The Westin Richmond — Hotel in Tuckahoe

Have you ever merely approached a parking lot of a hotel and clearly knew there would be a difference in this stay versus other hotels? That it would be set apart from your typical hum drum hotel that you might usually stay at? Well, for me personally, this was one of those special times that just sweeps you right off your feet (in a good way). In approaching this hotel, its not just squeezed in between fast food places and other hotels, but rather its own separate entity with no other hotels squeezed in to make you feel like things are overcrowded. Here you had space to park wherever you so chose without having to hunt the world over for a civil spot. Here at the Westin you are welcomed upon walking in, greeted with a smile, and everything truly looked bigger and better then the pictures even presented within their website...if that wasnt a welcome suprise to be sure!

The hotel is beautiful. It's spacious. It's clean. The staff are hardworking, friendly, and would do whatever it takes to make sure your stay here is a wonderful one....not just an "ok" experience...but actually a WONDERFUL one! It was so nice to have fresh fruit to grab and go upon checking in or walking through their lobby each day as well as fresh fruit infused water. It made me feel safer to have the key check that you had to use in order to get to your floor via the elevator. My room was beautifully clean, actually smelled fresh, very welcoming, neutral calming colors, and just "little" touches through out the room and hotel that made my entire stay phenomenally good. I was SO impressed!

One thing that stood out was the comfortable sheets and bed/mattress itself. This may sound silly, but being pregnant, its REALLY hard to get a good night sleep anywhere but my own bed. But this bed, this sheet and comforter set, was PERFECT....I mean EXACTLY what I needed in order to get a good night sleep the two nights I was there. I actually had to check what mattress it was so that I would know for myself what mattress was "just right" in my book, and so thankful they invested in such great matrresses for their guests! The Concierge Lounge had just what I needed as far as starting my day off right with a good breakfast, snacks to go, and the heavier evening "snacks" were just as enticing and could be easily classified as a meal as well.

Its hard to explain how simply wonderful this stay was for me, but hoping in some small way I have done this impeccable hotel justice as well as wet your appetite for the reality of how truly GREAT this place is. Even the pool and hot tub were kept clean, were the perfect temperatures, and spoiled you with BIG FLUFFY TOWELS (not those measily run of the mill ones that hardly drys off an arm and a leg because there THAT small). I hope one day to come back to this hotel of my dreams....but until then, I will just have to savor the memories it left me with. Perfect memories that truly have ruined me for most other hotels that leave you with empty promises and ups and downs and highs and lows of the good, the bad, and the ugly of their hotels....the Westin will leave you feeling refreshed, important, rejuvinated, well fed, and wanting more of what they have to offer. From the General Manager to their Cleaning Staff, they are doing a LOT right here, and you WILL want to experience this place firsthand or you truly will be missing out on one of THE best hotels Richmond...

This is the second time I have stayed at the Westin Richmond and unfortunately this time my experience was not as good. Two years ago was the first time I stayed there. I went with my daughter (4 at the time) for a night away together, it was amazing, and I could not say anything was bad. It was so nice that as I was planning another special night away, with two daughters now, 6 and 2, I knew I wanted to stay at the Westin. The hotel itself is very nice and the rooms are still comfortable but the food quality has definitely gone down. The first night we ordered room service and the food was ICE cold. It was inedible. They also only provided one set of silverware so we had to call back to get more. They also messed up my order and I ordered 3 dinners but only got two. In the end that was a good thing because my kids didn't end up eating it. The broccoli wasn't cooked, it tasted like they only dipped it in hot water. The pickle tasted off as well. The French fries and burger were cold and the burger bun tasted stale. In the morning we went to the restaurant to eat thinking that maybe it would be better because the food would be hot. We were wrong. The restaurant was not busy but it took an hour to get our breakfast and it was cold AGAIN. The waitress didn't even ask how the food was or bring more coffee to the table. I had to ask once she finally came back (and as a mom with two little kids by herself I really needed multiple cups of coffee)! The room was pretty nice. The bed and pillows are really comfortable and the bathroom was clean. There was some mold in the shower but I can understand how that happens. The comforter cover zipper was broken so the comforter wasn't fitting properly. I would suggest they replace them as the break. We also used the indoor pool. It was nice and the pool was clean. The whirlpool was out of service which was a bummer. They had towel and plenty of seating which was nice. In additional, the first time I stayed, when we check in they gave my child a very cute bag of activities/items. This time, at check in they didnt give us anything. I remembered later in the evening so we went down to the front desk to ask for the activities. She said she didn't know what I was talking about but would ask the manager. The manager did come out and gave us a kids activity booklet and coloring pencils. I guess they are cutting cost because the first time she got multiple things in her bag (disposable camera, activity book, other items (sorry I can't remember everything that was in the bag)). The first time we stayed there the one thing that impressed me the most was how they treated the children and the gifts they gave kids. It made her feel special. I know, it's just "things", but I was just so impressed the first time because I have never seen a hotel do such a thing for kids. It was one of the reasons I decided to go back there again so I was a little disappointed. In the end, I think I would have been much more satisfied with my stay if I didn't eat there. I would still suggest staying at the hotel but please do waste your money...

The human’s review:||We were looking for a hotel for Memorial Day weekend in Richmond where: (1) we could bring our dog, (2) be able to park our car, and (3) could walk to nearby destinations.||We couldn’t find a property that satisfied all three criteria, so we jettisoned the third and chose the Westin. It’s the tallest, and probably the newest, structure in a 1970s style office park featuring boxy buildings — the largest of which contains the headquarters for Phillip Morris’s corporate parent — separated by acres of parking. With a couple of exceptions noted below, there was little to walk to. The hotel was a 10 to 15 minute drive to most of the city destinations we visited; my experience has been that Richmond traffic is not congested.||The corporate part of the office park is dead over the weekend, but the Westin managed to attract a diverse clientele. During our stay, this included people such as us engaged in combination family/sightseeing activities, teenagers participating in athletic tournaments, and people attending a wedding. What they find is staff that is efficient and attentive without being overly familiar, and rooms that are comfortable, spacious, and well designed enough that my biggest problem was locating switches for lighting fixtures.. ||There is one attraction within walking distance. At the western edge of the office park, about a seven minute walk from the hotel, is the most nicely landscaped Walmart I have ever visited. There are also several adjacent fast-casual food establishments.||Alas, the Westin’s comfortable (albeit not luxurious) accommodations have a similarity with the accompanying buildings: they are entirely anodyne. The lack of character or local color would not preclude us from returning, but explains why this property does not warrant a higher rating (which would be 4.3 if I could be that granular)..||Our dog Oswald’s review:||The Westin was definitely a step up from the midscale roadside properties to which my humans had previously taken me. The room was spacious. There was plenty of room for the humans to put my bed from home without their being in my way.||Another plus: the office park about which my human directs snippy commentary has a good-sized lake with a walking path just beyond the hotel, Going there was certainly more pleasant — and more odiferous — than having to trek across a parking lot for my daily walks. ||Indeed, during my trips to the lake, I would frequently encounter other canines staying at the Westin. There were quite a few there during our weekend stay. (Unlike some of the midscale properties I’ve patronized, however, staff does not tend to dote on the dogs.) There were so many, dogs that they were scattered throughout the hotel — and not all placed on the second floor, as the hotel’s website suggests. Since we were on the fourth floor, I had to use the elevator. I’d never been on one before, and I’m no puppy. I didn’t like it. (My human advises me that this was due to me; the elevator...