also another WOW. Zero complaints from my 2 teens and that's speaking volumes!!
Tip: you can self-park in the garage, but for the extra $10 for insurance, the hotel lobby recommended using valet as it's fully-secured parking. I was worried about car theft, and I'd rather pay the extra $10 over the $22-day rate to have my car windows not broken! This is a city, and like most cities there's a homeless problem and car theft is real.
The bad: what's up with the floor to ceiling mirrors behind the beds? The hotel photos didn't show this and I thought the reviews from others were off, but unless you're a swinger, I don't understand WHY. Traveling as a family of 4, it's weird AF. The hotel photos show tubs, there's no bathtub in our double-Kong room and without a pool or hot tub, we were looking forward to a bubble bath with the bougie-soft hotel robes!! Nope! No tub here! The A/C is LOUD. I'd read other reviews on this and wondered, "How bad could that be?" But it sounds like a running-engine car is in your room, to give you an idea. We have A/C in our home, I wouldn't want that machine next to my bed at home either, so I'd forgotten how loud a single unit can be! With 100° temps outside, it's great having a cool room to sleep in, but these machines are old to be as loud as they are!! Upgraded units are much quieter. If you're used to sleeping in dead-quiet, the A/C running will be noisy! If you're used to city-noise, you probably won't even care! The bed mattresses need upgrading, as you can feel the body-mark and the middle of the bed is warped with a hump, to give you an idea of wear. I've traveled a ton and I'm super picky about bed comfort, so I expected better for a 4-star Marriott hotel. I love Marriott's beds, but this room (1226) seemed like it's beyond time for a mattress upgrade.
I'm not going to include my review of the restaurants in here as this review is of the hotel itself.
I made my booking at the last minute after weeks of debating where to stay. Tons of friends recommend the Davenport Hotel and there's a few lines of Davenport Hotels to choose from. TIP: I watched prices drop and found booking last minute deals on the hotel direct site was better priced and had food options (breakfast) for reduced rates too.
I noticed all of the fees ($22 for parking, extra for breakfast) and loved the idea of 2-kings in an otherwise 2-Queen room. (My teens appreciated that more than a hotel pool). After reading all of the reviews we decided this hotel would fit and it has! We requested higher floor and extra towels in our room and those requests were acknowledged. Overall, really great stay and I'd recommend the Davenport Grand for the King-size beds, prime location, and great customer service. Bed comfort was 3.5/5 and noisy A/C was a 2/5. Parking secure option is 5/5, location 5/5, service 5/5, decor 4/5 (take out the mirrors behind the beds for "family friendly" unless you're catering to swingers), otherwise, decor is great. Restaurants are 5/5 for good and service. Staff, including restaurants and housekeeping: 5/5! They are fantastic people!!