We were in town for a college “visit”. Location of this hotel is wonderful, you can walk to a ton. Room was clean and comfortable. It’s an older hotel so the common areas look a bit worn, but that’s not a big deal. No breakfast due to Covid but there are so many good things to eat at the Reading Terminal Market (a 5 min walk) that I’m glad I had more chances to go! Would stay again.
Booking.com
Taking safety measures
Booking.comTaking safety measures
The check in was super quick and gave us a suite upgrade due to Titanium status with Marriott. Rooms were clean but nothing special. Elevators worked quickly. Location is obviously very central being right across from city hall. Free breakfast was decent and kept fairly clean and stocked with adequate seating. The lobby has a basket of free snacks which is nice. Did not use the gym. There are lots of homeless people within a few blocks of the hotel and the 13th street subway stop is like a scene from Escape from New York with Kurt Russell. Stay out of the subway and use uber or taxi. This subway is not like NYC or DC. We did not park at the hotel(valet only and $50+) but used spot hero to self park in the Love Park garage for $25 which is 1 block away.
Upon arrival at approximately 6:30-7:00am the front desk agent was a professional angel and very welcoming !
Once in the room , super clean and very bright , NOT the ideal place for a day sleeper after a long flight in across country . The curtains do not reach all corners of the window and allow bright sunlight into the room making it as bright as the outside ! After struggling to get to sleep , HOUSEKEEPING apparently can not READ or Understand that a “DO NOT DISTURB “sign on the door means DO NO DISTURB ! It’s universally recognized and therefore should translate into English quite well but NOT HERE ! After only one solid hour of sleep and quite exhausted I went to the front desk and in anger and holding my true feelings was only given a standard excuse of the housekeeper failed to follow protocol and contact the Front desk , Housekeeping manager or simply READ the manifest provided daily by the front desk !
Not happy and completely exhausted I was forced to stay awake a better part of the day now due to the noise from other rooms being cleaned door slamming and complete disregard for customers comfort .
I will think twice before returning and will advise our worlds largest Company in the world to choose wisely as there are several other hotels within this area to choose from while here in downtown Philadelphia.
A complete wasted day here in Philadelphia because of the incompetence of just following professional procedures set forth by a universal rule .
Weary and sleepless traveler ,
Mr JRL
Dear PHXman55,
So very sorry that one of our housekeepers knocked on your door when having a do not disturb sign. We go over this during our morning huddles and for some reason this was done during your stay. I do apologize that this caused you to not get the much needed rest that you we're planning to have. Please don't hesitate in contacting me if you want to go over any further.
Sincerely, Ed F
The main takeaway I got from this Residence Inn, was the friendly and helpful staff.
Location was clean, and within walking distance of EVERYTHING.
I had a wonderful view of city hall, and the breakfast each day was delicious. The breakfast staff were amazing hosts each and every day.
Like others I fought quite a bit with the elevator.
Having stayed at many Residence Inns, I assumed my convention booking of this Residence Inn was a suite with the normal full kitchen and sofa. Not so. I checked on the reservation before I arrived to be told this is the only Residence Inn in the country that has "regular rooms" with a mini fridge and microwave, more like a Hilton Garden Inn but at Residence Inn prices. They wanted a considerable up charge to change to a room with kitchen and judging by the pic on the the website, a small room at that. I cancelled and found another hotel for the money. Their website is not at all clear that this property is not a real Residence Inn. It is a hotel that has some suites.
We were so happy with the comfort of the rooms and the location of this hotel. If you are in Philly to see the sights, you really can’t find a better spot. The room and beds are comfortable. We didn’t hear any neighboring room noise. We walked everywhere and the Reading Market as well as train terminal are within a block or two. We’ll recommend this hotel and come back.
