The Georgian Terrace Hotel

The location is great and walkable, and I liked being able to leave my bags before check-in and explore. The lobby was nicely decorated for Christmas, the staff were friendly, and having a restaurant, bar, and cafe on site was handy. But we paid suite prices and didn’t get much for them. Our suite had a living area and a separate room, but no full kitchen, and without paying for the kitchen there was no microwave or even a refrigerator. The bedding was extremely thin, the room so crowded that drawers and the closet barely opened, and the TVs and hair dryer were old. The balcony door had been nailed shut. Only one elevator worked, with a crazy wait, and you couldn’t take the stairs up. There was no laundry soap and no way to buy any at the desk. It’s a nice hotel with potential, but luxury rates for outdated rooms and missing amenities are unreasonable.

The restaurant staff were really kind, especially Uylsses and a woman whose name I can’t remember. That was about the only good part of my 12-night stay. The included breakfast offer is misleading: it’s a $35/day credit, not cumulative, and tip comes out of it. In practice that leaves at most $28 minus tax, so even ordering coffee means the rest of a meal will push you over the limit. The breakfast quality was low enough that I gave up during my last two days. The hotel looks glamorous, but it’s badly outdated. The couches were uncomfortable, the washer and dryer were oxidized, the windows let in the outside, and this was the first hotel where I needed to turn on the heat. There was no small fridge for food or drinks. For most of the 12 days, only one elevator worked, which made getting up and down a long wait in a nearly 20-story building. The gym is large with nice views, but its equipment is old. Service was incompetent and seemed willing to do anything except help. At check-in they asked if I wanted daily cleaning. I agreed to every two days, but the room wasn’t cleaned during the final 6-7 days. When I asked for an invoice at the end, they said, “Expedia should give you a receipt.” After checkout, I realized I’d left something in the room. I called three times, and each time I was put on hold until the call dropped. I only got my item back because friends went to pick it up.

We picked this gorgeous historic hotel mainly because it’s just a 2-minute walk from Fox Theater. The staff were exceptionally friendly and helpful. After checking in, we wished we’d had more than one night to stay.

If you’re expecting a high-end stay, please choose somewhere else. The Georgian Terrace calls itself a luxury hotel, but only the lobby and reception felt that way to me. Parking costs extra, and even after paying for the stay through a service like AirBnB, you have to put down an incidentals deposit at check-in. Those charges might make sense if the rooms were cared for and stocked. Ours had no fridge or coffee maker, water damage on the furniture and ceiling, and badly applied paint in messy layers, the very definition of “the landlord special.” The TV only had cable, on a set that looked like it came from Goodwill, while even Holiday Inns have smart TVs. We’d forgotten toothbrushes, which was our responsibility, but reception didn’t have any available. The outside elevators had puddles of urine on the floors and smelled strongly of it. I hate leaving negative reviews, but I’d be more comfortable at Hotel Indigo next door or a cheaper mainstream hotel.