Kimpton Hotels recently hosted five writers in five cities across the country as part of a holiday blogger getaway event.
My family loves Kimpton as this kid-friendly brand offers a fresh departure from typical hotels with updated décor and whimsical themes. We stayed at Hotel Marlowe in Cambridge for our family getaway and it was quite a treat!
Kid-Friendly Hotel Marlowe
Location
To start, the location is ideal for families of all ages. The address reads Cambridge, however, you are just over a bridge from downtown Boston. This puts you just steps from the Museum of Science (read more about this fantastic family attraction on Top 5 Kid-Friendly Excursions in Boston).
Additionally, this area is surrounded by acres of open park space to explore along the Charles River. Canal Park is next to the hotel and the Charles River just across the street.
Most images of Boston include the Charles River. There’s a huge bike path along the river where families can walk, bike, scooter or rollerblade — it’s gorgeous! Watch the crew teams from Harvard and Boston University or the multitude of sailboats. The open space is ideal for all ages.
To top it off, Hotel Marlowe offers complimentary bikes and kayaks for guest use. If that is all too serene, you can swing along to the back of the building and hit the Galleria Mall.
Cambridge is a foodie’s haven. Given all the great restaurants in Cambridge and Boston, you can’t go wrong. We always love Oleana, a famous Mediterranean restaurant, who grow all of their produce at a farm right next to our house. Flour, my favorite bakery in the area, is just around the corner. Bondir is new to Cambridge and was just named as one of Bon Appetite’s Ten Best Restaurants in America for 2011.
Guest Experience
The kids loved the hotel from the moment we entered the “living room.” Kimpton creates welcoming spaces where guests experience the hotel in a comfortable and inviting setting.
With color rich furniture and a fire to warm you up, the space is funky and very kid-friendly. We arrived during the evening wine hour where guests are treated to complimentary wine and a hot chocolate bar for kids. It took just minutes for my kids to start playing with the fun topping combinations including marshmallows, chocolate chips and fresh whipped cream — yum!
The rooms have recently been renovated at the Marlowe and our room was beautiful, with lots of glass overlooking the Charles River. My kids were immediately drawn to Fray, our fish for the night and the telescope. Kimpton doesn’t want you to get lonely so they always put a pet fish in the room.
Clearly, this fish drew the short stick because my 4-year old just couldn’t stay away from its bowl. That was great until she decided to give it a few items to play with —ugh!
Each child was given a thoughtful Kimpton Kids bag full of little toys based on their age. My favorite item in there was the ABC Boston book that also serves as a journal with questions about favorite area attractions.
Boston Holiday Highlights
Boston is packed with fun during the holidays and our concierge provided a great list of options. We started out volunteering a few hours for Heading Home at the Prudential Center, which was teaming with holiday activities. After work, we headed to the top of the Prudential Center to see the Skywalk, a guided view over the city integrated with the story of immigration and its impact on Boston.
Next stop was the Mapparium, a three-story painted glass globe— which I find so cool — at the Christian Science Center directly across from the Prudential Mall. By this point, we were tired and hungry and ready to lounge back at the Hotel Marlowe. We had a delicious dinner at the hotel’s restaurant, Bambara. The casual atmosphere and unassuming food is perfect for families.
The Marlowe is an ideal hotel for family movie night, our post-dinner activity. We cozied up together in our animal print robes and rented a great movie. The next morning we walked across the road to the Pompeii exhibit at the Museum of Science. What a fabulous stay!
Kimpton Hotels offered Ciao Bambino complimentary lodging and breakfast. We weren’t asked to express a particular point of view.
Kimpton Hotels Giveaway
Please note this contest is now closed. Congratulations to Lucia Jones, the happy winner of a two-night Kimpton getaway with her family!
Here’s how to enter:
1. Leave a comment below answering the question, “At which Kimpton property are you dreaming about staying this weekend?”
2. Leave a comment on each of the other four participating family travel bloggers’ Kimpton hotel reviews and giveaways. Go to Mother of all Trips, Hip Travel Mama, Pit Stops for Kids and The Vacation Gals‘ posts and answer the same question.
That’s it! Five easy comment-style entries for this giveaway, and maybe it’ll be you who will win a fun, relaxing mini-vacation. Entries close Sunday, December 11, 2011 at 11:59PM PST. The winners will be announced Monday, December 12, 2011.
Promotion Rules: The Kimpton Hotel Holiday getaway prize is a gift certificate for two-night stay at any Kimpton Hotel in the Continental US and is valued at $500. Up to five entries per person. No purchase necessary to enter. Void where prohibited by law. You must be a US resident, 21 or older to participate. Employees, partners, agents, vendors, or immediate family members of Mother of All Trips, Hip Travel Mama, The Vacation Gals, Ciao Bambino, and Pitstops for Kids are not eligible to enter. This is a random drawing, so odds of winning will depend on number of entrants. Rules are governed by the state of Washington. Hip Travel Mama, The Vacation Gals, and other participating sites reserve the right to cancel, suspend, and or modify a promotion if any problem corrupts the administration, security or proper play of the promotion. In the event of a dispute as to the winner’s identity, entries will be deemed made by the holder of the email account associated with the entry.
Entrants agree that Ciao Bambino, The Mother of All Trips, or any of the other participating sites are not responsible and cannot be held liable for any unauthorized intervention, technical errors, printing errors, mail delays and any other errors in connection with the administration with this program.
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Topics: Accommodations, Boston, Deals. USA, Holidays, North America