Hi-Lo Hotel, Autograph Collection — Hotel in Portland

Like many of us, I looked at the 4+ star rating of this hotel and the fact it's Marriott Brand, and thought no brainer. Here's the thing, I would rate this a solid 3+ stars. But not a bad 3/4 stars, like if you find yourself staying here, you will have a pretty good time I'd bet. The rooms are clean, the bathroom finishes are really solid, a quiet room, etc.

So why 3 stars? #1) The vibe (70% of the rating). I can't tell what it is but the lobby, bar area, hallways, and rooms have this feeling of something just being off. I can't tell what exactly it is. It has a rather cold feeling despite uses of plants, warm tones, etc. It really bothered me to the point where I do think if you could, you'd be better off staying in a different hotel (e.g. The AC Hotel by Marriott, also close by). I wanted to grab a drink at the bar or maybe a snack, but while the photos of the bar look good in pictures, it is totally cold and uninviting in person.

#2) The beds are too soft (20% of the rating). If you like really soft beds that depress in to the point where you wake up a bit like 'oh wow this bed IS really soft' feel the next day, then you will be fine. And similar, the in-room coffee setup didn't have any bottles of water to pour the water into the coffee machine, there was no mini-fridge despite the app saying there was, the bathroom door would not stay open/it would shut by itself, and the thermostat was hard to adjust.

#3) Absolutely no recognition for being Platinum (10% of the rating). I don't care about status from a 'look I'm better than you' perspective but just some basic features I look forward to spending half a year in hotel rooms. First is the supposedly 'guaranteed' 4PM check-out which I did ultimately get but not easily. Second, the 'enhanced room upgrade' Marriott claims for Platinums was basically null. I had to ask for it twice on check-in (politely), but it wasn't even a suite despite being low occupancy (I could be wrong about this but the way I gauged low occupancy was #1 - price of rooms & suites relative to other nights - I checked multiple times day of check-in to evaluate, #2) remaining inventory available for booking on night of stay, #3) anecdotal observations of number of guests, housekeeping areas, etc). I mention this here because the feeling that my loyalty was actually a bother to the staff, rather than a nice welcome, was actually so troubling to me that I really started questioning if I should even retain staying with Marriott loyalty wise. Like why bother? Again, I know these items I reference are 'as available' but the real bother to me was the delivery of the messaging. I've stayed at many Marriotts in the past year and let's just say I've had pretty low upgrade rates etc, but never left feeling like 'why does Marriott hate me' vibe as I did with this specific hotel.

If I could go back and pick a different hotel, I would have either stayed at the Moxy or the AC Hotel, both of which I was actually favoring when I was booking, but I decided on this property thinking it would be a fun experience. An experience it was, just not the experience I was looking forward towards.

Again, no one was rude to me; Everyone was fairly decent. The place is clean, room was quiet. I did sleep well after all, so in the end, it was just a very average hotel stay, but one that I will change next time to find the experience...

I stayed here with a group of friends in July (2025).||I booked directly with Marriott finding that to be the best rate, using a AAA discount.||I selected this hotel because it was recently opened (newer) and in a great location.||I took the Amtrak train into town, so I didn’t need to park a vehicle. However, there is a pay lot next-door to the hotel that sells parking for about $26 for a 24 hour period.||We booked several rooms. Upon arrival there were some snags getting the names attached to the correct rooms. The hotel apparently overlooked the email I had sent them explaining which confirmation numbers to attach to which name. It took some time to figure it all out, but I think we finally got there.||Despite that issue, I found the front desk staff to be nice. The hotel permitted an early check-in without an added fee.||The room I was assigned was on the fourth floor facing the main street. I guess you could call this a city view room. The first thing I noticed, and didn’t appreciate, was that the room had an adjoining door to the room next door. I strongly believe that it’s best practice for the front desk to ask if this is okay with you or not before assigning you to such a room. I decided to do my best to ignore the oversight and move forward. Overall, the rooms are on the compact size, but functional enough. The rooms are modern and clean. There are some cosmetic blemishes starting to show with use, but still, being a newer property, it shines. I appreciated that the room had a desk area and clothing iron. The beds, while comfy, were low to the ground, which I personally don’t like. ||Housekeeping seemed to be on-demand, which wasn’t explained to me at check-in. However, I was only there for a weekend, so this didn’t really affect my stay.||The hotel was down an elevator. So, it was a struggle waiting for elevators. I took the stairs when I could, but that wasn’t always practical if you needed to go directly to the lobby, vs. out to the street.||I did stop by the fitness center, which I found to be better equipped, and with higher quality equipment, than a typical hotel gym.||The bar staff were great, and it made for a fun place to hangout. Likewise, the lobby has a welcoming vibe with a fun “porch” swing.||A late check-out was quickly shot down by the front desk staff.||I think there are some areas for improvement. Perhaps quickly fix any down elevators by calling in a service tech, even if outside of typical business hours. It might be helpful to inform guests at check-in if they are going to have an adjoining room, and how the housekeeping system works.||I would stay here again, but keep an eye on how well Marriott keeps-up...

First and foremost, I had a great stay.

My traveling companion and I arrived around 2:30PM on a Saturday for a 3:00PM check-in, and our room was already prepared. At check-in we were told we had been "upgraded" to a top floor, corner unit (#603) that is ADA-accessible, if that suited us. Note that there are only 6 floors, and I had already reserved a high-floor, kingsize-bed accommodation for a one night stay. While an upgrade was unexpected at my current status level and it was phrased by the front desk associate almost as if it may not be a real upgrade due to the full tub/shower and grip bars, I still appreciated it and agreed to take it.

I was happy with the room. It's located at the western end of the hallway through a shared outer door across from #604, with which it shares a sort of mini-corridor that could be converted into a sort of two-room adjoining suite completely sealed off from the main hallway. We never saw any neighbors. Inside the room, the decor is modern and cohesive in aesthetic. The high ceilings in the room and abundant natural light were striking - a plus in my opinion. We found the room to be clean, quiet, and private, which is always ideal. Besides the design, some highlights were the luxurious towels and slippers, the comfortable bed, and the clock radio which contained charging ports with (very short) cables compatible with new and old iPhones and a mini-USB suitable for my Android phone. There were also plenty of well-placed outlets throughout and light-switches by the bed that turned off the room and bedside lights.

The only real problem with the room is the orientation of and space around the bed, which made it feel smaller than a king. The bed can only be accessed from one side (left as you look from the door) and is right against the window curtain on the other side. It only has one bedside table as a result. Fortunately my traveling companion was my girlfriend, and it didn't prove problematic for us logistically to share one beside table and access point. It worked for us, but traveler beware -- if that sounds inhospitable for your specific traveling circumstances -- don't take that same upgrade.

The service was pleasant and professional if a bit slow at times. It's also nice to have a choice between valet and self-parking in downtown, though we used the valet.

We didn't try the hotel restaurant but with so many great options close by, you can't really go wrong around...