Wanderer22

Kimpton Palomar Philadelphia

What is your Rewards Club status? Spire Elite, Ambassador and Inner Circle

Were you (or for multi-stayers are you generally) happy with the hotel/stay? Yes (and I've stayed there many times)

Which room did you book and which upgrade did you receive? Booked Cityview King Spa, upgraded to One Bedroom Suite

How are the rooms? The spa rooms and suites have a great Fuji jetted tub as well as shower. The rooms are typical Kimpton - fun touches. The suite had a good living room, but bedroom seemed a bit small with the king bed, two nightstands and the dresser/minibar

[if you are Spire]
How was your complimentary welcome amenity? A bottle of white wine, chocolate covered pretzels, Werther's originals and cheese/fruit plate

Did you raid the minibar? If so, what did you take? Didn't raid the minibar this time

Were you offered a Chef's Taste at Dinner, If so, what did you receive? N/A

Did you use the free spa credit / did the hotel participate? If so, was it a good value? N/A

What was good and what was bad? Wine hour has great truffle popcorn. Staff is fantastic and friendly. Can be a bit noisy in the area.

Value for $ or Priority Club Points? Would you return? It's reasonable most of the time but can get a bit too expensive. Yes, I'll return.

Wanderer22

Kimpton Hotel Eventi (NYC)

What is your Rewards Club status? Spire Elite, Ambassador and Inner Circle

Were you (or for multi-stayers are you generally) happy with the hotel/stay? Yes (and I've stayed there many times)

Which room did you book and which upgrade did you receive? Booked Cityview Deluxe King. No upgrade as hotel was full.

How are the rooms? Well laid out, floor to ceiling windows. Good sized bathroom. Bed a bit low to the ground.

[if you are Spire]
How was your complimentary welcome amenity? Bottle of white wine, bottle of sparkling water, bottle of still water and box of truffles.

Did you raid the minibar? If so, what did you take? Took tonic water and airplane bottle of vodka

Were you offered a Chef's Taste at Dinner, If so, what did you receive? N/A

Did you use the free spa credit / did the hotel participate? If so, was it a good value? N/A

What was good and what was bad? Front desk can be good/bad. Have had both experiences. They forgot the feather-free this time (allergic to feathers). Housekeeping was right up to fix the issue. Enjoying the desk area as I type this. Close to subway, PATH, LIRR and Amtrak.

Value for $ or Priority Club Points? Would you return? Decent value for NYC and neighborhood. Will return.

FlyinHawaiian

Kimpton Everly Hotel (Hollywood, CA)

What is your Rewards Club status? Spire Elite, Ambassador, and Inner Circle

Were you (or for multi-stayers are you generally) happy with the hotel/stay? Yes (I made it a point to stay here over the other Kimptons in Los Angeles)

Which room did you book and which upgrade did you receive? Points award stay for Spa King; upgraded to an Everly Suite on the 14th Floor.

How are the rooms? An Everly Suite is on the corner of the hotel facing the 101 with great views of the Hollywood sign and the Griffiths Park Observatory. Suite is very spacious with a large soaking tub and shower area.

[if you are Spire]
How was your complimentary welcome amenity? I didn't make a request in advance. Received two bottles of water, two bottles of Diet Coke, a fruit, cheese, and deli plate, cookies, and a mini bottle of red wine.

Did you raid the minibar? If so, what did you take? $11 locally-made chocolate bar for my wife at home.

Were you offered a Chef's Taste at Dinner, If so, what did you receive? N/A

Did you use the free spa credit / did the hotel participate? If so, was it a good value? N/A

What was good and what was bad? Friendly staff who welcomed me back as a returning guest, great upgrade for a points stay. Somewhat congested valet parking area.

Value for $ or Priority Club Points? Would you return? The LaPeer might be nicer overall, but I love the location of The Everly and proximity to the 101.

mpw81

Hotel Born - Denver

What is your Rewards Club status? Spire Ambassador, I think. The website still lists me as Inner Circle as well, but I highly doubt i requalified. Either way, my Kimpton stays since the IT transition last year, even when I had IC, it went unrecognized.

Were you (or for multi-stayers are you generally) happy with the hotel/stay? Yes, very

Which room did you book and which upgrade did you receive? King Deluxe (lowest) on points, morning of stay. Within 2-3 hours of booking my reservation changed to an Alpine King spa, which is the top room below the suites.

How are the rooms? Fantastic. Stayed here 2 years ago, right after opening. We are pretty sure it was the exact same room. If it wasn't, we were just a floor up or down. They don't feel like they've aged a bit. Big, nice views .

[If you are Spire and Inner Cricle]
How was your complimentary welcome amenity? Didn't get one. See above.

Did you raid the minibar? If so, what did you take? Single Coors banquet.

Were you offered a Chef's Taste at Dinner, If so, what did you receive? forgot to ask.

Did you use the free spa credit / did the hotel participate? If so, was it a good value? Nope

What was good and what was bad?

Location is about as good as it gets downtown. We took the train to the airport the morning we left. The hotel is at the end of the platform. Very quiet for a downtown hotel.

Great staff. Wine hour included red/white, 2 local beers and spiked hot cider.

Bartenders at citezen rail were top notch.

No bad, except that I'm convinced IC status is dead .Boy do I miss it.

Value for $ or Priority Club Points? Would you return? Big upgrade on an award stay?? Check. I think we went through a bottle of wine at happy hour and got another for the social password. Add the raid the bar and we probably got $30 worth of value just from free stuff. Love this hotel, location, and the design. Look forward to coming back.

Side note: we live less than 5 miles away .We use this hotel for date nights downtown or as an alternative to staying at the Westin for next day flights due to the convenience of the train.

bimmerfreak0

Kimpton Cardinal - Winston-Salem, NC

What is your Rewards Club status? Spire Elite and Inner Circle

Were you (or for multi-stayers are you generally) happy with the hotel/stay? Yes (and I've stayed there many times)

Which room did you book and which upgrade did you receive? Booked base room double queen on gov't rate ($110 after taxes) and received a suite upgrade.

How are the rooms? Well laid out, very tall ceilings. Bathroom is huge. Tub integrated with shower but looked amazing. Something out of a catalog. Wish the TV's were bigger. I think they were 43" TV's.

[if you are Spire]
How was your complimentary welcome amenity? They missed the mark this time. I asked for ginger beer (which is really easy to find anywhere honestly). I received some nasty Indian Tonic Water and Perrier sparkling water, neither of which I drink. I also received an assorted plate of cheeses and meats which was welcomed.

Did you raid the minibar? If so, what did you take? I took two soda's and small water.

Were you offered a Chef's Taste at Dinner, If so, what did you receive? Both my wife and me received a tasting...some kind of pork fat, pickled radish thingy that, while small, was delicious.

Did you use the free spa credit / did the hotel participate? If so, was it a good value? N/A

What was good and what was bad? Valet drop off is awkward given that the hotel is corner lot. Fortunately Winston-Salem is never too busy. Front desk staff is always amazing. They have a bowling alley. A full fledged double lane professional bowling alley. Need I say more?

Value for $ or Priority Club Points? Would you return? Poor value on points at 40-50k but for a paid stay I think it's one of the best in the system. Highly recommended.

Points Scrounger

Kimpton Vintage - Seattle

What is your Rewards Club status? Spire

Were you (or for multi-stayers are you generally) happy with the hotel/stay? Yes

Which room did you book and which upgrade did you receive? Standard award stay, upgraded to Premium room (not a suite)

How are the rooms? Room was fine - quiet with heat working well on a cold night, hot water very fast to appear, pressure okay. No coffee pot or kettle. Told at checkout they are available on request.

Did you raid the minibar? I used the $10 towards the restaurant tab

What was good and what was bad? Not sure whether they upgrade non-Inner Circle to suites ever, or if they were just booked for that night? Negative would be the reception wine - bottom shelf red and white, ugh.
Positive would be the room itself and staff. Food and drinks at dinner were quite good. Manager knew that I had no car for parking fees, and planned to dine there, so gave me a $25 restaurant voucher for the password right away.

Value for $ or Priority Club Points? Would you return? Yes, I would. Worth 40K net points, after 20% rebate for cc and Amb status.
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Wanderer22

Kimpton Muse (NYC)

What is your Rewards Club status? Spire Elite, Ambassador and Inner Circle

Were you (or for multi-stayers are you generally) happy with the hotel/stay? Average (and I've stayed there many times)

Which room did you book and which upgrade did you receive? Booked King Premier. Upgraded to Executive King Suite.

How are the rooms? Room is awkward - bathroom and bedroom at opposite ends. Only windows in bedroom. Temperature hard to control - there is one thermostat in the living room but the vent is in the bedroom. Double sink bathroom-shower has rain head and hand held. Closet seems set up for handicapped access (my coat crumples on the floor) but nothing else in room is accessible. Drawers and mini-bar in living room.

[if you are Spire]
How was your complimentary welcome amenity? Half-Bottle of white wine, cheese & fruit plate, red velvet cupcakes.

Did you raid the minibar? If so, what did you take? Nothing yet - probably vodka and club soda

Were you offered a Chef's Taste at Dinner, If so, what did you receive? N/A (Restaurant currently closed for renovations - they are serving breakfast only downstairs in banquet room)

Did you use the free spa credit / did the hotel participate? If so, was it a good value? N/A

What was good and what was bad? They did set up feather-free ahead of time. Front desk was very friendly at check-in. They will be doing renovations to lobby floor and basement floor to change restaurant, add area downstairs for wine hour and expand gym. Not sure how long renovations will last.

Value for $ or Priority Club Points? Would you return? A bit on the high side but this weekend and next can be high in NYC. I'm sure I will return.

GetSetJetSet

What is your Rewards Club status?
Spire Elite Inner Circle

Were you (or for multi-stayers are you generally) happy with the hotel/stay?
No, would absolutely not return.

Which room did you book and which upgrade did you receive?
Booked a City View King. When I arrived and tried to check in (2:45pm), I was told they would take my phone # and call me when a room was ready. I was also told (after asking) that they would “try” to upgrade me, but that nothing in a higher class was available at the moment. I told the check in girl that 10am check-in and an upgrade are guaranteed and not "if available" at Kimptons for Inner Circle members. She told me I was wrong. I said OK, and adjourned to a lobby sofa and called the Inner Circle VIP line. They confirmed that I was correct and said they would call the manager and sort it out. 10-15 minutes later, a guy walked over and handed me a room key. No explanation or apology.

How are the rooms?
Tired, dirty and a bit ratty. They look like they badly need to replace the scuffed and dirty furniture. After the nonsense at check in, I was upgraded to a suite. The Suite was a decent size.

[If you are Spire]
How was your complimentary welcome amenity?
I didn’t receive one. In fact, I was not offered the Spire check-in amenity. I was not offered the spa credit. I was not offered the Inner Circle amenity, and there was no bottled water in my room. Forget any chance of them honoring any of the preferences in my profile. After another call to the Inner Circle line, they belatedly sent up spa certs and a plate of chips which I guess counts as their inner circle amenity (?) with a bottle of water. I still don't think I received the additional points as the Spire amenity.

Did you raid the minibar? If so, what did you take?
Yes, snickers.

Were you offered a Chef's Taste at Dinner, If so, what did you receive?
Didn’t eat at restaurant. Didn’t want to give the property any more of my $.

Did you use the free spa credit / did the hotel participate? If so, was it a good value?
Initially, wasn't offered the credit. After the hassle, didn't want to spend any more $ at this dump.

What was good and what was bad?
Literally everything was bad. Sack the entire front of office. The service was combative, pathetic and the staff were poorly informed. Not a single thing listed as an Inner Circle benefit was provided without asking. Even after multiple phone calls and hassles they didn't provide everything. The hotel is dirty and tired and the location isn't great.

Value for $ or Priority Club Points? Would you return?
Next time i’ll spring for the Four Seasons or stay at a Marriott/SPG property and roll the dice on an upgrade. This was my first stay since being elevated to Inner Circle and if IC = get attitude from staff and don’t get published benefits while staying in a 3-4* quality hotel then maybe I won’t bother with anymore Kimptons.

FlyinHawaiian

Kimpton Hotel Monaco Washington DC

What is your Rewards Club status? Spire Elite and Ambassador (RIP Inner Circle; it was a great five years).

Were you (or for multi-stayers are you generally) happy with the hotel/stay? Yes

Which room did you book and which upgrade did you receive? King Premiere, upgraded to Majestic Suite

How are the rooms? The suite is on the fourth (top) floor, facing 8th NW. Across the street is an office building, so there's some privacy on weekends. The suite is a parlor room with a dining table seating six and a large L-shaped sofa (with a queen fold-out bed) and a large bathroom; connected to it via a door is a King Premier Room. Neither bathroom has a large soaking tub or walk-in shower. Windows on the first and fourth floors are half-height; windows on the second and third (especially the latter) are floor-to-ceiling. The bathrooms showed some signs of wear. The seals under the doors let a lot of light and noise from the hallway come in. Being a historic building, power outlets are scarce and mainly in the floor near the windows. There's quite a few cords running from the outlets to feed the lamps and electronics in the room.

[if you are Spire]
How was your complimentary welcome amenity? N/A

Did you raid the minibar? If so, what did you take? $10 can of Virginia peanuts.

Were you offered a Chef's Taste at Dinner, If so, what did you receive? N/A

Did you use the free spa credit / did the hotel participate? If so, was it a good value? N/A

What was good and what was bad? Great location; best of all the Kimptons in DC. Large hotel, so room upgrade chances are good. Friendly and helpful staff and very nice restaurant downstairs, with good food and drink options within walking distance. Older property and rooms are showing their age. Noise from connecting rooms and hallway can be disturbing.

Value for $ or Priority Club Points? Would you return? This is normally one of the pricier Kimptons in DC, but if you shop around, deals may be found. We'd return again if the price is right.

puck021

FlyinHawaiian

Nice! We checked in last Friday night and left yesterday; it was a nice long weekend in DC.

Points Scrounger

KIMPTON PALLADIAN - SEATTLE

What is your Rewards Club status? Spire

Were you (or for multi-stayers are you generally) happy with the hotel/stay? Yes

Which room did you book and which upgrade did you receive? KING PREMIER, upgraded to Presidential Suite!

How are the rooms? Room was fine - quiet with heat working well on a cold night, hot water very fast to appear, good pressure. No coffee pot or kettle, presumably they are available on request. Presidential Suite consisted of a regular bedroom plus a conference room next door (with its own full bath facilities).

Did you raid the minibar? I used the $10 towards my bar tab.

What was good and what was bad?
Good: Recognized as a Spire, upgraded to the best suite in the house. Staff are very professional without being aloof. Social hour offerings were more extensive than other Kimptons I thought. Checkout was very quick and efficient (must be in-person to receive Raid the Bar credit).

Not So Good: Two hour wait for room to be ready, though was given two drink vouchers after the first hour. Cannot use RTB credit at restaurant, only lobby bar.

Value for $ or Priority Club Points? Would you return? Unsure if I would return, but would recommend to others, especially if award stay means no additional fee. The Presidential Suite, frankly, turned out rather silly vs. a regular room ready earlier. However, they are definitely into elite recognition. The restaurant, Shaker and Spear, serves very good food, indeed!
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Land-of-Miles

Kimpton Fitzroy

What is your Rewards Club status? Spire Elite, Royal Ambassador and Inner Circle

Were you (or for multi-stayers are you generally) happy with the hotel/stay? Yes

Which room did you book and which upgrade did you receive? Booked Park View Deluxe, upgraded to One Bedroom Suite

How are the rooms? The suite was great, I had a pretty crappy experience on my previous stay and only getting Kimpton IC encouraged me to give it another go

[if you are Spire]
How was your complimentary welcome amenity? A bottle of Malbec and a nice chocolate coffee cake.

Did you raid the minibar? Minibars are free at the Fitzroy and the contents vary by room type (the Superior room I had last time for instance had 2 bottles of water and some milk, this minibar had several soft drinks, beers, waters and fever tree drinks/mixers).

Were you offered a Chef's Taste at Dinner, If so, what did you receive? This property doesn't participate

Did you use the free spa credit / did the hotel participate? Not a feature of this property

What was good and what was bad? Great upgrade, the suite was fantastic and made this stay work well. However I attempted to buy a bottle of gin (Sipsmith full bottle at £30) only to find they were "sold out", finally agreed after much to and fro to take the half bottle chargeable in the room (normally £40) for £15. Also oddly bread with dinner arrived as toast and had to be replaced. This place still needs a bit more polish given prevailing room rates and applying IHG corporate discounts to Kimpton would make more sense, until then this remains a niche choice but a decent upgrade made this worthwhile

Value for $ or Priority Club Points? Would you return? Worthwhile given the room type I ended up in but at over £250 per night it remains an occasional choice for me without corporate discounts, given other good IHG, Marriott or Hilton properties coming in a lot cheaper.

FlyinHawaiian

Kimpton Taconic Hotel (Manchester, VT)

What is your Rewards Club status? Spire Elite and Ambassador

Were you (or for multi-stayers are you generally) happy with the hotel/stay? Yes

Which room did you book and which upgrade did you receive? Premier King, upgraded to a Junior Suite in the main building (no higher room classes were available)

How are the rooms? The suite is on the third (top) floor of the main building (some other rooms and suites are in adjacent cottages on the property, facing the Taconics. The suite basically a large corner room with a large bathroom with a soaking tub and separate walk-in shower. There's also a gas fireplace in the room, which was a nice touch. It was very, very quiet and I was glad to find that the windows fully opened and had screens so that we could enjoy the clean and cool mountain air, instead of using the a/c. Ample power plugs (including USB) and lighting in the room.

[if you are Spire]

We were given Inner Circle benefits for our stay as we were celebrating our anniversary

How was your complimentary welcome amenity? Small plate of chocolate-dipped strawberries, two small bottles of Prosecco, and two bottles of sparkling water.

Did you raid the minibar? No, I didn't find anything worth taking, so I applied it as a credit against our dinner at The Copper Grouse.

Were you offered a Chef's Taste at Dinner, If so, what did you receive? Yes, individual amuse-bouches of grilled asparagus wrapped in coppa and served over miked greens. The chef also held back two veal chops from the daily butcher block special in case we wanted them for our entree (I did and it was excellent).

Did you use the free spa credit / did the hotel participate? If so, was it a good value? N/A

What was good and what was bad? Great location, very quiet and peaceful, but with lots of great food options on property and in town. Very convenient to the outlet malls and historic Hildene (which I highly recommend). Staff was exceedingly friendly. The property overall is in great shape (and strangely lacking the edgy Kimpton decor) with ample free parking. The only minor quibble is that unlike other Kimptons, the free wine hour is limited to one drink per guest (controlled by vouchers).

Value for $ or Priority Club Points? Would you return? We found a BOGO special on Cyber Monday and room prices for the off-season are very reasonable so given what we paid versus the Innter Circle benefits for our stay made it an excellent value. We would like to return during late Spring through the Fall to enjoy the foliage and more outdoor activities.

hclee01

Kimpton Da An Taipei Hotel

What is your Rewards Club status?
IHG Spire member

Were you (or for multi-stayers are you generally) happy with the hotel/stay?
Yes

Which room did you book and which upgrade did you receive?
Booked the basic tier, Superior Room and receive one-level upgrade to Superior Room with Balcony

How are the rooms?
Room (32sqm) is nice with adequate USB points (around 4 USB points) for charging your phones and 3-pin plug socket. Balcony overseeing the Taipei 101 tower. However, there is no chair at the balcony to sit there to enjoy the view.

[If you are Spire]
How was your complimentary welcome amenity?
Received a plate of cheese and fruits, as well as a bottle of red wine and sparkling water. Also received 2 hand-written welcome note from the guest relations manager and the hotel general manager.

Did you raid the minibar? If so, what did you take?
Have been given a TWD600 Raid the Minibar voucher for being a spire member. Will probably use it for the mini-bar as I am currently still staying at the hotel.

Were you offered a Chef's Taste at Dinner, If so, what did you receive?
NA

Did you use the free spa credit / did the hotel participate? If so, was it a good value?
NA

What was good and what was bad?
+ Great location. It is within 3 min walk to the nearest MRT station. There is a family mart convenience store just near the hotel. Sogo department store is just across the road and there are a variety of eateries here. However, as this is a new hotel, some of the taxi drivers may not be familiar with the hotel location.

+ Friendly staff who is all out to make the stay a very pleasant one. I was caught in the rain on the way back to hotel. At the hotel lobby, they wanted to offer me towels to dry myself before i head up to my room.

+ Requested for a late checkout at 2pm and was confirmed prior to check-in.

+ During morning breakfast, they offered free flow of coffee, tea and soya milk at the level 1 lobby for you to drink / take away. A nice gesture especially if you are in the rush to get to somewhere else.

- Comparing to the Regent hotel, the facilities can be a little lacking here (no swimming pool/spa centre, and the in-room dining is limited). For my period of stay, both hotels offer quite similar prepaid room rates.

Value for $ or Priority Club Points? Would you return?
Possibly because of the great location and wonderful staff. But if there is a promotional rate at Regent Taipei hotel, I may stay there instead.