Back for another trip to PDX and another Kimpton. Again, Kimpton pulls through with a great stay.

Location: Sort of a pain to get to via TriMet. There are two changes and a bit of waiting for the next train. A better idea is to get off the PDX train at the Saturday market and walk along the waterfront for 10 or so minutes and arrive by foot. Dragging luggage through a section near the hotel might be a pain but going back to the airport that way seemed a lot faster. The hotel is right on the water and has some neat views. The dragon boat folks can be watched warming up outside the breakfast area. There is also a waterfront with a few stores. They looked pricey (?) and weren't open Sunday morning. All of this being said, the hotel seemed a bit isolated on a Saturday night. Not a bad thing, but not much right at/around the hotel. Albeit, it's only a short walk back to "town."

Check in: As usual, a professional and courteous agent. Nothing new here - the Kimpton desk agents all seem to either be much nicer than the typical hotel staff or Kimpton has a much better training program.

Room: A nice suite. Small-ish comfortable bedroom with a big bed, and a big bathroom. The living room area was much larger which I liked since I spend most of my time when at the hotel in the living room. Table, couch, TV - check, check, and check. There was no outside noise and this is probably due to the location.

Amenities: Everything was there again. That makes it 2 for 2 in PDX. I am hoping this isn't a PDX thing since I am not heading back until October and I would like to see a Cornas show up at my next Kimpton stays.

Restaurant/bar: Had a good IPA at the bar. The bartender was ok - I didn't spend much time at the bar so this is really a N/A type of comment. Breakfast on the other I did sit and enjoy. Pancakes with some sort of maple/ginger syrup. That was really good! There is also coffee/tea in the lobby. I noticed this at check out so I guess it might be up for a while in the morning. To-go cups too so that made the walk to the Saturday market better

Check out: See Check in. The usual professional Kimpton service.

Another Kimpton to add to return to hotel list.

Side note: I'm new to Kimpton and I have really liked my stays so far. Only one of them even dropped into the just OK stay - still good but ok relative to my other Kimpton stays. I am a 1) Hilton Diamond, 2) Hyatt Diamond and 3) SPG Platinum but outside of a few hit and miss hotels (and I do return to these hotels because of the service, e.g, Hilton Munich City) and the entire Park Hyatt group, Kimpton service is just better than at these chains. I know it is a boutique and that it typically costs more, but I am willing to pay a premium - and it isn't really a huge premium - for the better service. It's not just a little better, it's magnitudes better. Did I drink the Kimpton Kool Aid - you betcha. The difference is that Kimpton served it at breakfast for free with a box of voodoo donuts and a smile. Plus, at check out, the desk agent asked if I liked the flavor and made note of my request for Purplesaurus Rex on my next stay.

/off soapbox

Cheers -