Marriott New Orleans

When I was preparing for my recent New Orleans trip, I shopped around a bit online for a reasonably-priced hotel room in the French Quarter. I was torn between the historic Monteleone, Iberville Suites, and the Marriott at 555 Canal Street. I finally went with the Marriott where I got a AAA rate of $89/night. It did not disappoint.

Canal Street

Marriott is my favorite hotel brand, because it’s upscale enough to have all the amenities I want in a hotel, without being too “stuffy”, generally has great customer service, and their beds are the most comfortable I’ve ever slept in on the road. I loved the location of this Marriott on Canal Street, which is reportedly the widest street in America. It’s also very well-lit at night, which was most welcome to me since I’m nightblind.  In addition to being within easy walking distance of Harrahs Casino and Bourbon Street, The Marriott is also within easy walking distance of many very good restaurants.  Two streetcar lines are right across the street.

View from room 2623

Check-in was quick and easy. I was given room 2623 in the River Tower, but I did not have a view of the river. I did have a very nice view of the city of New Orleans, though, looking toward Bourbon Street, the Monteleone, and St. Louis Cemetery. My room was conveniently two doors down from the vending and ice machines, yet not close enough that the noise ever bothered me.  The bed was, indeed, very comfortable. All the furniture you would expect to find was there.  The bathroom was clean, with plenty of counter space for my vast array of toiletries. The water pressure was terrific. The towels weren’t quite as fluffy as I like, but that’s a minor thing. What really surprised me was the lack of a room safe. (My note in my journal reads: “Marriott has no room safe—WTF???”) I was shocked. What upscale hotel doesn’t have room safes any more? Well, the Marriott apparently. They do have a safe behind the front desk should one need to use it, but it was too much of a hassle for me.

Room 2623

The elevators here take a little getting used to. Guests punch their floor number into a touch pad at the elevator bank, and the pad indicates which elevator to take. Guests must take the elevator they are assigned,because there are no floor buttons inside the elevator. I watched with amusement on more than one occasion as people impatiently got into the first elevator that arrived. I wondered when it would dawn on them that they were going to have to get off that elevator somewhere and get on another one to go to their floor. Bummer for them.

The 55 Fahrenheit Lounge (which also serves as a sushi bar) is located right off the lobby. I had a drink there one night and it was fine.  I had the Marriott’s buffet breakfast on my morning of departure at the 5 Fifty 5 restaurant. It was the best (and healthiest) breakfast I had during my stay. (More on this in a future blog post.) I also ordered up a good club sandwich late Saturday night from room service.

The one thing I really feel is lacking at the Marriott is in-house entertainment. At the end of a long day of walking, I wanted to sit and listen to music right in my own hotel. Because the lounge is open to the lobby, a band would be impractical (too loud), but a pianist might be fine. I think they should consider that.

Bed in room 2623

As to whether the Marriott has “the” most comfortable beds in New Orleans, well, okay…unless I were to sleep in every bed in New Orleans, how would I know? But they are uber comfortable, with great bedding and plenty of pillows. And if you stay on one of the higher floors, you won’t be close enough to street level to hear the kind of revelry and traffic that might keep you awake at another hotel.  So if getting a good night’s sleep is important to you when you travel, you can’t go wrong here.

I give the Marriott an A+ in all categories and would gladly stay here again.