THE TENNESSEAN Hotel

I arrived at The Tennessean excited about the stay, but left after less than two hours, out roughly $200 and needing to book another hotel. The front desk interactions felt cold from the start, with no greeting. My first room had a strong chemical odor that made me feel ill, and the phone didn’t work, which I needed for business calls while using my smartphone for other tasks. They were reluctant to move me, but eventually did. The next room was directly over a party the hotel was hosting, with bass so loud the room vibrated. I went straight back to ask for a refund, but was denied both a refund and another room. I asked if they were a sister property to the Marriott next door and was told The Tennessean was completely independent. I later learned that wasn’t true. After this lack of customer care, I accepted losing the money and left. The associate I dealt with was Avery, and the person presented as the manager was Peyton. I used to work at The Marriott Downtown in Austin, TX, and have rarely felt compelled to write a review, but this was horrendous and expensive, since I also had to pay for another hotel. I’ll share this elsewhere too. No paying guest should be treated this way, especially at a property that presents itself as higher-end. Travelers beware.

I ran into a couple of small room issues, but the team went above and beyond to sort them out. The service was hands down the best I’ve had in the US, the kind I’d only expect in Europe. It made my stay twice as enjoyable. Knoxville was a first for me, and I’m excited to come back and stay here again.

The room was clean, comfortable, and well-appointed, with an especially elegant bathroom that seemed newly upgraded. The valet team was consistently professional and courteous. But my otherwise nice stay was dampened by the hotel’s handling of the American Express Platinum $100 hotel credit. I asked several staff members before and during the visit, and each confidently said I could use it at certain onsite restaurants. Nobody mentioned that the charges had to go on the room rather than be paid directly with the Amex card, so the credit didn’t apply. When I called afterward, the response was dismissive and unhelpful, essentially that nothing could be done. After being repeatedly given incorrect information, that was frustrating and unprofessional. I hope management trains staff better on Amex Fine Hotels & Resorts benefits so future guests don’t run into the same problem.

Some of the staff were so nice, especially the man in the bow tie, and the location is great. Still, I was disappointed this time. My room wasn’t cleaned consistently even when I requested it, and the elevator and common areas weren’t very clean either. It was hard to get someone to answer the phone when I wanted to order room service. At night, the staff weren’t happy to help even though they weren’t closing for another 45 minutes, and they said most items were unavailable.