MO Kansas City Homewood Suites Airport

[Welldone Rumproast]

The bid information for this stay is found HERE

Homewood Suites properties, geared towards the extended stay market, are mostly of recent construction, and this property is no exception. The attractive low-rise complex is about 4 miles from the airport terminal complex.

Airport Access

The hotel provided free shuttle service; however, here is a warning if you are arriving late in the evening (as I did): their shuttle driver goes home at around midnight. The hotel will reimburse you for taxi fare, however, a) they do NOT reimburse the gratuity and :) securing a taxi isn't as easy as it sounds. Keeping in mind that many taxi drivers need to wait in a "holding pool" before they can go to pick up passengers, they might refuse you when they discover the short distance to your destination. In my case, I was turned down once but turned on the charm (yeah, right) and got the second driver to take me (the fact I promised a decent tip, not my dazzling good looks, was probably a greater factor in getting an acceptance) :o

Check-In and Check-Out

Check-In was efficient and friendly, and my cab fare was immediately refunded (the clerk asked me o get a receipt from the driver). I politely asked about HHonors and was politely turned down (as expected).

The PL reservation was for smoking, but the clerk was able to find me a NON-S unit :)

Check-Out was painless, and the shuttle back to the airport runs every half-four (during some hours they share a shuttle with the neighboring Embassy Suites).

Room

As per the Homewood Suites standard, the unit was a one-bedroom suite, with full "french" doors separating the living room/kitchen from the bedroom and bathroom.

The living room was laid out like a small apartment: A small dining table just inside the door, behind which was a full-size refrigerator, stove, microwave and dishwasher. To the left was a sofa (sleeper) facing the first of two large television sets.

The bedroom featured a king bed, desk and, on the dresser, a second large television. The closet area (with floding mirror doors) was across from the sink area, which also housed the hair dryer. The shower-tub and toilet were behind another door.

Each room had a phone with data port. There was wired high-speed internet access (Wayport), which wss provided at $9.95. The charge applies from the time you first access until the hotel's check in time - in this cade, it would have been 3:00pm.

Somewhat oddly, the Wayport connection was not at the desk in the bedroom but rather at the dining table. I'm not sure if this was due to the way the hotel building wiring was installed :confused:

The good, the bad and the ugly:

:D Good blackout effect for drapes

:P Good lighting for reading and at the desk

B) Lots of cable channels (extended stay places usually do better, since their target guest is there for a long stay)

:) triple-sheeted beds, iron and board provided, plenty of towels and good-quality soaps and shampoo (though no separate conditioner)

:) Good (but not super-powerful) water pressure

Restaurant

There is no full-service restaurant. The lobby area features a complimentary breakfast which was not too bad. A make-it-yourself waffle area seemed most popular. There was also a variety of juices, cereals breads and a limited amount of fruit. They also had what I'll describe as "pre-fab egg circles" - think of a small sausage patty (also served), and the egg was the same size and shape. Unfortunately, these were luke-cold as they were kept in an unheated serving dish (there wasn't a microwave). The coffee was very good and half-and-half was provided.

Hotel Area

The hotel borders a office complex, so there is no "city-life" around it. When departing, I saw a few restaurants just past the Embassy Suites that could be walked to (weather permitting).

[zbenye]

The Homewood Suites I stay at in San Francisco offers high-speed internet for free... I'm surprised to learn that you can't expect the same amenities at all locations of a brand.

A tip about HHonors: If the desk accepts your number, your account will show the night count, but you won't get points or miles. If, on the other hand, you do not present your card at all, but wait until your stay is over and then submit a missing stay credit request on www.hiltonhhonors.com, you will occasionally get all: night count, points and miles. (Be sure to enter your FF # in your profile; do not rely on entering it in the credit request form. For $amounts paid, simply enter your bid amount and the total paid to PL.)

[bturner13]

Z! FYI--But if one is a HH Gold member and one presents his Gold card at checkin one usually gets upgrades and amenities. I know because I am a HH Gold member & it works for me. :)