Kimpton Hotel Palomar Philadelphia

We were very disappointed with our stay at the Kimpton Hotel Palomar Philadelphia. The hotel feels dated and is in serious need of renovation and better maintenance. Our room was clean, but the bathroom needed several repairs (see photos). The shower door wouldn’t close fully, a tile was broken, and the shower valve appeared to be close to breaking. The sink was small and looked like a relic of the 1970s. The elevator doors squeaked, and the elevator floors did not appear to be cleaned frequently enough. Given our experience, we were surprised to find this hotel included in @The Edit by Chase Travel. We expected a much higher standard.

Kimpton Palomar is well located near Rittenhouse Square, which is probably the only compliment and reason for 2* rating. Kimpton Palomar is in desperate need of a renovation, at least to maintain its current room rate, brand and status. Rooms are eh. Would have much preferred a newer but lower rated hotel. We also arrived on the later side so made the poor decision to eat the hotel restaurant, which we rarely do and should have known better. Square 1686 overcooked the steak to well done, did not bring two of our three dishes until reminded, incl. the appetizer. Valet seemed to care less to either park our car at arrival, or eventually return the car at departure.

We stayed for two nights for our anniversary. We loved this hotel and would stay again. We booked a king with a jetted tub and were graciously upgraded to a higher floor with a view. The room was clean and had everything we needed. Very thoughtful with more towels than any hotel I’ve stayed in and an umbrella in the closet. The front desk staff were so friendly and made checking in and out very easy. I can see where some reviews say the rooms could use a fresh coat of paint but honestly we loved our room and would stay there again. Everything was clean and comfortable from the bed, pillows, to the couch in the room. The location was within walking distance for dinner and shopping. We used a nearby parking garage because it was cheaper but the valet front door staff were friendly. We were on the 22nd floor and elevators were fast. It’s a safe area with a lot nearby.

Here's my all facts, no fluff review of the Kimpton Hotel Palomar Philadelphia. When I arrived to the hotel, the front door bellman, an African American guy (I am sorry I didnt get his name) greeted me, immediately and insistently took my suitcase out of my Uber and to it to the front desk so that I could check in with ease. I was greeted with a warm smile from Akira and Liezel, at the front desk who checked me in. Polite small talk from both. They shared that the hotel had a 5pm happy hour in the lobby for guests and served wine and popcorn (but it was much more than that I discovered later when I attended the happy hour). Before going up to my room, I perused the decor in the lobby and the flickering cozy fireplace caught my eye. It was nicely decorated. The area by the elevators was a bit dark but I figured it was done on purpose to evoke coziness. I over heard another customer say that it was the darkest hotel he had ever been too. I was okay with the warm cozy feel of the decor. I arrived to a clean room and bathroom. It was traditionally decorated with a little modern twist. The mattresses were pretty firm. I was okay with it but my sister thought it was too firm for her liking. We requested extra towels and for maintenance to fix the slow water flow leaving the tub in the bathroom. The bathroom has a traditional tub with a shower. They fixed the slow drain by the time I arrived back to my room from my outing. Back to the happy hour. In addition to the red wine, white wine and popcorn, the chef from the hotel restaurant Square 1682 brought over appetizers that were great and went well with the wine. The hotel gave my sister and I free bottled water upon request. They also gave us food vouchers for their in-house restaurant (I'm sure this was in the cost of the room, but the gesture was nice). The stay at this quaint hotel in walking distance from Rittenhouse Square, five star restaurants (The Love, Parc and Square 1682) and shopping was worth the stay.

Expect a great experience at Kimpton. Issues in first few hours. 1- no streaming services or ability to change input on TV. 2- guest services always say short hold and then don’t pickup. 3 - called about where to find ive and told in the gym only. Didn’t offer to have any brought up. I can get better service at a two star hotel.