Peter Piper

Bid on a 3.5 star and got the DoubleTree in downtown Richmond. I wouldn't call it a 3.5 star but it It was a decent hotel with very helpful staff, an excellent rooftop pool, perfect on a hot summer day. Will try to write a full review later.

By the way, I was also fooled by the "95% recommend". There is no way 95% of the people would recommend this place. That has to be some kind of mistake. On TripAdvisor only 73% recommend it. If you're feeling adventurous and are looking to try something truly new and different this is is the place. It has a real spartan and minimalist feel that many people may not go for. I would not give this hotel three stars. I just noticed that now on Hotwire what appears to be the same hotel now says '75% recommend'.

This hotel is ultra-modern, trendy, and very much aimed at the youth market. It is quite strange and minimalist compared to a traditional hotel. The rooms have nothing in them except for the beds, one desk chair and a flat panel TV. One of the best points is that it is right across from the Whole Foods. You can read my full review of the hotel by clicking here.

Well yes, the PICS are always nice, aren't they, but wait until you see this place. It looks like something out of 2001, A Space Odessey. Please see my COMPLETE REVIEW of the hotel here: ALoft - Richmond - Glen Allen REVIEW By the way, I was the one who actually wrote those two paragraphs (inside the '<<<<< ... >>>>>' ) but was not properly quoted here :) Please should always quote someone if it's not their own words.

An interesting hotel but it is DEFINITELY not for everyone. It is a strange place: ultra-modern place looks like something out of a sci-fi film. It is very much aimed at the youth market. Exercise room is the best I've seen, but pool was very small and murky. Best thing about this hotel is that it is located across from Whole Foods. If you win this one on PRICELINE or HOTWIRE, try to keep an open mind. Please see my COMPLETE REVIEW of the hotel.

An ultra-modern experience aimed pretty squarely at a young crowd. This place features radical, modern, minimalist decor that you will probably love or hate. The positive: It's pretty clean and new. Beds feature duvet-style covers. Lobby is set up to foster interaction. It is in a newer development with a few restaurants as well as a trader Joes. It is located right next to a whole foods, which is a big plus. Gym/excerise room is quite nice, better than in most hotels. The negative: It is oriented towards a trendy, hip, young, night-club hopping crowd. It is not warm feeling at all but instead quite spartan and minimalist. No pictures on the walls. No chairs in the room except for one desk chair. it looks like something out of a sci-fi movie. I like the idea that the lobby is set up for more interaction, but this feels like a glorified, high-priced youth hostel. One annoying aspect: no real privacy in the bathroom due to the fact that it is a sliding door which doesn't fit tightly and has a one-inch gap at the top. No courtyard or any nice place to sit outside. Swimming pool is quite small. The complimentary breakfast that someone wrote about in a review no longer exists. You can get breakfast sandwiches at the little hotel shop, but you're better off walking across the street to Whole Foods, less than a five-minute walk. The hotel is set in a new development, basically a fake town sort of thing. You can see off to the edges of it that they had to clear a beautiful forest area to put the development in. Of course that's not the hotel's fault but it's very sad that developers are allowed to destroy America's remaining open spaces. If you're the kind of person who likes to rent an apartment in the absolute newest apartment building and have your bed on the floor and have almost nothing in the place, then you'd feel right at home here. If you're looking for a romantic weekend, with old-world charm, this is definitely not the place. If you are an older person used to traditional hotel comforts you will definitely have to keep an open mind about this place. As a Priceline/Hotline customer you are hopefully used to trying to make the best of it even if it's not a place you'd normally choose. It's an interesting place for the design, but the whole concept leaves me a bit cold and it would not be my first choice of a place to stay.

I can't find a link in my HOTWIRE account that shows amenities, but since I'm staying there right now, I can list them: Pool Fitness room High-speed internet Laundromat Also: Small in-hotel convenience shop to buy breakfast or snack items.

dates: 7/4 - 7/5 Got this one for $42 on HOTWIRE, which came out to $55 after taxes and fees. I usually use PRICELINE but decided to try HOTWIRE for a hotel in Richmond. Hotwire has one advantage over priceline that they tell you what percentage of their reviewers recommend it. HOTWIRE had one 3-star hotel for a great price and it was recommended by an astonishing 95% of hotwire guests. It seemed like a sure bet. I looked at the Hotwire Virginia hotel list and saw that all the 3-stars for this area of Richmond are all nice well-known brands. What a surprise when I got none of the hotels on the list instead got a completely un-heard of place called the 'Aloft', which is part of the Starwood chain. From what I've seen of the photos, this hotel is an extremely modern, trendy place with a decor that would most likely appeal to the 20-something crowd. Think Euro-chic or a Nightclub in Copenhagen or something like that. (See photos here) It looks way too modern and minimalist for my tatste but I'm trying to reserve judgment about it until after my stay. I'll post something more after I've stayed there. Anyone wishing to book a 3-star in Richmond should be aware that you may get this hotel. If it's your kind of place, great. If not, then you just have to keep in mind that you're getting the luck of the draw when you do PRICELINE and HOTWIRE. By the way, Aloft should be added to the Hotwire hotels for 'Richmond West - Glen Allen area Hotel'.

Just about everything was wrong with my stay here, from the first minute when they told me only SMOKING rooms were available. (Yuk!) Priceline is really to blame for that because they don't guarantee a non-smoking room, and your room is pre-paid with no refunds. Then they told me you have to pay for WiFi, even if you're only staying one night. (Who charges for WiFi these days?) The rooms were pretty small and the beds hard (felt like a cheap mattress from a mattress warehouse place). No pool, no free coffee, no breaksfast. To be fair, I had been staying at 2 and 3-star places recently, so it was a bit of a let-down. Best thing about it is the kitchenette if you are staying a few days, and the Waffle House not far away. Also, it is clean and safe, and probably okay if you just need a nights sleep and are not expecting anything else.

In my experience, the 2-star hotels on PRICELINE may be an Extended Stay places. These places offer a basic, but comfortable room, but breakfast is never included. I have received breakfast at many other two-star properties, such as the Fairfield. 1-Star properties such as Days Inn usually do include some type of breakfast. It may be just basic continental, donuts, cereal and coffee, possibly do-it-yourself waffles. Sometimes 1-star properties are the Extended Stay Crossland, a very basic room, also with no breakfast. I love a good breakfast buffet, but there is no way to guarantee that you'll get one. You should take it as an extra bonus when you do, rather than something you come to expect. Your best bet is to bid in the 1 - 2.5 star levels if breakfast is important to you, realizing however, that that is no guarantee of getting a hotel with breakfast. PRICELINE bidding is good training for being happy with what you get. it's a tremendous bargain, but it's the luck of the draw and it's up to you to make the best of it. Keep in mind that Extended stay does offer you a kitchen, so you can save money by heating up your own food. But, PLEASE don't leave your dishes for the hotel staff to wash. They are underpaid and overworked and don't have time to do your dishes. In fact, most places add an extra charge to your bill if you leave your dirty dishes in the sink. Yes, I HATE it when they keep upgrading me to the Crowne Plaza or the Hyatt Regency when what I really wanted was the Motel Six! :)

Room Cost: $38.00 (USD) Number of Rooms: 1 Number of Nights: 1 Room Subtotal: $38.00 (USD) Taxes and Fees: $11.85 (USD) Total Room Cost: $49.85 (USD) 4 out of 5 stars on TripAdvisor Reviews 29 out of 30 reccommend on Expedia Reviews

"'slip a little something' to a desk clerk" ... People should really think twice about this. Technically this is not just a little "trick" but an illegal bribe. Bribery is a form of corruption. Most likely you will not get in trouble, but your $20 'tip' could cause the desk clerk to lose his/her job. it is no different than slipping a $20 to the officer who is about to write you a ticket. Bribery and corruption are endemic to many third-world countries. Many people complain that when you go to those countries 'everyone expects a bribe'. Do you really want to create the same situation that exists in those countries?