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Canopy The Wharf Review
We stayed at the Canopy The Wharf for two nights in April. And we really enjoyed our first time at the Canopy by Hilton brand. The hotel was everything you would expect in a lifestyle boutique hotel.
Canopy by Hilton is by far one of the hotel brands we were most excited to stay at this year. And our stay at the Canopy the Wharf is our first of three Canopy by Hilton stays this year. Canopy by Hilton is Hilton's lifestyle brand, focusing on locally-inspired design, food and beverage offerings, environmentally friendly features, and large multi-use public spaces. And Canopy the Wharf, which opened earlier this year, is the first Canopy Hotel to open in the United States.
Canopy the Wharf
We stayed at the Canopy The Wharf for two nights in April. And we really enjoyed our first time at the Canopy by Hilton brand. The hotel was everything you would expect in a lifestyle boutique hotel. The newest Canopy hotel in Southwest Washington DC is part of the hot new waterfront development called The Wharf. The Wharf is a vibrant neighborhood full of restaurants and nightlife. And the location can't be beat. You are a 10 minute walk from the National Mall, plus The Wharf offers a free shuttle to the Mall that runs every 15 minutes.
Our Room
We booked a partial waterfront view suite. And the room was everything we expected from a Canopy by Hilton. The room had had floor to ceiling windows. And with lots of modern design elements, the room featured a barn door, one of the innovative Canopy hotel features. The barn door separates the bedroom from the dining and living area.
Canopy by Hilton rooms have a Canopy bed with gel memory foam and Serta Cool Balance® Technology. The bedroom featured plenty of modern design elements and the bed was extremely comfortable.
The living area featured a small couch and several chairs along with a small dining table. And while the room was extremely comfortable, we loved the local decor. There were maps of the DC area used as wallpaper behind the huge flat screen television in both the living and bedrooms.
The bathroom had a large vanity and walk-in shower. Plus just off the bathroom was the Canopy "uncloset". That’s an open area with no door where you store your clothes. The uncloset has a great look and is a great concept, however it probably isn't as practical as it should be.
The Canopy by Hilton brand uses Apivita toiletries. This was our first time using the Apivita brand toiletries, but we really enjoyed the natural smells and scents like Green Honey & Mountain Tea shower gel and the Greek Honey & Orange shampoo.
Each room also has a Nespresso machine. And one of Canopy by Hilton's goals is to be ecological friendly. So you'll notice that there are no plastic water bottles. Instead, there are glass bottles which can be filled at water filling stations on each level of the hotel.
Dining
Canopy by Hilton hotels offer a free artisenal breakfast buffet to all guests. And the breakfast was delicious, local and fresh. The wood burning oven turns out flatbread egg pizzas for breakfast, along with a meat and cheese platter and several other rotating dishes. You'll also find smoothies, fruit-infused water, yogurt and coffee from a local roaster. Overall, the breakfast met and exceeded our needs and expectations.
And if you are in a hurry or prefer to eat in your room, you can get a bag filled with fruit, yogurt, and coffee delivered instead of going to the artisenal buffet.
If you need a quick bite for lunch or dinner, The Canopy Central Bistro and Bar serves small nibbles and bites and enticing beverages such as refreshing juices, wine, craft beers, and signature cocktails. We enjoyed a quick dinner at The Canopy Central Bistro and Bar one evening and had a delicious flatbread.
In addition to the Canopy Central area, the Canopy the Wharf also has a rooftop bar, Whiskey Charley. And it's worth a visit, even if just for the view. The bar and the outdoor patio have an incredible view of the entire Wharf Neighborhood plus you can see the United States Capital.
Amenities
The Canopy the Wharf sits along a stretch of waterfront biking paths. And the Canopy has a dozen bikes available on a first come, first served basis. A helmet and a lock is included.
And if you need more than a bike ride, the Canopy by Hilton shares a fairly large gym with the adjacent Hyatt House hotel.
Overall Impression
The Canopy by Hilton The Wharf is a luxurious, lifestyle oriented hotel. It's not stuffy, but it's also higher end than the neighboring Hyatt House. It has an upscale feel, the rooms were perfectly comfortable and the free artisenal breakfast was superb.
The Canopy the Wharf is located within walking to distance to many of the Washington D.C. attractions, but the Wharf neighborhood itself has plenty to offer.
Hotel del Coronado
The Hotel del Coronado is a famous and luxurious beachfront resort in the city of Coronado, just across the San Diego Bay from San Diego, California. "The Del" is a classic hotel that deserves to be part of your San Diego experience. It somehow manages to combine the charm of a century old resort with the modern amenities.
Hotel del Coronado has always been on our hotel bucketlist. And since we are huge fans of the Curio Collection, when the property joined Hilton's Curio Collection, we had even more reason to stay at the iconic hotel. So we booked a stay at The Del on New Year's Day.
Hotel del Coronado
The Hotel del Coronado is a famous and luxurious beachfront resort in the city of Coronado, just across the San Diego Bay from San Diego, California. "The Del" is a classic hotel that deserves to be part of your San Diego experience. It somehow manages to combine the charm of a century old resort with the modern amenities.
The Hotel del Coronado was built in 1888 and is listed as a historic landmark. Over the years the resort has played host to some of the most famous people in the world including Charlie Chaplin, Charles Lindbergh, Kirk Douglas, and Marilyn Monroe. Several Presidents have also stayed at The Del. Presidents include Benjamin Harris, William Taft, Franklin D Roosevelt, Lyndon Johnson, Richard Nixon, Gerald Ford, Jimmy Carter, Ronald Reagan, George H Bush, Bill Clinton and George W. Bush.
The public spaces of the hotel have an old school elegance, the elevator dates back to the 1800’s with manual controls and the ballroom is a sight to behold by itself.
Our Room
We booked a Victorian King Room. The Victorian rooms are located in the historical section of the hotel. There is also a tower section of the hotel which was added in the 2000's. At check-in we learned that we had been upgraded to a junior Victorian suite due to our Hilton Diamond Status which was definitely a pleasant surprise.
The junior suite had two rooms, a bedroom and a living room with a small dining area. And off the living room was a balcony overlooking for the resort grounds.
The living area was big enough that we felt like we had space to stretch out.
The bedroom had one king bed, dresser and television. And the bed was extremely comfortable.
The bathroom off of the living room was a bit small. And you could tell the bathroom was dated. But we were in the historical section of the hotel, so no complaints here.
The Hotel del Coronado supplies guests with Espa London toiletries. And our bathroom was stocked with a cleansing bar, body lotion, body was, conditioner and shampoo. The bergamot, jasmine & a hint of cedarwood smelling toiletries were definitely enjoyable.
Dining
There are multiple drink and dining venues at Hotel del Coronado. Whether you are looking for something casual, a quick snack, cocktails at sunset or a romantic dinner setting, you will find it here. One of the best things about this resort is that the majority of bars and restaurants have an ocean view! We only ate breakfast at the Hotel del Coronado but the breakfast buffet at the Sheerwater Restaurant was amazing. And since we booked our room through Virtual Travel Gurus, our breakfast buffet was included! A great value!
It's also worth noting that Hilton Honors Gold & Diamond members receive a free continental breakfast each morning. You can pay a small fee to upgrade to the entire breakfast buffet.
And while we didn't take in any other meals at Hotel del Coronado, we did enjoy ice cream from MooTime Creamery. It's a 1950s style ice cream parlor that serves up sundaes, ice cream cones and frozen yogurt. And the ice cream was delicious!
Amenities
Trust, us, you will not get bored at Hotel del Coronado! There are different types of activities at the resort throughout the day. You can enjoy bike riding from the resort around Coronado Island, partake in a beach spinning class or just relax on the beach or by one of the resort pools.
And The Del has bonfires on the beach that can be reserved for a fee (that come with s'mores kits) in the evening. S'more and a bonfire on the beach....I'm not sure we can think of a better way to finish off the day.
And you can shop till you drop at The Del shops. Definitely check out the 1888 vintage shop. And it's just one of numerous shops located at the resort.
Our favorite thing to do was relax in the spa. The spa has men and women's lounge areas and steam rooms. But the best part of the spa is the private terrace with a vanishing-edge pool overlooking the Pacific.
Overall Impression
The best part of the Hotel del Coronado is that it embodies the beachy California vacation vibe that so many try to replicate but very few hotels and resorts actually achieve. The hotel sits on 28 acres of the number one rated beach in the United States!
And as you would expect at a higher end hotel or resort, we found service at The Del to be top notch. The Hotel del Coronado uses texting and the Hilton Honors app for communicating with guests. That makes it extremely convenient to contact the concierge or guest services.
Our advice, book yourself a room in the Victorian/Historical side of the hotel. These rooms have character and truly make you feel like you staying in a charming, luxurious old world resort.
And remember if you book a room at the Hotel del Coronado through Live Luxe Travel Co., you'll often receive extra perks like free breakfast, spa credits and room upgrades!
Oh, we almost forgot. The Del is also very kid and pet friendly! There is even a store for dogs and a doggy happy hour. So yes, that means Madi will likely come with us when we return this fall!
Waldorf Astoria Park City
The Waldorf Astoria Park City is a luxury ski resort located at the base of Canyons ski area. And this posh mountain resort is just 4 miles from Main Street and Downtown Park City.
The Waldorf Astoria Park City is a luxury ski resort located at the base of Canyons ski area. And this posh mountain resort is just 4 miles from Main Street and Downtown Park City.
Waldorf Astoria Park City
Park City has more to offer than just skiing. Utah is truly considered a year round adventure destination with skiing, fly fishing, mountain biking and hiking. And Park City is the heart of that adventure. The Waldorf Astoria Park City makes a great home base for those adventures. The hotel has a gondola it shares exclusively with the Wyndam Residences across the street. The gondola goes to the Canyons Village base.
The property only has valet parking. But unlike most resorts, the valet parking is included in the resort fee, which is an extremely nice touch.
The Waldorf Astoria Park City is a gorgeous property and the beauty starts when you first arrive in the lobby.
The lobby is grand and extremely impressive with a sweeping staircase, a 300 year old imported mantle for the lobby fire, and a large baccarat chandelier.
Rates can be expensive during prime ski season. But for our stay, the Waldorf Astoria Park City offered great value for redeeming Hilton Honors points. At just 80,000 points per night, the paid rates were well over $700 a night. That means we got a value of almost 9 cents per point Hilton Honors point which is incredible.
You can also book the Waldorf Astoria Park City through a travel agent, like Virtual Travel Gurus, and get extras like room upgrades, breakfast and an $100 spa credit.
Our Room
While we are Hilton Diamond members and we enjoy occasional upgrades, we are still pleasantly surprised when those upgrades occur. And the upgrade we received at the Waldorf was amazing. We were excited to find out we had been upgraded to a bi-level suite. And the room was amazing.
The main level of the room had a living room with fire place, dining room, full bathroom and a large high-end full kitchen with Viking appliances.
Adjacent to the living room was a large outdoor patio with an outdoor fire place with views of the pool.
The bedroom was located on the upstairs level of the bi-level suite. The bedroom's furnished with a king size bed, several sitting chairs, dresser and had another fireplace.
The master spa like bathroom has a large walk-in shower, tub and double vanities.
The Waldorf Astoria Park City offers Tuscan Soul toiletries.
Our suite also contained a laundry room with a washer and dryer which would definitely be an added bonus for families taking a skiing trip or longer vacation.
DINING
Probably one of the most surprising facts about the Waldorf Astoria Park City is that the hotel and resort only has one true dining option. We had breakfast one morning at Powder and we had avocado toast which was okay. The avocado toast tasted like it hadn't been seasoned much and we had some service issues at the restaurant. But honestly, this was our only complaint during our entire stay.
Gold and Diamond Hilton Honors members do receive $15.00 per person (up to two people) per day for breakfast.
Amenities
If you don't want to leave the resort, there is plenty to do at the hotel itself. The Waldorf Park City has a large outdoor heated pool and several hot tubs. We enjoyed relaxing in the hot tubs while breathing in the mountain air several times during our stay.
We also utilized the Waldorf Astoria Park City Spa one afternoon and received spa treatments and enjoyed the spa facilities including tea in the relaxation lounge and steam room.
And the Waldorf has a large fitness center with several daily classes including yoga.
One of our favorite activities at the resort was roasting marshmallows and making s'mores around the fire pits. Each evening, the hotel puts out a cart full of marshmallows, chocolate bars and graham crackers. And we took them up on making s'mores both nights of our stay.
Overall Impression
The Waldorf Astoria Park City is a luxurious resort within minutes of skiing and just miles from Downtown Park City. The hotel has luxurious rooms, offers plenty of activities and overall the service was excellent. While the resort can be expensive during peak skiing season, you can often times find very good value using Hilton Honors points for your stay. After staying at several hotels and resorts in the Park City area, we can definitely say that we are already planning our next trip back to the Waldorf Astoria Park City. And when you book with Live Luxe Travel Co. through our Hilton Impresario partnership you will receive a $100 credit, room upgrade, and daily breakfast for 2.