Kimpton Hotel Monaco Denver

I really wanted to love this hotel but sadly, it was not to be. The pros: The staff was very polite and professional. The location was good, close to the 16th St Mall but not on it. The attached restaurant was excellent. There was a wine hour followed by a free shot at the front desk. We ordered breakfast room service. The food was good with huge servings but it was lukewarm. Cons: The most hideous decorating in the lobby, halls, and room I've ever encountered. Our room had huge windows looking over some beautiful old buildings but it was one of the most uncomfortable I've stayed in in a long time. The shower had mold in the corners. The sink faucet was ready to fall off. It took ten minutes to get hot water and the sink had almost no water pressure. The bed mattress was horrendously uncomfortable. The TV stand doubled as a dresser with a small refrigerator on one side and hotel room safe over several draws on the other. The handles on the doors were loose. The hotel safe swung open as soon as the door was opened and could not be secured shut making it difficult to access the drawers. Wall paper was peeling. All the furniture was chipped. No windows could be opened making the room stuffy especially since the Air Conditioner unit was noisy. We reported to the front desk that the fan was loud and when the AC went off the fan emitted a high whine that was impossible to sleep with. The first night we turned off the AC but the stale air was unbearable, the second night we turned the AC to it's lowest setting so it wouldn't go off and the fan wouldn't screech. My partner reported the fan as a possible hazard in the morning and in the afternoon he finally contacted the desk again. He got a text saying the fan was faulty and had been reported and a new one was on order but hadn't arrived before our stay. So they just put us in a room they knew had a faulty AC fan that whined? They did offer to move us but since it was later and our last night there we opted to stay. The room where the wine hour was held was barren with a bright, overhead light fixture and random furniture scattered around. However, it was free wine, which was nice. Actually the wine and the nightcap weren't free as there is a $30 amenity fee. That included two bottles of water in the room. The hotel was just a disappointment.

The hotel’s parking garage is valet-only for $65/night, so we spent about $10/night to park in a garage one block away. Upon arrival, there were no available luggage carts. This made it an extreme hassle to go up and down with our luggage and two cats. There was also only one working elevator. There are some smells. Some ok and perfume-like, some do not smell so good. The $30/night amenity fee is kind of ridiculous and unnecessary.. It covers: two bottles of water per day, $10/night credit in the restaurant, a gym, coffee (limited hours per day), nightly wine hour and a nightcap (shot of liquor). They also have bikes available for rent. We didn’t use any of the amenities other than the water because we were out and about so much. The room was nice with a high ceiling. Like I said, we had two cats, so we were in a pet friendly room. The decor was really nice, but not well kept. Wallpaper is peeling, there were scratches and dents on furniture and picture frames, and the bathroom door had a hole and visible damage. Water pressure was just OK. Hot water finicky. Wifi was awful. It was generally pretty quiet. Great location for walking around downtown. Overall, does not fit the four star hotel expectation. Choose this hotel if you genuinely can’t find another pet friendly room downtown, but otherwise, pass.

The amenities of the hotel were plentiful. The morning coffee bar in the lobby was fully stocked and a nice change of pace from the usual boring hotel keurig machines. The beds were comfortable. I liked that there was a reusable water refill station in the gym. The lighting in the actual hotel room was not as bright as I usually prefer. The dim lighting with the darker decor made it feel like late evening even when it was mid day. This was partially due to my windows looking into a parking garage. We had to keep the sheer curtains pulled to prefer people from seeing directly into the room. We also were not impressed with the WiFi speed. It was very slow and at times didn’t work. The front desk staff were not personable. I felt like a bother when I had to ask questions. They didn’t offer smiles or friendly greetings, which is odd for the hospitality industry.

This hotel was absolutely beautiful. I was told it’s over 100 years old but well preserved and the decor was beautiful. My room was comfy and cozy. The lighting in the room was a bit dark. It would’ve been perfect. If it were a romantic getaway however it made it very hard to see even with all the lamps on. I had a small problem with thermostat, but it was taken care of right away. The only drawback was that the main elevator was not working (I think it was being renovated) so everyone had to walk through the restaurant to the back to ride the service elevator. It was a bit annoying.