Raybull

GoldenItalianBoy

Renaissance Imperial Riding School Vienna
I love this hotel for the interior old style design, beautiful rooms (I had Club room and they are very large), a separated exclusive wing just for Club guests, with a big Club Lounge.
Very good location in Vienna and kind staff!

ntamayo

makeUturn

I stay at whichever Marriott brand is the most economical and near to where I will be working, and sometimes that might be a Renaissance. My wife though always wants to stay at a Renaissance when we travel together for pleasure. Our favorite has been the one in Luzern, Switzerland. We have stayed there twice on points and have been given full Platinum benefits. The staff is really great and so is the location on a quite side street, but close to the train station and tourist attractions. It is the smallest Renaissance in the system and the elevators, hallways, and rooms are a bit cramped, but otherwise a great place to stay. I stayed once at The Times Square location in NYC on business and I really liked it as well.

pinniped

Aw, man...memory lane! Chancery Court was my favorite. Closest thing under the Renaissance flag to something I'd call 5-star. If someone had reflagged it as RC it would have still held up well.

Another one from the past that I loved: Renaissance Wailea. Understated old-Hawaiian elegance on a perfect beach. One of the best hotel breakfasts I've ever had. The hotel was a little small and not really set up well for either large conventions or families. It was not up to standards of a brand new luxury hotel, and that was fine with me. As a result, it was a quiet couples hotel more than anything...although that may have ultimately led to its demise.

I have mixed feelings about Imperial Riding School. Great lounge, good facility overall. Spent a week there a few summers ago. I found the Renaissance-trained staff to be top notch, but the pool area employees to be downright awful. (The pool/spa area was subcontracted to some other company.) They allowed outside guests into the pool area and a lot of these people would smoke outside the pool, which was kind of gross. If Marriott took back full control of the pool, kicked the outsiders out, and went non-smoking I'd definitely go back to this place. Still gets high marks because the lounge is very, very good.

My Ren57 experience was less terrible than what some FTers have. As an "old" Plat, they gave me drink chits and full breakfast chits. There was a little makeshift lounge off the lobby that was half under construction, so I haven't been back to see if that's a good lounge or not. Rooms are a weird shape and not all that functional in some cases, but I was there on a good rate and I enjoy staying that part of town. These days I've been doing Hilton in NYC and I refuse to pay a resort fee, but I'd consider this place again if my needs call for it (and there is no resort fee).

margarita girl

zoqfotpik

I've only been to St Pancras. I would highly recommend for its history, architecture and access to Chambers Lounge (only if you're plat)!

quirrow

Stayed at 3 different Renaissance Hotels since the Marriott SPG merger and was pleasantly surprised by the stay. Was upgraded on 2 of my stays without asking to suites and the rooms have so far exceeded my expectations:

Renaissance Zurich Tower (located in a new modern district)
Very nice and modern rooms with good views
Club lounge serves good variety of food that can be a light dinner. Breakfast is very good as well.
Suite was beautiful and I noticed they provide Bvlgari amenities for the suites.

Renaissance Luzern
Convenient location near the train station
Small number of rooms makes it feel like a boutique hotel and rooms are surprisingly large and modern
Lounge does not serve food but guests would be provided breakfast vouchers for a full buffet at the lobby restaurant.

The Metropolitan Vancouver (branded under Renaissance)
2 stays here, one was upgraded to a Suite and it was a large suite.
Basic rooms have both a shower and bathtub so it was nice. But the hotel rooms were somewhat dated.

Overall the Renaissance has become a very nice addition for SPG members and it is becoming one of my choice for travelling.

allset2travel

I have 2 most favs, both are in China:

Renaissance Shanghai Zhongshan Park:
Best location - name sake Metro station, including Line 2 to/from PVG. Get off the subway, walk inside the mall and up 2 floors. Then take elevator up to 19th F lobby.
Hotel & Mall in same building - countless # of restaurants on maybe 4 floors (can't recall).
Great upgrade to 50+ F for me every time (5x and counting)
2 floors of Executive Lounge.

Renaissance Chengdu:
GM came to welcome during check in.
UG to same suite on 3 stays (curved corner)
Super service by many staff (in lounge or on lobby floor)
Less than 25 minutes by taxi from airport
15 minutes from railway station (east station). Easy access to south station.
Plenty restaurants nearby.

hockeyinsider

Yeah. Marriott has tried repositioning the Renaissance brand from a bland competitor of Marriott or Westin to what I call corporate boutique.

Of course, the problem is there are lots of old Renaissance properties, including airport properties. These properties, even with a lot of lipstick on the pig, are still old 1980s and 1990s buildings that feel out-of-place when compared to some of the really nice Renaissance properties.

On the other hand, there are some Renaissance properties that feel a little too independent and are probably better suited for Autograph Collection or Tribute Portfolio.

hockeyinsider

There are a couple of very nice Renaissance properties in Paris as well, including independently rated 5-star properties.

The Renaissance St. Pancras is probably getting close to needing a room renovation, at least new TVs.

The Baronette Renaissance in Detroit suburb of Novi, Michigan, has a nice design and a good restaurant, but is missing the staff to make it 4 or 5 stars. It's a solid 3 1/2 stars, but the front desk clerks are doing triple-duty as the front desk, the concierge (navigator in Renaissance-speak) and bellman.

As with most brands, properties outside North America are almost always more upscale. In some cases, genuine 5-star properties.

hockeyinsider

Except the management has told guests that as as a franchise they don't have to follow Marriott's terms and conditions. I refuse to stay there because of this.

christianj

+1 except some of the rooms were pretty small.

James Luckard

The chain is an eccentric mix of boutique-y newer properties, and also a bunch of random legacy properties from the defunct chains that were folded into it decades ago - Stouffer Hotels, Ramada Renaissance Hotels, and Penta Hotels.

There are still a bunch of former Stouffer properties, most of them boxy, anonymous 1970s/1980s concrete behemoths, like the previously mentioned St Louis Airport property, though I think only a couple of the original Ramada Renaissance properties, like Long Beach and Washington DC, still remain.

itsaboutthejourney

Agreed, but there are also Renaissance locations should also be reflagged as Marriott or Sheraton.

FWIW: I'd generally put the Renaissance parallel to latest generation Westin, more upscale and often more interesting than your average full service Marriott or Sheraton.