The Ritz-Carlton, Cleveland

I have stayed here a few times. It is always consistent and a wonderful stay. I always get upgraded to a suite. The suites are perfect. But, so are the regular rooms. The club room is a must. It just nice to be able to go there any time of day and have a nice selection of snacks and the Club attendants are wonderful. The restaurant has a nice atmosphere and great menu. The workout room is incredible. The locker rooms are so relaxing and the sauna is sensational. Overall, this is the best hotel in Cleveland.

My wife and I stayed there in February, not to anyone’s fault but as we were trying to check in, there was a fire somewhere within the building. We had to park several blocks away, again no biggie. When we were checking in, the entire lobby and in our room smelled of smoke. Again no biggie but we paid for the club lounge and we were beyond disappointed. For an almost 5* hotel how can you serve sliders that are dry, buns rock hard and cold sides. Breakfast in the lounge the next 2 mornings….again we PAID for this amenity and sad to say….even if it was free…we still would have went to McDonald’s. To top it off the beyond expensive wine pouring machine….did not work. I was about to book a weekend getaway surprise for my wife and my anniversary….but for the price, not worth risking that the Lounge is below par again.

Anyone who is use to the luxury the Ritz Carlton normally provides is going to be well disappointed in Cleveland. They slapped some wall paper added some crown molding and call it the Ritz. I will say they do try. The staff is very nice and they do try their best to take care of you. The Ritz normal standards of excellence struggle here but they try.

The last time I stayed here, I gave the hotel an excellent rating and had many great things to say. This time around, not so much. On the positive side, the property is in a great location with plenty of dining and shopping options within walking distance. There are also several nearby self-parking options if you choose not to use the hotel valet. The common areas are attractive and appear well maintained. The room was clean, spacious, and quiet. Overall, the accommodations were nice, but they’re beginning to show signs of wear and tear. I had a room with two queen beds—one of which had a noticeable dip in the mattress. It’s definitely time to rotate or replace that mattress, because that's the kind of detail I’d expect from a budget hotel, not a Ritz-Carlton. Check-in was confusing. I used the mobile app, but as the day went on, I noticed I still hadn’t been checked in. I sent a message through the app and was checked in a few minutes later, receiving a mobile key. Unfortunately, the mobile key didn’t work, so I headed to the front desk. There, I was first told I wasn't checked in, then told I wasn’t in the system, and finally told I had, in fact, been checked in earlier that morning through the app. I was asked to show my ID twice and then asked to swipe my credit card, even though it had already been swiped and authorized for the stay. In short, the check-in process was chaotic. While I usually don’t give these things much thought, I did find it odd that the staff went out of their way to recognize the couple ahead of me for their Titanium status, while all I received was a room key so I could access the elevator and a 'have a nice day.' I genuinely hope this experience was the exception and not the norm. My next stay will tell me whether this was just a fluke, or whether this is another hotel that has simply lowered the bar in a post-COVID world.

Assuming a typical Four Seasons or Mandarin Oriental sets the standard for what five-star hotels should look like, the Ritz Carlton Cleveland is a solid 4.5. In its favor, the property is lovely, the food is good, and the rooms are well-appointed and modern. The staff were all friendly and the Club Lounge is a must-add upgrade. The fitness center is also great. This does feel like a property that should have a pool, though. Keeping the Ritz Cleveland out of the conversation of the true five-star properties are small issues like the valet not asking if he could help with our luggage, waiting for a few minutes at the front desk unacknowledged while three employees were working on their computers, and a general lack of anticipating wants and needs and going above and beyond to make our stay memorable. For example, when learning that my family and I were going to a Guardians game, asking "how was the game?" when we returned would have been a nice touch. These are not huge negatives by any means, nor would they preclude me from staying at the Ritz again, but with some small and thoughtful tweaks, this could be a special place. As it is, the Ritz is by leaps and bounds the best hotel in Cleveland.