I spent one night in the Curtis. Booking it, I found it fairly incongruous that it only has a 2-star rating, yet the pictures look great and they seem to think of themselves quite highly.

The lobby was small and the elevators were cute. The concierge was very friendly.

However, when I got to my room, I found two damp towels with brown stains on them on the back of the bathroom door. The floor was dirty, the bathroom floor was dirty, and the sink was dirty. But clearly someone had at least _tried_ to clean the room. I called the front desk and they were aghast and promised to send someone right up. That was at 10:30pm. At 11:00pm a surly guy from housekeeping knocks on my door. He says "they called me, what do you want?" I explained the situation. He said "uhhhh, do you really want me to clean and vacuum?" I said "yeah!" He said it was kinda late. I wanted to go to sleep so I asked him just to take the dirty towels.

There is a 2-inch gap under the door, so I could hear everything in the hallway. The walls are thin, and you can hear everything next door. The stupid VW Beetle clock radio is useless. You can either have its incredibly bright backlight on, which lights up the whole room, or you can have no light, which means to read the clock you have to press the tiny backlight button on the remote control. Ridiculous.

The A/C unit is thermostatically controlled and incredibly loud. You can't set the fan to run constantly to drown out noise, so instead if you want the temperature constant you must endure the A/C turning on for 10 minutes every couple hours, which will wake you up.

My room was sooo tiny. There were about 2 feet of clearance on every side of the bed.

I would never stay here again.

Stayed at the Curtis for a single night in late June 2007 for a brief business trip to Denver.

Pros:
+ Liked the irreverent, pop culture decor (lava lamps, 60s flower power motif of the lobby, the pic of the boy with a ray gun in my room), but I'm not a fan of the flower-printed carved-wood look of many chain hotels
+ I had a very nice king-size bed, 5 pillows of varying soft/firm levels so I could find one I liked, and soft white linens
+ Flat, widescreen TV (though not HD)
+ VERY clean, modern, and well stocked bathroom
+ Free wi-fi

Cons
- Gym was being renovated, so they only had 3 machines (elliptical, recumbent bike, and treadmill) available - you may have to wait during a busy time until they get the gym renovation completed
- Parking garage was not easy to navigate and not the most safe-feeling, in addition to being pricey ($18 to self-park??!?!!?)
- The doors *do* SLAM shut instead of quietly closing, so if you're on a busy floor (I wasn't) that could be a problem

I didn't have a wake up call, and didn't have room service, so I can't comment on those.

Based on this one experience, I'd stay again.

We had the pleasure of visiting the lovely city of Denver over the past weekend, and would have to say that our visit was only further enhanced by our stay at the newly opened Curtis Hotel. We happened upon this hotel quite by accident while searching Denver hotels on the internet, and when we looked into it
further on the hotel’s official website, it looked like such a fun place to stay. We were further sold when we plugged it into tripadvisor.com, and saw many favourable reviews. As the rates were really quite reasonable for what looked and sounded like a truly innovative hotel experience, we went aheadand booked it for two nights.

But first, the bad news.

1) The toilet paper holder in our bathroom needed stronger plugs. (I’m
kidding about this being “bad” – yes, it’s true, it was a bit wobbly on the
wall, but it’s the only thing about the room that wasn’t delightful).

2) The few negative reviews you will find below mine will speak of how
noisy a hotel this is – so my ears were on alert to see if this truly was
the case , and I have this to report: Yes, there was the usual noise one
hears through the doors of hotel rooms – doors with spring hinges slamming
shut as other guests come and go out of their rooms, or as the maids go
about their work, and the occasional but brief boisterous banter of other
fellow travelers as they make their way to the elevator or ice machines,
etc. – but was it any louder than other hotels I’ve stayed at? No. The
only time the noise complaint may have been valid was during the wee small
hours of the morning, when I awoke to hear the sound of two raised female
voices engaged in a rather heated argument with one another, and I admit, it
wasn’t exactly muffled. I just couldn’t tell whether or not it was coming
through the wall of an adjoining room, or wafting through the air vents from
another floor entirely – it was rather hard to pinpoint. Either way, I fell
back asleep within minutes. Again, I suppose this is the sort of thing that
could happen at any comparably priced hotel. I guess it all depends on your
tolerance for such distractions, and how much you’re willing to spend for a
hotel that will provide you with your own personal silent oasis.

But now for the good, and there’s a lot!

Location: Very conveniently located within blocks of all of Denver’s
shopping and dining hotspots, and directly across the street from the lovely
Performing Arts Centre Complex.

The Hotel: What else can I say but to reiterate what others have said –
this place is fun, fun, fun! From the moment you step into the lobby, with
its brightly coloured retro look, it’s a delight for the senses – video
screens with random revolving displays, cartoons, and lively music coming
from the speakers above. There was even a “shell game” and magic 8 ball
set up at the check in desk, if you were so inclined. The public washrooms
were very innovatively decorated with large graphic signs (see photos) that
just make you smile, and every themed floor of this hotel is whimsically decorated with displays that are pertinent to the particular theme. For instance, we stayed on the fourth floor, which paid homage to famous pop culture duos – Bogey & Bacall, Batman & Robin, peanut butter & jam, cookies & milk…..it must have been so fun planning what would go into this place.

The Staff: From the moment we arrived in the underground parking and were looking somewhat confused about which direction to head, it seemed we were immediately assisted by one of the friendly hotel staff who seemed to pop out of nowhere, and our experience during the entire stay was no exception. From the “pink ladies” (the hotel maids) to the front desk staff dressed in retro bowling shirts, they all seemed to be having as much fun as the guests – (but not to their detriment – they were beyond helpful).

The Restaurant: “The Corner Office” had just opened a week prior to our stay, and so we were a bit wary – perhaps the usual bugs hadn’t been ironed out yet – but again, we were so pleasantly surprised. Our first night there we shared a late night eclectic dinner consisting of chorizo quesadillas, crab pad thai and hummus with pita bread – and it was simply outstanding! Not only was the food delicious, but like the rest of the hotel, the thought that went into the presentation was above and beyond. And so reasonable!! Even with two generous glasses of the most expensive wine, the bill came to less than $50 US. In fact, we enjoyed the food, service and atmosphere in this restaurant so much, we dined exclusively there for the duration of our stay while in the city – which included two superb breakfasts from the varied and imaginative menu.

The Room: But none of the above may not matter, if you’re sleeping in a
concrete bed and finding dirty glasses in the bathroom. Again, no worries there. The room itself was a generous size, and our king size bed was juuuuuuuuust the right firmness, and appointed in the high quality white linens that were sooo inviting at the end of our long days of sightseeing/concertgoing. And instead of finding chocolate mints on the pillow, we were treated to Tootsie Rolls – yet another unique twist on the usual hotel fare. The room was furnished in tasteful contemporary design, with a comfortable easy chair and ottoman, free high speed internet, and flat screen LCD television. The usual amenities, ironing board, iron, coffee maker, etc., were also present. The bathroom was stylish and clean lined, with a marble topped vanity and glass shower stall (oh, and the wobbly TP holder).

Still To Come: During an extended conversation I had with one of the front desk staff, I learned that the fitness centre/pool is due to open by mid summer 2007, and will be the largest such facility in Denver when it’s completed, with a mini-Olympic size pool. I enquired whether this will mean an increase in rates, and he did admit that yes, the rates will most likely increase once the hotel is fully completed – but did offer that they won’t jump exorbitantly. So if you’re visiting Denver soon, book a room before the introductory rates increase…. but even if you’re not planning a visit in the near future, the Curtis is well worth the visit for the unique experience it offers.

So overall, a GREAT visit. I’d highly recommend this hotel if you’re visiting Denver in the near future and want something more than the usual hotel experience – it’s the coolest hotel in the city!

Stayed here June 2-8, booked the room through a convention housing desk. Was not happy to overhear what other people paid per night who were not a part of the convention. My "special" housing desk rate was about $30 more than what I heard the "real" going rate was. In any case, there's not much of a lobby to speak of, but it does have wireless Internet and lots of lights and sounds to give it an almost club-like feel. Staff is super nice and friendly. Experienced a few issues (in-room Internet didn't work at first, toiletries never replenished) but the staff was very quick and helpful to correct the problems. I read other reviews about the noise levels in the rooms and hallways. That motivated me to call ahead to request a quieter room. I was on the 9th floor - the Big Hair Floor. The elevator music on each floor got old but was cute and different. Yes, the doors to the rooms are very loud when they close and some hotel guests feel compelled to slam these heavy doors shut. This can make for disturbing thuds heard from inside the rooms. If you are sound sensitive or a light sleeper, I advise you to stay far from the elevators and try to get a room not in a main hallway. Otherwise the hotel was clean and in good condition. I would stay here again if I happen to be in Denver. It is in an area close to the convention center and not far from hot spots like Larimer Square, etc. I felt safe in and around the hotel. Parts of the hotel are still being renovated. The pool and bigger fitness room are not open yet. Their restaurant just opened the day I checked out and didn't have a chance to check it out. Definitely has a cool 70s/80s vibe to it, one I think Gen Xers will appreciate.