My visit to the JW Marriott in Grand Rapids started off ominously: I attempted to check in to the hotel across the street after being dropped off there by the service. Fortunately, a short walk with my carry-on luggage was all it took to get me to the bright lobby of the downtown hotel. From there I would begin a two-night stay in a luxury hotel that would surprise and delight me.

Room with a View – and a Chaise

Beautiful photographs above the bed and a wall full of windows overlooking Grand Rapids welcomed me to my standard king guestroom. While the bed itself was outfitted with a pillow top mattress and plenty of pillows, it was the chaise lounge that beckoned to me to take a load off, relax a minute. Unfortunately, I had no time for indulging as I was due downstairs for a lunch meeting.

Six One Six is the hotel’s restaurant adjacent to the lobby and looks at first glance to only be able to accommodate a small group of guests. My concern is not seating, however, but food — and in that regard the restaurant shined. My working lunch took place over a California Reuben and truffle fries (a combination designed to send me back to that chaise in a carbohydrate coma.) The next two mornings I’d enjoy a breakfast bar featuring made-to-order eggs and omelets, fresh fruit, and steel cut oats (along with breakfast meat and potatoes for those with more forgiving metabolisms.) The service at every meal was exceptional.

JW Marriott still subscribes to the idea that luxury is about more than fine linens and marble bathrooms. Service is obviously an essential part of their philosophy and it shows in every encounter, from the turn down service you don’t see to the hospitable front desk staff that greets you each day.

The JW has partnered with ArtPrize to offer visitors a special package during the public art contest. The package starts at $249 per night and includes:

• Overnight accommodations for two
• Self parking in the hotel ramp
• Breakfast for up to 2 adults and children 12 and under
• One ArtPrize Value Bag per reservation (multiple night reservations would still receive one bag) which includes:
  • ArtPrize official map
  • ArtPrize official guidebook with discount coupons
  • Two Metro transportation cards per reservation
  • ArtPrize souvenir recycled bag
  • Two ArtPrize souvenir wristbands

Find out more at http://ilovethejw.com.

Disclosure: I stayed at the JW Marriott as a guest of Experience Grand Rapids.

If you want a $4,000 Downtown Los Angeles hotel package for $1, then you have ten chances on Feb 15, which is the JW Marriott at L.A. LIVE hotel’s first birthday.

JW Marriott at L.A. Live

As part of the celebrations, the hotel is offering guests the opportunity to book one of 10 vacation packages for $1.00. Each of these ‘Happy Birthday’ packages includes:-

- Overnight accommodations in the 1,566 square-foot Chairman Suite overlooking the Los Angeles skyline

- Two glasses of Champagne at gLAnce Wine Bar

- Breakfast for two at LA Market restaurant

- Complimentary valet parking

The package will be on sale on Tuesday, February 15 for $1.00. Remember, there’s only 10 packages on sale. The stay has to booked for a Friday or Saturday between August 6 to September 10, 2011. More details here – www.lalivemarriott.com/birthday

The JW Marriott Los Angeles shares space with The Ritz-Carlton, Los Angeles in a 54-story tower Gensler designed tower. The 878 room hotel is part of the 5.6 million square foot L.A. LIVE complex that has revitalized Downtown LA and includes Staples Center, the Nokia Theatre and the GRAMMY Museum.

Not to mention broadcast studios, restaurants, cafes, cinemas, bowling lanes, music clubs and a lot more. Then there’s also the adjacent Los Angeles Convention Center. In fact, the JW Marriott is the official headquarters hotel for the Convention Center.

The aforementioned 1,566 square foot Chairman Suite that guests can book on Feb 15 for $1 is the hotel’s best suite. An entry hall leads to a living area overlooking the Los Angeles skyline.

Each of these suites has two living areas, a private kitchen and a bedroom with a Marriott Revive Bed and a 42″ LCD HDTV. There’s also a sleeper sofa and the option for a second connecting bedroom.

More info: 900 West Olympic Boulevard Los Angeles CA 90015; (213) 765-8600

Related posts:-
$1 Rooms at Orchard Garden Hotel in San Francisco
Fashion Packages at The Ritz-Carlton, Los Angeles

Twin bombings ripped through the J.W. Marriott and Ritz-Carlton hotels in Jakarta, Indonesia on Friday morning.

The explosions were timed to go off simultaneously, with one bomb going off in the Restaurant Syailendra in the Marriott hotel’s basement at 7.45 am, just 2 minutes after which there was another explosion in the Ritz-Carlton’s Airlangga restaurant. Both hotels are located adjacent to each other in an upscale business district in Jakarta.

As of now, 9 (8) people have been reported killed and 50 injured in the bombings, with at least 14 foreigners included in the count. 4 foreigners are reported to be killed, but no nationality or identification has been specified as yet. Apparently the force of the Marriott bomb was so great that the explosion, which went off in the basement, shattered glass on the third floor.

Initial statements from law enforcement officials suggest signs of suicide bombings, but it’s not official yet and investigations are ongoing.

Update 1: July 17, 2009 - 8 Americans among those injured. President Obama condems bombings and offers US help to Indonesia. Marriott International, which owns both the JW Marriott and Ritz-Carlton brands, said in a statement that guests were evacuated to nearby hotels and that both hotels sustained damage, but it does not appear to be structural.