Comfort Inn & Suites Baltimore Inner Harbor

I broke away from my chain hotels in Baltimore

I was going to the APhA convention for work and I was looking into booking at the host hotel or the Sheraton, because I am a proud SPG member. Since there was a convention in town, the rates were over $200 a night. I found a Home2 Suites for $175 and I was ok with that. I’ll be frank though, it’s Baltimore, in winter: $175 is a lot. Thanks to Travelzoo, I decided to try a boutique hotel in Baltimore. There was a special for the weekend that I was going for $79 for one bedroom Suite King. As I always do, I hopped on trip advisor and read up on the Brookshire Suites. The hotel was number 20 of 61 with a rating of 4.5 out of 5 with 312 reviews. I felt that these were great odds and I booked the deal. I took Amtrak to the city and I’m always so happy to be able to travel on the train. There is something about being able to travel from roughly downtown “West Philadelphia” to roughly downtown “Midtown” that you can’t get from air flight. I hopped in a cab and gave the address 120 E Lombard. Well, I was happily surprised with this contemporary hotel located in the heart of Baltimore. I was only a 6-block walk from the host hotel for the convention and only a 3-block walk from the convention center. The Inner Harbor was yards from the front door and public transportation options were ample in a 5-block radius. Though, I opted to walk or über this weekend more than busing or metroing. The front desk clerk, whose name I didn’t get, was outgoing and warm. She took my information and asked me what had brought me to town. While chatting, she was happy to let me know that there was indeed a room available for my early arrival and quickly sent me on my way. The suite was huge. I didn’t really measure but my guess is that the bedroom area has at least 250 sq. ft. and was complete with king-sized bed, television and chair. The carpet of the room was a charcoal gray and the curtains and head board matched in hue. An accent wall in similarly colored wallpaper also held the stylized black and white piece of art splashed with soft canary yellow. The other room of the suite had a desk, chair, television and sofa, and pulled in the design elements from the bedroom – this time an accent wall of the yellow with another wall of the gray wallpaper. This ran through into the small kitchen alcove with refrigerator, microwave and coffee machine. It was the perfect set up for entertaining – great for group travel. The amenities were Zero Percent by Glichrist & Soames, a perennial favorite company of mine. However the bathroom could have used a little more love. There were some cosmetic issues that I noticed but nothing that hindered any of the proper functions of the room. The vents were a little dented and there was some rust on the hinges; I mean bathrooms do get steamy. All in all, these minor issues didn’t take away from my stay. (If these issues were at the host hotel and I was being charged over $200, I would be irate; I know it’s all perspective.) I learned as a friend of mine drove me back to the hotel after catching up over cocktails that the opera singers for the Baltimore Opera stay in the hotel while they are in town. I think that’s a good match of hotel with clientele. Lastly, there’s a well-stocked Royal Farms, a block away for most of your munchie cravings, but it recently started to close at midnight. Brookshire Suites charges a daily fee that they call a Destination Fee of $9.95. Per their webpage, it includes “Continental Breakfast Buffet, 24- Hour Wellness Center, Local and Domestic Long Distance Calls, [and] Two Complimentary Bottles of Water upon Check-in.” I couldn’t care less about the phone calls. I think that “resort fees” for wellness centers are ridiculous. The continental breakfast was the usual: eggs, sausage (one morning) and bacon (the other), bagels, croissants, yogurt, coffee, some fruit and juices; it was ample and it satiated me. Also, it was on their top floor, a.k.a, the Cloud Level, and the views of the Inner Harbor were excellent. The water was a nice touch. Finally, they advertise the WiFi as complimentary and not part of this fee. Yet, in short, I didn’t mind being charged ten extra bucks a day to enjoy some creature comforts. I think that a reasonable flat rate for some amenities is just that, reasonable. When I return to Baltimore, I will be looking into staying here again.

awesome new management and renovation

Staff is extremely outgoing, very friendly. Great recommendation for someone who wants to learn more about Baltimore, and have a very true Baltimore experience.