Residence Inn by Marriott Kansas City Downtown/Convention Center — Hotel in Kansas City

Residence Inn for me is predictable: minimalist, no frills, but nice and comfortable, and certainly spacious. I never expect anything special, and I'm always satisfied. But, that doesn't mean that these properties can't improve, and they seem to be consistent in that aspect as well.||This property has a great location, about 20 minutes from the airport and in downtown Kansas City right near a KC Streetcar stop, as well as just a few minutes' walk from several restaurants. Union Station and the Crown Center are only 8-10 minutes away on the Streetcar (if that), and Kauffman Stadium/Arrowhead are about 25 minutes by car. If the Royals ever build a downtown ballpark, then this location would also be quite close to that.||Service at this Residence Inn is good. Front desk staff is nice and so is the restaurant staff. Customer service is not an area where they lack. Rooms are also nice - again, this brand is minimalist and nothing is fancy, but everything is clean and comfortable. You always have plenty of space, especially if you can manage to get a 2BD, which we could not on this trip. The pull-out sofa mattress was awful, but I managed to make it comfortable for my son by using a second blanket as a buffer between the rest of his sheets and the mattress itself. My only other complaint about the room was the thermostat: I had to set the desired temp at 55 to get the room to cool to 72 or so. Granted, it was incredibly hot the three days we were there, but even with curtains closed, the system struggled to keep the room cool.||Complimentary breakfast: the Courtyard and Residence Inn share a building, but only Residence guests can have breakfast as the dining room is key-controlled. The breakfast is what you expect at properties like this: a few hot items that rotate with a constant of scrambled eggs (reconstituted), pastries, cheap yogurt, cheap juice, etc. It's decent and nothing special.||Amenities: this was a mixed bag. Although my son loved the pool and we spent some time having fun in there, the fitness center is downright awful and such a waste. There is plenty of space, but so much is truly wasted. The property could offer a pull-up bar or cable station with a pull-up bar. It could feature some kettlebells. It desperately needs to have more than ONE bench, a rack of standards dumbbells, and a few cardio machines. I truly don't understand why a property designed for long-term stays (hence the name "Residence") offers so little in the way of fitness equipment. All Residence Inns do a poor job in the fitness center offering, but this one was particularly bad. The dumbbell set, which normally goes from 5 to 50 lbs., was missing a few individual dumbbells. When you offer so little to begin with, that's unacceptable.||There is a lot to like about this property but it could stand some major improvements in the fitness center and the quality of the room thermostats and...

Since we had attended an event at the Kauffman Center for Performing Arts and purchased a parking pass, we left our car in the garage there overnight (with permission and another $3.00) and walked the 2 blocks to the hotel, thinking we'd save some money on parking. However, if we have more than one bag, we will use the valet service next time, because the walk back from the hotel to the KCPA is up a relatively steep hill, and the trek wouldn't be worth the savings on parking. If I want a workout like that, I think I'd much rather use the fitness center on site! We were upgraded upon arrival to a 2-room suite, which was a nice surprise.
The room was spacious, comfortable, clean, and well-maintained, and the city view was lovely, especially at night. The thermostat was easy to find and use, and the "Master" light switch made it easy to turn off all the lights before going out. There were plenty of linens, pillows, and towels, and although the beds were a little on the firm side for us, they were still comfortable. We appreciated that there were several channel options available on the TV menu (including Netflix and YouTube), and plenty of outlets at the desk where we could plug in phone chargers, as well. We only stayed a single night, but I could easily see that the kitchen area would come in very handy for a longer stay. Due to timing, we didn't eat in the Bistro this time around, but will give it a try next time. I do wish it was open later. Instead, we got a recommendation from the front desk for a restaurant within walking distance that was open until midnight. We also took a short ride on the streetcar afterward, since it was free, and so close by. In some hotels, customer service can sometimes fall by the wayside in favor of convenience and cost-cutting, but not here! Good customer service is obviously a priority at Residence Inn, which I truly appreciate. The staff is excellent, and I think they are what makes this hotel one of the very best in Kansas City! We found each staff member we spoke with to be professional and welcoming, helpful and friendly. The complimentary breakfast in the morning was a welcome bonus. All the items looked and tasted fresh, and there was a nice variety from which to choose. Staff was busy keeping everything well-stocked and fresh, but never too busy to assist a guest or answer a question.
Overall, I would recommend this hotel, and we will be staying here again...

The hotel seems nice, but the service was just awful. Trying to figure out parking was a nightmare. First, the employees park their car in the garage entrance from the street (blocking), so I had to reverse back on to the street to get out. Just post a sign that says "No Entrance"! Or better yet, spend the money on a simple barrier. The whole time we were here that entrance had a car parked in it at different places. Wonder how many guest experienced what I did. Seems like a liability issue. The when we did get to garage, we noticed sign at gate entrance that said valet only but at least 3 cars behind us. We called front desk to open and they said we had no reservations. We asked her to check again and she said no. We asked her to check again and she got frustrated with us and opened gate so that we could go in and out. We did and parked in open lot. We went inside frustrated and guess what? The associate checking us in found our reservation! No issues. But when we tried telling her about the parking garage she did not listen and quickly said she would add charges for valet parking. Nooo!! I told her we did not park in there. We got out. She then said, okay, I will waive parking charges. "Waive"? She acted like she was doing me a favor! So we tried telling her that we didn't park there because someone told us we didn't have reservations there and the other employee came over and said, "That was me." She told the other employee without ever looking at us. "I couldn't find it" and then walks away. No "I'm sorry " - NOTHING! The person who checked us in kept blaming the Courtyard for the confusion and I just said, your not getting my point give, just give me my keys. It had been a long day! If we hadn't been so tired, I would have just canceled and left!!! Never staying here again. Definitely not the experience I would expect...