Renata Pinheiro
Google
It's not fair to call this place a “hotel”. Forget the impersonal, standardized comfort of the best hotels. Here, you're transported back in time and want to stay forever. It's like the home of a very rich and kind friend. This gem makes you feel like you're in a Jane Austen book, but with all the comforts of today. The Inn on Negley is beautiful! Think Persian rugs, oil paintings, delicate china, solid wood furniture, crystal chandeliers, canopy beds, different decor in each of the eight rooms charmingly named after apples. Look at the photos on the website: they're real. Add new, fresh-smelling bed linen, a pillow menu, soft towels, fluffy bathrobes, slippers and L'Occitane toiletries. Add impeccable maintenance: perfect cleanliness, new paintwork, no peeling, no mold (not even on the shower curtain). What's more, breakfast is freshly made to order (forget that giant buffet full of fattening, bland things): everything is very delicate, decorated with flowers, warm muffins that melt in your mouth; afternoon tea with free cookies for guests, and special afternoon tea (paid separately) for guests and/or anybody who wants to come. All done in an impeccably clean kitchen (yes, I went to check the kitchen). And the icing on the cake: the extremely friendly and helpful staff. It was hard to leave after a perfect week.
For us, the location was excellent, because our goal was to visit Carnegie Mellon and Pitt universities, which are very close (you can walk there). The Shadyshide neighborhood is well served by shops and restaurants, all close to the hotel. It's very safe, so you can walk around even at night (important information for our Brazilian fellows).
Finally, I need to mention a few details that may bother some people: 1) the rooms don't have a minibar (we didn't feel the need); 2) the internet wasn't very good, at various times I had to dock my cell phone to work on the computer (I think it was a one-off problem that they were solving); 3) the Inn on Negley is in a beautiful late 19th century house, without an elevator. The rooms are on the ground floor, first floor and second floor. Ours was on the second floor (Empire suite). We had to climb two flights of stairs to get there. If you have mobility problems or are traveling with a lot of luggage, ask for a suite on the ground floor.
In conclusion: can I give this wonderful place more than five stars? I want to go back!!!! The bar has been raised. I won't stay anywhere else when I go back to Pittsburgh!