Residence Inn By Marriott Philadelphia Bala Cynwyd

“A Fine Hotel in a Great Location.”

The Iron Works. A retro look that fooled me for a day or two. It is not a construction site! It’s a very cool look. The hotel is a little off the beaten path, but in a great location. If you go out the front and turn right, it is a short walk across the pedestrian bridge to Manyunk, with many r… more

The Iron Works. A retro look that fooled me for a day or two. It is not a construction site! It’s a very cool look. The hotel is a little off the beaten path, but in a great location. If you go out the front and turn right, it is a short walk across the pedestrian bridge to Manyunk, with many restaurants and shops on Main Stree. It doesn’t take much more time to drive there, though it’s a longer distance. If you are a cyclist, the Pencoyd Bridge will put you on Main St., and you can pick up the Schuylkill River Bikeway just to the north. You can ride to Valley Forge and beyond on excellent bike paths. And, it is very convenient to The Hearth at Drexel retirement community if you are here to visit someone there. Nice to have a suite. My wife came down with a cold on the flight from Rome. She stayed in the room or on the hotel grounds for the first four days, until she felt better. She enjoyed the large TV that swiveled, so she could watch some horrible drama from the living room or from the bed. There was a nice dressing area, a good-sized closet, and a nice bathroom with a walk-in shower. The paper goods and the linens were of good quality. The kitchen was well stocked, had a regular refrigerator, two burner cooktop, microwave, and a dishwasher. There were adequate supplies for dishwashing, etc. Although I could have cooked my own breakfast, I enjoyed the free buffet downstairs. Breakfast was generally very good, with a variety of eggs, meats, cereal, yogurt, juices, bagels and breads, but bananas for oatmeal were scarce, and they ran out of raisins the last two days of my stay. I would have liked to try Lark Restaurant, but my wife had a cold and we chose to bring in food and eat at the dining table in our room. While recovering she enjoyed the cafe in front. After traveling for two weeks, I appreciated the laundry facility. I got there early and ran two loads while reading. I was able to continue my journey with clean clothes. Bottom line: We will be back.

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“We'd go back!”

Our suite had a kitchen with a full size refrigerator & freezer, 2 burner stovetop, microwave, sink, & plenty of counter space. We liked that the nightstands by our bed had drawers for various sundries. Many hotels just provide a shelf on either side of the bed, resulting in no privacy for storin… more

Our suite had a kitchen with a full size refrigerator & freezer, 2 burner stovetop, microwave, sink, & plenty of counter space. We liked that the nightstands by our bed had drawers for various sundries. Many hotels just provide a shelf on either side of the bed, resulting in no privacy for storing personal items. There was a sofa opposite a large work space area with a counter & chair. There also was an area between the bedroom & bathroom with a mirror, 2 large deep drawers under a countertop, & 3 open shelves on one side. A closet was on the opposite side. I appreciated that the bathroom shower had 2 ledges & a shelf to place toiletries. Many hotels don't provide an area inside the shower to place personal toiletries that you've brought with you. I took off 1 star though, because there was no covered overhang by the hotel entrance (which incidentally wasn't marked well either). As it was raining when we arrived, it was awkward (& wet) taking our luggage out of the car. Obviously, this would be an issue if it was snowing as well. I would recommend that this hotel provide a porte cochère (or minimally a canopy) by the entrance!!! Lastly, my husband noticed that the fan in the bathroom wasn't working. Bottom line though is that we had a comfortable stay &, if we were in the area, would go back to this hotel!

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