Magnolia Houston Tribute

This was my fourth stay at the Magnolia Hotel Houston, and unfortunately, the experience seems to be declining with each visit. My first stay here was amazing, and the second was also very good. However, during my third stay, the hot tub was not functioning properly, and I was disappointed with some of the changes made to the restaurant. The previous brisket option was removed and replaced with a pork loin sandwich that, in my opinion, was a significant downgrade. The hotel also switched its beverage contract from Coke products to Pepsi. I normally don't have a strong preference between the two, but when you are serving mixed drinks, Pepsi is simply not a good substitute for Coke in many traditional cocktails. Unfortunately, this fourth visit was even more disappointing. The hot tub is STILL not operating correctly, even though approximately a month has passed since our previous stay. We called twice during this visit to report the issue, yet it was still not corrected. For a hotel of this caliber, having the same amenity malfunctioning for more than a month—especially after guests have reported it—is difficult to understand. Then there is the coffee shop at the front of the hotel. This space used to be operated by a different coffee business and is now Press & Pour. It is actually a very nice-looking spot, but the operating hours mean very little if nobody is there to open it. It is supposed to open at 6:00 a.m., yet at 7:30 a.m. it was still closed with no employee present. If Press & Pour is operated or managed by the hotel, then this reflects very poorly on hotel management. Either staffing needs to be addressed or employees need to be held accountable for arriving on time. Guests should reasonably be able to rely on the posted operating hours. At the very least, if the coffee shop cannot consistently open as scheduled, the hotel restaurant should be able to prepare the same beverages for guests at the restaurant. What makes this especially disappointing is that I know how good this hotel CAN be because I experienced it during my first couple of stays. I expect occasional problems at any hotel, but repeated maintenance issues, declining food choices, and amenities not being available during their advertised hours are not what I expect from the Magnolia Hotel Houston or a Tribute Portfolio property. If this were a lower-tier hotel, I might be more willing to overlook some of these issues. But the Magnolia presents itself as a higher-end establishment, and the service, maintenance, and management should reflect that. I really hope management takes these concerns seriously because I have enjoyed staying here in the past and would like to see the hotel return to the standard that made my first visit so impressive. First stay 4 1/ stars Second stay 4 1/ stars Third stay 4 stars Fourth stay 3 stars

Not what I would expect from a 4 star Marriott property. We arrived just after 4:30pm and not a staff member in sight. After 10 min a valet came out and took the car. When entering the lobby it was dark as not all the lights were on. Not the typical customer service we are use to. We had to approach the desk before being acknowledged. Seemed to be a bother for them. No sort of welcome or thank you for being a Bonvoy member. No mention of where the elevators are or ask if there is anything to be done to make our stay better. Just here's your key. So not a good start. The room was fine as we were on the 13th floor, but the view was not very good. The room was a nice size and decor was ok. There was a hair stuck to the bathroom wall and spots all around. The shower curtain rings were all bent and looked poor. We went to the pool on the roof and were overwhelmed with the smell of fish. No idea of where it was coming from but we all noticed it. Day two the staff were still not at the level I would expect. Food in the restaurant was great and the wait staff were awesome. Location is nice for getting to Meowwolf or the Houston Tunnels. Day three even at checkout the staff just didn't seem to care. Maybe I am too use to going to the JW or other properties. For the remainder of the week we stayed in a Courtyard in Clear Lake and their customer service was top notch. Unless some things change we will be staying elsewhere next time.

This hotel has extremely high highs and surprisingly low lows. The property itself is beautiful, the decor and lobby feel upscale, and the staff has been phenomenal. Everyone I've interacted with has been kind, helpful, and welcoming. Room service has also been excellent—the food arrives fresh and hot with silverware, napkins, condiments, and everything you need. The service is honestly one of the best parts of the hotel. Unfortunately, the maintenance and upkeep don't match the quality of the staff or the appearance of the property. The vending machines I checked on multiple floors were nearly empty, with very little selection. More concerning, there was a dead cockroach in the seventh-floor vending/ice area that remained in the exact same spot from Thursday through Saturday. That made me question how frequently these secondary common areas are actually being cleaned or inspected. There was also an EXIT sign on the seventh floor that had detached from the wall and was hanging near the floor. These things may seem small individually, but they really diminish the upscale atmosphere and make me wonder how routinely maintenance is inspecting the property. The plumbing was a bigger concern. My friends initially had to change rooms because their toilet wasn't working. Then the toilet in my separate room stopped working and required maintenance, and my bathroom sink drains extremely slowly. Having plumbing problems in multiple rooms involving different fixtures makes it seem like there may be a broader maintenance issue. I also found some of the room design impractical. The toilet paper holder is positioned so low and close to the toilet that it actually hits my legs when I'm sitting down, so I had to remove the roll from the holder. The shower water also leaves an unusually slippery/film-like feeling on the skin, although I don't know whether that's specific to the hotel or the local water. Overall, the aesthetics and customer service say upscale hotel, while the maintenance and upkeep say something very different. That's what makes this stay so frustrating—the things this hotel does well, it does exceptionally well. The staff is wonderful, room service is excellent, and the property is beautiful. But empty vending machines, neglected common areas, visible maintenance issues, and plumbing problems across multiple rooms shouldn't be happening at this level of hotel. With more consistent maintenance, cleaning of secondary common areas, and attention to the small details, this could be an excellent property. Right now, though, the contrast between the phenomenal service and the property's upkeep is hard to overlook.

Firstly, this hotel is sitting right next to a prison building with homeless walking around everywhere. Check-in representatives were extremely busy, which is understandable due to the astros game. Moreover, when paying for the stay the price was more than listed online and the room wasn't even ready. The representative told me I would be contacted when room was ready (never happened), and gave me a complimentary drink voucher for the wait. Afterward, I picked up my belongings/luggage from car and left the car in the Valets "care." Valet were always on their phones and were not very attentive towards clients, I was literally standing in front of three valet attendants and none were available apparently. I went back inside to see potentially if the room was ready - I spoke to another lobby representative and she said the room was ready and gave instruction about breakfast and the pool. My room became ready in 5mins after being told it would take 30mins, there was a lack of communication to not only the guest but also amongst the staff, and more importantly my room wasn't even ready according to the reservation time. Room was spacious and cleaned upon arrival though, throughout the stay IT WAS NEVER CLEANED NOR TAKEN CARE OF. The pool, great view. Pool was green-ish; length and feet wise - dramatically small. Pool is 3ft all around and so is the hot tub. The only thing great about this hotel was the breakfast. Food was filling and decent. Shout out to Mr. Robert, very attentive and conversational; always made sure if we were okay. Robert either needs to be promoted and or transferred to another better job that qualifies his hospitality skills - the man was much more pleasant then the lobby representatives, that says a lot.