Penny's Passion: Charleston - Where We Stayed

Sunday, November 23, 2014

Charleston - Where We Stayed

Our trip to Charleston was definitely enhanced by the hotel where we stayed.  DISCLAIMER:  We really enjoy a good hotel.  I recognize this isn't important to some people and I totally get that.  There are times when we are just looking for a cheap, clean place to rest our heads.  But for this trip, we chose to spend the extra money and stay at a nicer hotel.  For our trip to Charleston, I didn't have a ton of time to research different hotel options so I made my decision pretty quick. Luckily the hotel we choose - French Quarter Inn - was a WINNER!

French Quarter Inn in Historic Charleston, S.C.
Photo courtesy of French Quarter Inn
Upon arrival, you are greeted with a glass of champagne (how fun is that!).   Our room was ready even though we were checking in early so we were able to dump our bags and relax a little before heading out and about.  Entering the room you were greeted with soft music playing in the background.  I immediately began to feel relaxed and cozy.  Jenny, the great lady working the front desk, was able to steer us to a trendy lunch spot in addition to making dinner reservations for us.  Actually, every staff member we encountered was friendly and had great recommendations on things to do and places to see.


The French Quarter Inn has a wonderful turn of the century look and feel.  With quaint sitting spaces and fireplace in the lobby, you feel as though you are being welcomed by a close friend instead of staying at a hotel.

                                         

Each afternoon around 5:30 pm the hotel hosted a little wine and cheese spread.  It was great to come back to the hotel after being out all day to a glass of wine and plate of cheese before getting ready for our dinner adventure.

                                          

Then around 8:30 pm they would set out cookies, milk and port wine.  Yes, please!  This is not to overshadow the fabulous turn down service.  Each evening, the hotel-provided robes were neatly placed on the bed and chocolates were left on the desk.  I'm talking nice chocolates, you guys. Accompanying the chocolates was a note filling you in on weather information for the next day - what the morning and afternoon temperature were going to be, time of sunrise and sunset, and sky prediction.  This was sweet info to have when planning your clothes for the next day and knowing what time to be at the Battery to watch the sunset (you won't want to miss the sunset at the Battery and I'll show some pictures when I post about the attractions in Charleston).



Bicycles are also provided by the hotel if you want to pedal around town.  It was a bit chilly on our visit to take advantage of this amenity, but maybe next time.

The down side to the hotel (and it was my own fault) was we had three different rooms in 5 days.  There was an internet special for an upgraded room the two days in the middle of our stay.  So, the first day we stayed in a traditional room, moved to a suite for two days, then had to move to another room our last night.  The hotel did upgrade our room the final night to a larger room with a fireplace and balcony - SWEET!  In retrospect, I probably would have just stayed in the traditional room the entire time.  But it was fun getting to see all the different room types. And fun having a fireplace and balcony our last night.  Okay, maybe changing rooms was worth it.

To recap, here's my top and bottom five for the hotel:

Top Five
1.  Free complimentary breakfast delivered to the room each morning -- breakfast is not just a donut and juice.  We had quiche, halved brulee grapefruit, Greek yogurt parfait, and petite charcuterie and cheese.  Oh, and I almost forgot, Bloody Marys. 
2.  Location -- placed at 166 Church Street, this smaller hotel is very centrally located which made walking easy to the many attractions and restaurants in downtown Charleston.
3.  Overall amenities -- wine in the evening, cookies before bed, chocolates at turn down.  NICE!  They also have complimentary drinks (fruit infused water, rosemary lemonade, iced tea, coffee and hot teas) in the hallways and lobby all day.  Lots of pampering!
4.  Friendliness of staff -- seriously EVERYONE was kind and pleasant.  No bad experience or attitude from this staff.
5.  Newspaper placed on your door -- not just thrown on the ground like yesterday's trash.  It is actually hanging from your door in a cute little bag.  And we received a paper on Saturday (most hotels, if they give you a paper, is just Monday-Friday).

Bottom Five
1.  Having to change rooms -- again, my fault.

Ummmm, I really can't think of anything else.  So I guess this is my bottom one.

Sorry for the lack of great pictures from the hotel -- I didn't realize I had taken so few until after we had left.  You can visit their website to see their official photos.

I'll have upcoming posts on places we ate and things we did soon.  For now, I need to adjust to the reality of making my own bed and setting the alarm.

Special shout out to the adorable lady we sat next to on the first leg of our flight home - Amy.  She was travelling back home from her grandmother's funeral and we had the best talk the entire flight.  Isn't it great when you meet someone fun to talk to on airplanes?!?!

34 comments:

  1. This sounds heavenly! I'm putting this location on my list of things to do, that's for sure!

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  2. Charlston sounds like such a charming city. It sounds like you guys had a great time. All the food looks great.

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  3. Sounds like a pretty fabulous place!!! Love it when hotels have free breakfast! With a toddler hubby and I tend to look for hotels with it ;-)

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  4. I've never visited Charleston. I'm adding it to my long list o places to see!

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  5. This sounds like a great place to stay. I like the idea of breakfast being brought to the room.

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  6. Looks beautiful and sounds like you had a great time. You couldn't even come up with a bottom five! haha! Thanks for sharing :)

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  7. This looks and sounds like such a beautiful place to visit! I appreciate you sharing your experiences with us and glad you were able to visit!

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  8. I think a great hotel can make a big difference too! Looks like you guys found a great one. Love the photos from your trip!

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  9. I have never been there, but it looks like I should go! How fun that you got to go there!

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  10. Those chocolates look SO good! Sounds like a great hotel. Glad you had a fun trip!

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  11. Wow, that is quite a breakfast to be delivered to your room each morning. I love that!! I also like the Bloody Mary's.

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  12. I also prefer spending the extra money for comfort and convenience. Chaleston looks like a really elegant place with premium service and facilities.

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  13. Sounds like you had a good time. Those amenities are great. Thanks for sharing

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  14. It looks like you stayed at a wonderful place! I have been to Charleston a few times and I loved it!

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  15. Such a wonderful place! I want to go to Charleston soon!

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  16. What a lovely and charming looking place to stay. I love that the room welcome told you the times of sunrise and sunset :)

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  17. Sounds like a great place to stay! Looks like great hospitality!

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  18. Looks like a wonderful place! Bookmarking as we're planning to do a longer trip with stops along the way so this is a good one to consider :)

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  19. That inn looks wonderful! I've never been to Charleston, but if I do visit, I will check that hotel out!

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  20. What fun! I've got to remember this one if I'm ever in Charleston!

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  21. This looks like a fabulous place to stay. I like the cookies and a little weather forecast. Great decor.

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  22. I've been once and it was beautiful. I hope to go again.

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  23. Looks like a lovely place. I've never been to Charleston.

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  24. It's definitely worth spending the extra money sometime. Looks like it turned out great! What a nice place.

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  25. Looks amazing! I need a vacation so bad!

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  26. Love the little wine and cheese spread, what a great idea!

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  27. My mom should know about this one - seems like a great one to stay in with!

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  30. I love that they even gave you the weather report. It does sound like a nice hotel to visit!

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  31. I would love to stay here - I think it's really neat that they provide bicycles for their guests too! Thanks for sharing your trip :D

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  32. This looks like a great place to stay. Sorry that you had to change rooms.

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  33. Looks like a really great place. I'll have to check it out when I'm that way.

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  34. This looks like a lovely hotel to stay at and the food looks so yummy!

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