Red Lion Denver Downtown Hotel

, Denver, United States
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Red Lion Denver Downtown Hotel

3 star

Rooms: 171

1975 Bryant Street - Denver - Colorado - 80204 - United States Hotel Website | | 303-433-8331
183 Traveller

Reviews - Red Lion Denver Downtown Hotel

Historical Traveller Reviews of Red Lion Denver Downtown Hotel

Not for the real business person

from dcortesi
This is an OK place for a non-business traveller. However it is not maintained or staffed in a first-class way, a two-star rating is more accurate for service. The shuttle service to downtown is useful but can be slow -- one guy, with a rather beat-up van, and you can wait many, many minutes to be picked up, depending on where he is and who is already on board when you call.

For the business traveler, do not be misled by the Red Lion website -- the only in-room internet is by unplugging the phone and plugging in your modem. Wireless in the lobby only, where there is no comfortable place to work. The advertised "business center" is a cruel joke! It is an unheated room the size of a large closet containing a small desk on which sits an old Dell with a 17-in CRT monitor. That's your only access to quote high-speed internet unquote. If you want it on your own laptop, you can fumble around and try to unplug the cable from the old Dell and plug it into your machine, but this is not encouraged by the hotel.

Also the telephone system just doesn't work, when someone tried to leave us a message they could not, it kept dumping them, and the front-desk staff couldn't figure out why. And when we tried to retrieve the message from the room, that didn't work either, and the staff made multiple attempts and finally the message disappeared. Deadly for the business user!

OK stay for the money

from A TripAdvisor Member
I stayed at the Red Lion for a trip to a conference as most reasonably priced rooms in the city were booked out at that time - there were 2 big conferences in town.

The rooms are OK, but nothing special. If you're after somewhere to sleep, then this is a well-priced option.

The location requires more effort. It's a 5 - 10 minute drive to the city, which is fine if the shuttle is ready to go, but you can end up waiting over 30 minutes for it. The front desk staff never seem to know when it will come, so when you ask for a taxi, they just say the shuttle will be there any minute, which is sometimes far from the case. I had to start being very strong and saying no, I definitely want a taxi. Then the value for money of the hotel decreases and precious time in the city gets wasted.

The staff (except for a couple of shuttle drivers who were really nice and helpful) really need prompting to take any notice that you need help with anything.

t Return

from BobAdams111
This hotel was obviously nice at one point. However, a lack of good housekeeping and maintenance has degraded this building significantly. I made a reservation for a non-smoking room. As I checked in, I had to return to the front desk four times to properly fulfill that request. I effectively got to see four rooms as the first three rooms they gave me were not up to par.

Room #1 - Smoking Room
Room #2 - The room was not cleaned. Bed was untidy. Towels Used.
Room #3 - Although it was a non-smoking room, the room smelt like smoke.
Room #4 - Non-Smoking Room that was fine. They gave me a discount and several other free things to accomodate my hassles.

The hotel is obviously used and worn and there are visible signs of untidyness in the common areas. The bathrooms are old and need updating.

Staff is extremely friendly and obviously embarrassed by the above problems with my room. They are the #1 positive for this hotel. Shuttle service to downtown is convenient and much appreciated.

Hotel restaurant has nice views but food is just about average.

Overall, I felt like the hotel was dirty and I would definitely not return. I've never really said this about a hotel but I feel this deserved it.

Loved this hotel!

from A TripAdvisor Member
My family has stayed at this hotel numerous times and picks it whenever we go to Denver. The food and service from room service is wonderful! It is downtown and the Red Lion furnishes free shuttle service within a few miles of the hotel. We most of all love the kind, courteous people who work at this fine old hotel.

Believe all the other reviews...

from Traveling George
We also got shafted by priceline... No way is this a "3 star" hotel. When we arrived only smoking rooms were available. The room and hallways were musty and smelled of old smoke and b.o. We left the window open at all times which seemed to help at least in the room. It's a tiny little room that holds the shower and toilet. You can barely open the door when standing inside. The bath fixtures were all very dated. We didn't even bother with checking out the pool or restaurant. The staff seemed overworked and also not happy to be there. The one positive is the room is so rank it forces you to get out and enjoy the city. The location is such that if you have a bike with you, or a healthy long walk, there is a nice path that leads you directly downtown. Note that while the location is "downtown" it's not a quick walk out your door to anything worth seeing - unless your visiting Invesco field.

Red Lion - Marginal in Denver

from john-bob
This hotel is past its prime. Rooms are wedge shaped and cramped. The whole thing feels dingy. Found a bug or two in our room. Rooms tend to be a bit stuffy even though the noisy air conditioner is on full.

Their swimming pool looks like some ghetto pool. very dingy area around the pool. Water was clear but they don't always run the pumps so quite a few bugs accumulate on top of the water.

Their shuttle will leave you waiting for 30 minutes or so, so I would reccomend driving..

Heaven forbid if you have to do laundry. There are 3 sets of washer/dryers. 1 set on like the 4th, 7th and 10th floor. The room is so cramped and hot as to be unbearable.....barely standing room. You can't wait in there with your clothes or in the hall...way too hot. Oh yeah...the staff tends to be cranky

Two upsides: Nice view from the restaurant up top and the hotel is close to six flags and downtown (you gotta eat at the great wall in downtown...great hole-in-the-wall chinese food),

Not even worth 1 star!

from apkesh
I've been booking with Priceline for almost 4 years now and I must say almost 100% of the time, they've been correct with their star ratings and location preferences, well, except for this time!! Few weeks back, I went on Priceline and picked a 3 star, 'down town' location, and got the Red Lion in Denver, Colorado for roughly $60 bucks. This hotel was in no ways 'down town' and way out in what any one would consider urban (it's next to a sports arena folks!!). To get to anywhere, one had to either have their own vehicle or need to take their shuttle which runs every 20 minutes or so.

What made the stay worse was really not the location, but the temperature in the room!! I stayed there with my pregnant wife who is going 6 months now, and all night the heater was blowing cold air. I called downstairs to complain about the heat, and was explained that it is 'central heating' the hotel relies on, and the hotel has decided to turn off the heating for the night and there is nothing they can do about it. I asked for a portable heater, and was told it was on it's way, but it never came. In the end I ended up having to cover my wife with all the blankets in the room just so it was warm a bit warm! We called in the morning and complained to the manager the situation, but it's been over 3 days and no one has gotten back to us.

I should also mention the amenities in the room were either old or didn't work, like the iron which took forever to work, there was no tea bags (I asked, and was told they don't stock the rooms with tea bags, only coffee!!), and the blankets had a slight moldy smell to them.

I am a consultant who stays in average 3/4 of the year in hotels and when I say this hotel doesn't deserver 3 stars, trust me, I know what I am saying!! I would recommend anyone that's booking through Priceline for stays in Denver 'Downtown' to really watch out, if it's not your lucky day, you might end of going through the same --- as we did!!

John N

Red Lion

from A TripAdvisor Member
My husband and I have stayed at the Red Lion several times on mini-vacations. We've always loved the staff there, they have always been helpful and friendly to us. I admit that the rooms could use a bit of freshening, and I do wish that there were refridgerators, as well. We usually go to a hockey or baseball game while in Denver, and the free shuttle has always been great to get around the downtown area and avoid parking craziness at games. Juan has been the driver there for the last couple of years, and we always look forward to seeing him.

We've priced other hotels that are in the actual downtown area, specifically right near 16th Street Mall, and the prices seem outrageous: $150-$200 plus! I don't think you can beat the price at the Red Lion for what they offer.

Worn out and noisy!

from A TripAdvisor Member
This round, '60s looking, 14-story tower hotel is just west of downtown and next to I-25. The noise from the freeway is incessant and grinding. Don't believe the four stars in guides -- maybe when it was new, but that was a LONG time ago! It is now very worn and dumpy. They do their best, but grubby is a word I would apply to the rooms. I wore my socks or shoes the whole time rather than let my bare feet touch the carpet.
You do get a table and a desk chair, and a chair and ottoman for sitting and reading.
Internet: Their website boasts high-speed internet. No way! In the rooms, it's dial-up only with a charge for all calls. They may have high-speed internet in the business room, but that's only one terminal.
But the aluminum-framed windows are surely original, and their weatherstripping is shrunken, so they admit a steady stream of noise from outside. The light-blocking curtains really don't help.
Lobby is glass and marble. Staff friendly. The restaurant on the top floor had a great view, food price average, quality like Denny's.
The round design means all hall noise carries to all the rooms. BIG crack under door needed pillows to block the light and a little noise.
Don't stay on the 12th floor: It's right below the restaurant and the kitchen noise is a real problem until it closes at 10 p.m.
Main thing going for it: Next door to the stadium.
Wouldn't stay there again unless I had no other choice.

Horrible, Horrible, Horrible!!!!!

from A TripAdvisor Member
What a crappy rip-off. My 79 year old mother and I were taking an Amtrak trip and I chose this hotel because I have stayed in Red Lions before and they are usually nice. Not this time!!!!!!

I booked a non-smoking room through Orbitz and pre-paid for the room as required. The hotel is far from downtown but there was a shuttle. It definitely is not three stars. I would give it one. It is just a notch above a motel 6, and only because the lobby is nice and there is a fairly good sports bar and grill upstairs with a good view. The rooms are about a half a star.

When we arrived they gave us a smoking room which was dirty and dingy even though I had pre-paid for a non-smoking room. When I called the desk she told me they had NO MORE non-smoking rooms, but I could tour the available smoking rooms to find the one that was the least stinky. When I explained that my mother has a heart condition and trouble breathing she said there was nothing they could do since all of the non-smoking rooms were full. When I told her that we had not just reserved a non-smoking room, but had also pre-paid for it which meant that even though we were not yet physically occupying the room, it was as if we were, and by giving our room to someone else it was as if they had thrown us out of the room to give it to someone else. She did not care and offered me nothing to rectify the situation. We stayed in the least sticky room because we had no car and could not go searching for another hotel at 9:00 p.m. when we had to be up at 4:30 a.m. to catch the next train we were taking. Even though we were on the 9th floor the window was bolted so that it could only be opened about 2 inches and it faced the stadium and freeway so we really could not get any fresh air through the window. The air conditioner only spewed more stinky air into the room. The linens, draperies and carpeting were stained and reeked.

To make matters worse at 2:30 a.m. a group of about 5 drunks decided to have a party in the hallway outside of our room. They were sitting on the floor and yelling, screaming, laughing and running around the hallway. We called the front desk and they did send someone up to tell them to go to their rooms and be quiet but the damage was already done.

What a disaster. Heed my warning and DO NOT stay at this hotel unless you like loud, dirty, smelly rooms and rude desk clerks.

Top Local Tips for Denver

Park Hill Area My old neighborhood Park Hill is beautiful to stroll around. Grab a yummy sandwich at Spinellis and picnic nearby at the denver city park! relaxing and georgeous

16th Street Mall Don't miss the 16th Street Mall. It's a fun place to shop, people watch, or just wander around. There's plenty to do, but it can be a short filler in your trip if you're looking for something to do for just a little while. We really enjoyed a sidewalk lunch at the Rock Bottom Restaurant & Brewery. Good food & ecclectic fun for all teens and adults.

Know your info.... When it comes to a downtown atmosphere I suggest staying with a name you know and Trust, such as the Crowne Plaza. They stand behind their customer service no matter what. To go to an independent establishment was a mistake. Even though we had confirmed our reservation it still wasn't available upon arrival. This would never happen at a known facility.

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Other names for Red Lion Denver Downtown Hotel

  • vq hotel denver
  • Address: 1975 Bryant Street - Denver - Colorado - 80204 - United States
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