We had a lovely stay at Cliffbreakers and would recommend it to anyone visiting the Rockford area!
The second we walked into the hotel, we were greeted by warm and friendly staff and fresh baked cookies...and our experience only got better and better from there.
The rooms were huge and we loved how we had a downstairs and an upstairs so we could relax and enjoy conversation in the downstairs suite area while someone was upstairs sleeping or getting ready. The views were amazing overlooking the river. We loved sitting out on one of their many river-view decks and watching the birds fly by, boaters out on the lake, and all the fun activity going on across the river in the park. There even was a nice running/biking trail right outside the door of the hotel, so we enjoyed taking walking/jogging across the bridge and over to the other side of the river where the kids had a blast playing on the nice playground. The hotel had bikes as well, but we'll have to do that next visit.
The kids had fun playing in the pool at the hotel, and also throwing pennies into the beautiful fountain that sits outside of the restaurant, martini bar, and tap room. We were so pleased that the staff could answer our many questions about all the unique statues, fountains and furnishings in the hotel, as we could tell by looking at them that they were not just your standard hotel décor and furnishings. We found out that almost everything in the hotel is a one-of-a-kind and/or antique piece from around the World. For example, the fountain the kids were throwing pennies into outside of the restaurant/pub/martini lounge dates back to 1840 in Florence and the building was actually built around the fountain. Everything in the "gold room" came from Paris and was lowered into the building before the roof was built, and the "Sultan’s Suite" was built for the 1894 World’s Paris Exhibition in 1899 and purchased by the Sultan of Morocco! The entire "Tap Room", that we had SO much fun in, was brought piece-by-piece from a famous brewery in Wisconsin. There is just so much history and character in this hotel that it is amazing!
Our dinner in the restaurant was wonderful…the food, the service, and the overall atmosphere (overlooking the river, perfect lighting, fancy…yet still comfortable).
Our last day there, we waited longer to leave so that we could try their famous champagne brunch. We had heard great things about it from the locals, but we could not have even imagined it to be as good as it was. The selection of food was so vast that I had a hard time deciding what to eat…so I attempted to try a bit of everything until I blew up! Unlike many buffet brunches we have been to, the food was very fresh, hot, and delicious..and we were amazed at how reasonably priced it was!
Checkout was fast, and we were sent off just as courteously as we had arrived. This place has so much character that you just do not find at your standard hotel chain! We definitely will go back the next time we are in the area!
