This softly elegant hotel communicated with my stressed-out travel weary self as soon as we entered to check in. The message was, "take a deep breath and relax". Everything about this place was pleasant: staff, decor, rooms, spa, spa treatments, dining experiences. The restaurant is special occasion worthy; the menu innovative (and delicious), the service excellent. They even had a harpist at tea time! How cool is that?

This was the end of a business trip with my partner (that started in Washington, D.C.), and even though I travel regularly (50k miles this year), I still feel the stress. For my first time in Raleigh I was looking for a nice place to stay to take the edge off a working weekend. The options seemed limited outside the standard business traveler hotels in the downtown area, so I wasn't expecting much. We were both pleasantly surprised at the quality of service and the lovely atmosphere. The place just feels good! Would have happily stayed another day.

From check in to check out, this is a world class hotel with all the amenities. Places like this are why I am a Yankee who loves the South.

How to describe the staff except to say they're on top of things. They anticipate your needs, are very knowledgeable, bright, and helpful. Check-in took about a minute, check out less. No errors on the bill. One problem in the room- called the front desk, "Yep, we're on it," and it was fixed.
Dinner at Heron's was a nice break. NY prices- about $140 a person, but NY standards too, plus exceptionally personable, helpful waitstaff who made some insightful food & wine recommendations. Room service breakfast was efficient, arrived spot on time and food was great. Room was clean and fresh. In room plasma TV, high speed internet, plenty of outlets to power your devices, including an iPod dock clock radio.
If I were going to run a hotel- this is where I'd go to learn how to do it right.

We stayed at the Umstead for several days during Thanksgiving week, 2007. We got an excellent rate through Expedia - $179 per night, compared to $349 per night at the hotel web site - for a Premier king room. The Expedia rate got us a second floor room overlooking the entrance to the hotel, but there was plenty of fall foliage to see from our window. For $50 more a night we were offered a lakeview room with a balcony, but declined it. The hotel didn't seem crowded at all, I guess because of the holiday week. Perfect time for a relaxing stay.

I'd rate this as an exceptional hotel - the second best I've ever stayed in. The staff was consistently helpful, friendly, and service oriented, going out of their way to make us comfortable. Typical examples were the offer of bottled water as we were preparing to leave, and the elaborate turndown service in the evenings (robes laid out on the bed, slippers at the side, towels replaced, ice in the bucket, etc.)

Room decor was very nice, albeit with subdued colors. We had a huge plasma flat screen TV, and nice touches in the bathroom included an extra large, invigorating showerhead and flexible sprayers on hoses for those hard to reach places (in both the tub and shower). We didn't care much for the pocket doors to the bathroom, which didn't afford as much privacy as we would have liked, and were frequently difficult to open. Typical of high end hotels was the absence of a coffee maker, but morning room service was always prompt and friendly, with extras such as ice water, a flower in a vase, etc.

The hotel had a nice relaxing lounge with a fireplace and a harpist or pianist, depending on the time of day. Great place to sink into a sofa or comfortable chair and have a couple of drinks with friends. Heron's Restaurant was excellent - very upscale, with exceptional, attentive service and great food. The menu changes seasonally (four times a year). As you would expect, it's expensive.

Umstead State Park is just a short drive (maybe a half mile?)... and is a very nicely maintained, upscale wooded park with trails. The Company Mill Trail (5.8 miles) was very pretty in the fall.

We will be back.

The Umstead Hotel is very much patterned off of a Four-Seasons, it's clear that was the designer's directive. It's all about understated luxury. Nothing is gilded or over the top, it's all very modern, tasteful, and extremely high-end. Even the deep soaking tub looks like it's from a Four-Seasons. The rooms are very beautiful, with an incredible large screen plasma TV, bathrooms with travertine and even lighting that can be dimmed. The shower stall is a bit on the small side. I had NONE of the troubles of the previous reviewer who also travels internationally. My cell phone worked just fine, I never did plug my computer in (using the WIFI instead) and my phones and TV were operational upon entering the room. My room also was on the front of the hotel (despite having requested a pond view room) and yes the hotel was fully committed. I didn't find the view awful though, and in fact it's not like it's a field of asphalt. For a parking lot it's beautifully landscaped and quite attractive, as this is also the drive up to the hotel, so I couldn't be that bad right?
I was offered the option of calling every day to see if a room opened up, but a real 5-star would have keep my request on hand and kept me informed every day.
And that's where the similarities of a Four-Seasons end. The staff is just not quite there. A fax arrived for me, and the concierge called to inform me I could pick it up at my leisure, when they should just deliver it to my room.
The menu in the restaurant is very “top-chef” style, it’s creative and I really like the offerings for the most part. The reviewer that complained about the fancy club sandwich, I guess didn’t consider they should easily have requested changes to their order. A fried egg on the club is the newest thing in fancy sandwich menus. For me the biggest issue with the restaurant is that for breakfast I said I didn’t see anything that really struck my fancy, not once did the waiter (who was otherwise providing exceptional service) offer to make something for me not on the menu. Again, not 5-star. The Spa was as high-end as I would expect, but the attendant was for the most part M.I.A. My final comment is yes indeed this is Umstead Park (a nearby State park is called Umstead, named after a former Governor of North Carolina) and not Central park, which is why you are paying $200-$400 a night instead of $600-$1,200. At the $200 side, I don’t think the hotel is overpriced at all, I do think they need to provide better training for the staff, offer more services all-inclusive rather than ala carte and really pay attention to requests from guests, and make at least and effort that is obvious to the guest they are listening and trying to accommodate them.