Stay Report: avid hotel Richmond North - Ashland, an IHG Hotel (Glen Allen, Virginia - January 2024)

 Stay Report: avid hotel, Richmond North
comment below and let me know your thoughts :)

I was traveling and needed to stop so I was looking for a hotel in Richmond, and through my search I found avid hotel.  Avid hotel is a new concept by IHG hotels aimed at budget conscious/minimalist travelers and I wanted to experience this new concept so decided to book it.  It was very easy to book the hotel through the IHG website and afterwards through the app I could see the hotel amenities as well as what services my level of membership would get me.                                                                                                         From the outside, the hotel looked brand new and had lots of parking.  As you stepped inside, you entered into a large lobby area with lots of seating and dining tables.  At the front was a small check-in desk and at the back was the complimentary tea, coffee, and hot chocolate, microwave, as well as where the 'grab'n'go' breakfast is located.  Checkout took a bit to get the key and explain all the details of the property, but once I had my key I made my way up to the room.

The room itself is basic but room enough and has all the basic amenities.  As you opened the door, on the left was the entrance to the bathroom and after that was a storage rack with a place to store you luggage on top as well as hooks with hangers to hang your stuff on.  Next to that was a small section which contained a small ironing board, and underneath the luggage rack was a fridge as well as cubby hotels with additional storage and the iron.  The bathroom was also a decent size and contained a sink with counter space, a toilet, and a small stand-in shower.  The shower was the only thing that looked small and prefabricated (and thus a bit cheap) but overall the bathroom was decent and had Dove toiletries next to the sink (hand wash and lotion) as well as in the shower (body wash, shampoo and conditioner).

The bed was located along the left side of the wall and I had a king-size room which the bed size and comfort were decent and provided a good nights sleep.  On either side of the bed were two small nightstands with plugs as well as USB ports on either side.  Across from the bed, along the right side of the wall, contained additional hooks to hang your jacket/clothes, a TV mounted along the wall, and a long desk underneath that along with a TV-tray/mini table underneath the big table.  The big table was great to do work as well as eat and the mini-table provided extra storage for the work and food.  Overall, the room was a decent size, comfortable, had the basic amenities that a guests need, and provided a good nights sleep.

The hotel does provide additional amenities for the guests including complimentary parking, complimentary wifi, tea, coffee, and hot chocolate available all the time, grab'n'go breakfast, pool as well as a gym.  I was only there for a little while so only experienced the complimentary parking (lots of spaces) and the complimentary wifi which was strong and was able to connect multiple devices.  Had I stayed longer I would've enjoyed the complimentary tea/coffee/hot chocolate, the fitness facility as well as the breakfast.                                                                                                                                     Overall, it was a nice hotel with lots of amenities and services for the guest.  The room was comfortable, provided a good nights sleep, and the wifi was strong.  Staying at this hotel did remind me of another hotel and it seemed that avid hotel is IHG's answer to Tru by Hilton (check out my review here).  Tru by Hilton is one of Hilton's newest properties aimed at the budget-conscious and these two brands mirror each other very similarly.  It seems that IHG, Hilton, and others implementing the US version of ibis hotels with these hotels (check out my ibis review here). 

Stay Report: Hyatt Centric Old Town Alexandria (Alexandria, Virginia - April 2022)

 Stay Report: Hyatt Centric Old Town Alexandria, Virginia
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I was travelling to Alexandria, Virginia and needed to stay near Old Town and during the search for a hotel found the Hyatt Centric.  I have heard about Hyatt's Centric brand which builds itself as local, boutique hotels but had never experienced the brand so decided to check it out.  It was easy to book and modify the hotel either through the Hyatt website or the Hyatt app.  The hotel is located on King Street which is the main street in Old Town but in an area where there are not many services around.  The metro is a couple of minutes walk away as well as restaurants, bars, and convenience stores which are all within walking distance but not next to the hotel.                                                                                                                          You enter the hotel lobby and in front are the check-in desks and to the right is a seating area and bar a couple of steps down below and the elevator on the same level.  Check-in was alright but it could have been better service; I am a Hyatt member but did not get a welcome as a member and there was no one in the hotel but the check-in attendant acted like they were very busy and the entire process was rushed.  We checked-in and proceeded to the room.

When we entered the room, there was nothing outstanding or anything that stood out and made this aunique or a special hotel room; it was an average hotel room.  You enter the room in a little hallway with a bathroom on one side and a closet and coat hooks on the other side.  The closet contained a mirror on the outside and inside was a place to hang your clothes as well as an iron and ironing board.  The bathroom was a decent size and had DryBar toiletry products - the bathroom had a shower along the entire backwall and in the foreground was the sink on one side and the toilet on the other side.  There was enough storage in the bathroom as next to the sink there were also shelves in the wall that provided additional storage spaces.  

Back in the room, on the left was a stand with the coffee maker and complimentary water on top and below was the fridge and additional storage.  It was a nice area that provided more space to put things and it was a nice touch.  Further into the room, along the right side were the two double beds with a desk in the middle.  The beds were comfortable, big enough and provided a good nights sleep.  Across from the bed, along the left-side of the wall, was a TV mounted on the wall and then a desk with a chair - the desk was a decent size but I have seen bigger in regular Hyatt's.  There was a window along the back wall which faced out onto King Street and there was a couch and lamp next to the window to provide extra seating.  Overall, it was a nice size room with good amenities but there was nothing distinctive about this room or nothing that made this room stand out against a regular Hyatt or other-brand hotel room.

The hotel is a full-service hotel so there are a lot of amenities including wifi, a restaurant and bar on-site, a fitness center, and a concierge.   We were there for work so did not have time to try all the amenities but did try the wifi which was decent and fast enough for basic email and streaming videos but did encounter some issues when using the wifi for work.                                                                                                                                                      Overall, it was a nice decent size room with good amenities.  The location was decent as it was within walking distance of many items.  Hyatt's Centric brand builds itself as a local, boutique hotel and I did not find anything local nor boutique about the hotel.  It was nice but it was a standard if not modern Hyatt hotel.