We were pleasantly surprised with the Goodwin. We chose the Goodwin for our 5-year anniversary, easy on the wallet getaway. All the hotel staff we encountered were very friendly, especially Tracy (front desk) and Charles (door/concierge). They gave us many suggestions for things to do and places to eat as well as directions to places. They made up for any cons of the hotel--I think the demeanor of hotel staff can have a huge effect on your vacation.

We didn't check until late in the evening on the first of our 4-night stay. Initially only a smoking room was available, and Tracy told us to see if we could change the next day after people check out. So we went up; it was a very nice room, nice view, but smelled of smoke. She called us after a few minutes and told us another new guest stuck with a non-smoking room wanted to trade rooms, so we went ahead and happily switched. It was a little bit of a trade-off, because our new room was a bit smaller, with one slanted wall due to being under an angled rooftop, and the worst of it was the tiny window (like the kind used in bathrooms). There was a skylight, which was a unique touch. The tv is next to the bed instead of in front, but not right in your face. However, we didn't care about these negatives since we did not have to smell smoke and we weren't planning on spending much time in the room anyway.
Overall the room was clean, the bathroom was big and clean, but you can tell the room is not new. This didn't bother us either and also added to the coziness in a way. We weren't expecting (nor did we want) the big chain hotel feeling, which is why we chose this hotel. Everything in our room worked. The building is nice and unique.
We did pay $20/night for parking, but since we knew this ahead of time, we added it to our budget. In my experience, hotel parking fees are a typical expense in cities. This was half the cost of downtown Chicago hotels.
The hotel is in a great location, walking distance from lots of great restaurants as well as Bushnell park.
I would give excellent rating if hotel was non-smoking and window was normal size.

Other trip info:
Our favorite restaurants for dinner were Trumbell Kitchen (we had garden salad, salmon, seafood rice noodles, chocolate dessert), Bin 228 (shrimp risotto, fondue), and First & Last Tavern (caesar salad, seafood mix pasta, shrimp rigatoni in pesto). The food was delicious and service was excellent at all 3 of these restaurants. We were very disappointed with Hot Tomato's, especially for the price. I had chicken saltimbocca, and it was so dry and bland. My husband had a sausage, pasta, and broccoli dish that was good but similar to a quick and cheap dish we make at home anyway.
For breakfast we tried Mo's (good but very busy so slow), Rose Gourmet (good but very slow even though not busy), and Papa's (good, fast). Also went to Town Line diner near Wethersfield (good, fast, but a little overpriced).
For lunch we had the bbq buffet at Bushnell cafe (good) and Akropolis deli (good). We also went to J. Micheal's in Old Whethersfield one day; great lunch, great town.
Things we did: around town, Bushnell park, the Old Capitol, State Capitol, Farmer's Market (small but cute); outside of town, Dinosaur State Park (great), Old Wethersfield (very cute historic place; got some plants as souveniers at Comstock-Ferre; toured three 200-year old homes important to US history), rented a canoe from Long River Rentals (overall fun, but owner cut our 10-mile trip to 5-miles b/c driver got pulled over en route to our drop-off site due to expired registration on their sole vehicle...we felt gypped b/c we were looking forward to 10-mile, which is only $10 more than 5-mile. Bad business practice!).
Nightlife was not bad: Pig's eye for billiard's, Black eyed sally's for live blues, Up or On the rocks for live rock music and dancing.

The city isn't hopping like Manhattan, but we enjoyed this. As far as safety, I wouldn't walk around alone at night, but then again, I wouldn't walk around alone at night in any city.

Conclusion: Happy with our trip. Good value. We'll definitely return to Connecticut; easy roadtrip from NJ, nice people and places, relaxing, more to see than we thought. Next time we'll probably explore the coastal areas, but we'll return to Hartford and the Goodwin Hotel, too.

I had the pleasure of staying at The Goodwin for several days while I was in town for an annual business meeting. I was part of a large conference and I was impressed with how this boutique hotel was able to maintain its charm and personality while catering to such a large group.

This hotel impressed me from the moment I approached the door. The building itself is exquisite and easy to locate right on the corner across from the Hartford 21 Garage. The doorman/doorwoman who attended to the door always greeted you with a smile and was helpful in recommending a quick place to grab a drink. It really made you feel warm and welcome.

The moment you walk into the lobby, you are immediately acknowledged and offered assistance. The check in process was quick and painless - it took less than 2 minutes in its entirety.

When I entered my room, I was pleasantly surprised by the rooms size. I have stayed at other hotels that have been listed on the national registry of historic places and they often offer small rooms, no storage and closet-like bathrooms.
This room was exactly the opposite. I had a generous foyer, spacious tile and marble bathroom with extra deep soaking tub. There was plenty of room for me to spread out all of my personal effects. The bath featured an extra deep soaking tub and had fantastic water pressure. They offered Rusk products - I love their calm line for that reason - it makes you want to take longer showers.

There was a beautiful gift box waiting for me in the room upon arrival. The furniture, carpeting, wall coverings and bedding all looked newer.

I am extremely discerning when it comes to the bedding in the hotels I stay in. I want it to be as good or better than what I have at home. The King size mattress and pillows were so comfortable - it rivals The Westin Heavenly Beds and Marriott's new upgraded mattresses. I'm not sure if the renovations are complete, but it would be great to see crisp duvets as opposed to the floral bedspreads and a better thread count sheet.

The rooms were clean and made up immaculately. One of my favorite aspects of my stay was the turndown service in the evenings. You come back to your room and there is music playing softly in the background. Your bathrobe is laid out on your bed, which has been turned down. They place a beautiful, restfull poem on top of your robe with a flower and candies. On the other side of the room, there was fresh ice in the bucket and a bottle or champagne or sparkling water. Each night it was a new combination. I felt very well taken care of.

Every night they offer champagne in the lobby - it was a very lavish touch before heading out for dinner.

Our company hosted a banquet in The Atrium and it was out of this world. The food was exquisite and the setting was dramatic.
The upstairs conference rooms and breakfast/lunch service were also wonderful.

Overall, I would recommend you stay at The Goodwin on your next trip to Hartford. You can pay more to stay at the Marriott, Hilton or Crown Plaza, but you will not get the tremendous value. The people, amazing service and personalized touches and amenities make this a fantastic property.

It was OK - I was expecting a little better. The room was average, the TV was next to the bed instead of in front of it which was a little annoying, and the room was a LOT smaller than I'd expected for this caliber of hotel. The bathroom, on the other hand, was HUGE, and they use RUSK products which is nice. Not enough pillows - they only leave you 2, but other than that the bed was comfortable enough, although it was a queen and not a king, which I vastly prefer.

The neighborhood was great, within walking distance to lots of stuff. The service was fine, no complaints.

Overall it was so-so, nothing spectacular, which I was kind of surprised at, I guess I was expecting more.

I decided on a last minute trip to Hartford for the weekend and called around to a few hotels and all were booked. I was a bit nervous about calling the Goodwin due to the reviews i read but my list of hotels was dwindling so i made the call. I was pleasantly surprised on how polite the staff was. I was able to get a bi-level suite for only a few bucks more than what other hotels in that area were offering for a regular room. The hotel was easy to find and parking was a breeze due to the valet parking. Check-in took no more than a minute and i was off to my room. i was still a bit weary on what the room would look like, most of the reviews on here stated the rooms were dated, but they were wrong. Well, maybe they didn't get the room i had because this room was not dated. the furniture looked new and the room was extremely clean. The suite layout, first floor the living area and bathroom second floor bedroom and bathroom. On my next trip to Hartford i'll be staying at the Goodwin.