Hotel Grinnell — Hotel in Grinnell

I am so torn over this place. I’m a Grinnell alum and I love the fact there is now a hotel literally a few blocks from campus, right downtown. But, as a few other reviews have mentioned, there are areas in which this hotel falls short. |First, the good. My bed was comfy and my room (a suite) was huge. My room had a little fridge which came in handy. And, again, the location was fabulous if you are visiting campus (or Grinnell in general). There is a very nice bar with a limited menu attached and there is an absolutely gorgeous patio off of the bar/restaurant. It has tons of comfy seating and I think three or four (I forget) seating areas with fire pits. Hotel was full this weekend (reunion) and I was shocked that more people didn’t make use of that part. I think the lack of customers accounts for two unfortunate facts: it does not open until 4pm, and every night we were there they closed up shop around 10pm because it was absolutely dead. I fear for its ability to stay open, frankly. |As for the hotel, I have to agree with others. It was incredibly expensive. We understand that it was reunion weekend, so they were probably charging as much as they could, which makes sense. But for New York prices, I was kind of expecting much better amenities. I had no toiletries in my bathroom (was given some when I requested). I also had no bath robe, which was advertised. They offered to give me one, but I declined. At that point I just wanted them to know in case they were going to think I stole it. But if something is listed as included, I expect it to be there. The same can be said for the fact that it advertises that you can stream from your own device onto the TV. Even though I was in one of the most expensive rooms, I could not. I had friends staying there this weekend as well and they told me the tv in their (normal, non-suite) room had that ability. So I don’t understand why a suite wouldn’t have the same ability. Again, it’s listed as an amenity so it should be there. The towels were nice and my shower was ridiculously large, but the outlets near the sinks did not work (no matter how many times I tried to reset the GFCI). The “industrial” feel of the room meant there was no dresser in the bedroom. In fact, there was nothing for clothes storage in the bedroom. There was a big shelving unit in the living area that had a closet rod, but on the base of that section was the mini fridge so your clothes either hit the top of the fridge or you used the one inch or so of bar that didn’t have the fridge below it. And you pretty much would put your clothes in the other shelves of that unit. So all your clothes would either be in full display in the living area, or you would simply never even take them out of your suitcase. There was not even a luggage rack in the room. It was a weird configuration, considering I was thinking that the living room would be a place for my friends and I to gather, but I didn’t need them looking at all my stuff. But there was nowhere in the bedroom for them. There was a bench at the foot of the bed that was so narrow my bags couldn’t even just sit there. Also, the furniture in the living area was comfy, but the futon was missing a bunch of buttons and had a fair amount of stains on it. The ottoman was visibly extremely dirty.|When the front desk was staffed, they were nice. But, it was usually not staffed, with a sign (mentioned in other reviews) to call a number if you are there and they aren’t. Piece of advice: don’t get your hopes up. I did want to talk someone once. Called three times. They never picked up. I can’t say that I blame the staff, because they were nice. Maybe they just don’t have enough staff.|I think the hotel has no central air, which seems crazy to me. But we all had little window units in our rooms. I was worried about its ability to cool a suite but my room was okay. Of course, it’s not the dog days of summer. I’d worry that it can’t handle those. |Overall I just can’t say I’d stay there again. It doesn’t matter to me as I really don’t get back there very much. But I hope they can improve on some of these things because I’d really love for this...

I would not recommend this hotel to literally anyone. I booked for a 7-night stay and only ended up staying one (very uncomfortable) night.

1. I made my reservation over the phone, and they quoted me a nightly rate of $245, despite it being listed as $158 on Expedia (which is why I was calling...I was there for a work trip & am not allowed to book through a third-party company), and $173 on their own, actual website. They also weren't transparent about the fact they were going to charge me that much...I had to explicitly ask for the nightly rate. They ended up matching the Expedia rate in the end, but I still thought it was strange. (But it seemed like the nicest hotel in Grinnell, so it kind of felt like I had no choice.)

2. After arriving at the hotel and settling in, I headed down to the hotel restaurant, The Periodic Table. The person at the front desk had mentioned that it was open until 10pm when they checked me in. It was completely empty when I walked in. I asked the guy at the bar if he was still serving food. He went to the kitchen to "check" and then came back out and told me they weren't. This was at 8pm, 2 hours before they were meant to close. I was starving at this point, so I decided to just go out for food. As I was passing the front desk, I asked the guy there when the restaurant stopped serving food. (Not to be a Karen...I just wanted to double check the time for the next night.) He said they closed at 10pm, so they should serve food until 10pm. I informed him that the person working at the restaurant had told me something different. The front desk person was super nice about it, and offered to comp some of my meals.

3. My bed in my original room was covered in black hair. At first, I thought it was my dog's fur from my sweatshirt or something...until I lifted up the covers and noticed there was black hair all over the sheets...and the pillow....and the underside of the comforter. I called the front desk and asked for new bedding, and they upgraded me to the "penthouse."

4. The "penthouse" was a fresh set of horrors. Pretty immediately it was apparent that the room didn't have heat. I went to turn on the thermostat, and the remote was working, but the heating certainly wasn't. That's when I noticed there was a space heater running in the corner of the room. I debated for about a half hour whether to call the front desk again because I didn't want them to think I was being difficult, but I'm cold at the best of times, so I caved. The guy at the front desk said that the heat WAS definitely on, as long as the remote was on. I knew I was high key being gaslit about this, but I had had such a rough day that I decided to just spend the night with the space heater on and pointing directly at my face the whole night. (Allegedly, the heat does not work at all, at least in the "penthouse"...though I did see one of the staff carrying a space heater to another guest's room as I was moving to the "penthouse"...I think it's pretty weird that the owner makes the staff lie to their guests about the lack of heat...in the middle of winter...in Iowa....allegedly.) The next morning, it was still cold. Even though I turned the thermostat up to 85 degrees before I left, by the time I arrived later to move hotels, it was still just as freezing cold.

5. The shower sprayed water all over the bathroom (the faucet was clogged), & you need an engineering degree to figure out how to turn on the hot water. The bathroom showed clear signs of wear and tear, with the floor tiles coming up from the floor.

6. The hotel is in an old school, and it's not cute. In fact, it's depressing as heck. The hallways are dark, and frankly creepy, and the design elements are weird. I know the owner will probably say something about the awards that they've won, but I'm not seeing it. It felt like they bought all the art from the discount section at TJMaxx and tried to pass it off as "modern" and "you just wouldn't get it" chic.

Staff is amazing though

Stay at the Cobblestone Inn. You'll be much...

My fiancé and I came to Hotel Grinnell for the first time to stay for our 5 year anniversary, since we would meet up in Grinnell for dates years ago, being long-distance. I knew the hotel was unique from seeing pictures on the website, but the pictures don't even do it justice! The hotel is so incredibly unique in that it incorporates a wonderful fusion of the old schoolhouse feel with modern twists! The rooms are spacious, beautiful, and clean; the beds are extremely comfortable, and the little touches like the whiteboards and locker room benches remind you of the building's history. Stepping into the hallway, you are again reminded of the building's history, with some of the original flooring of the school intermixed with modern carpeting; you can also imagine where the old lockers used to be against the walls, with the classrooms, now guest rooms, to the other side. Exploring the building you will find the old gymnasium, now a ballroom, and a beautiful auditorium that looks to still be in use. The Periodic Table, the restaurant on the ground floor, was also delicious and fun, a place to have wonderful tacos and delicious drinks while playing with their wide selection of games. We did not stay long enough to enjoy all of the amenities they offer, which also included rental bikes, sports equipment in the old gym, and more! This place is truly unique, and, being huge history buffs, we were both so enamored with the well preserved nature of the old building intermingled with the modern decor. Anyone looking to stay in Grinnell should choose this place without a doubt: beyond the awe of the building the staff is kind and extremely helpful, and communication with the guests is flawless. Their internet was also top-notch if you need a good connection during your stay. We greatly look forward to coming back and staying longer next time- this place is...