I just spent two nights at this hotel, and it is very nice in many ways, but there are things you need to know before staying here.

Parking: I personally don't mind paying extra for parking, but you need to know ahead of time that it is $20/night for valet and $10 if you park yourself. The valet is on College, not Trade, if you drive straight to 210 Trade you will need to loop around the Epicentre and find the valet on College, or route your trip so you come up College to avoid the ride around the block.

Room: We had a room with double beds and they were fine, we did have a third guest show up and instead of a cot or roll-away they have a twin size air mattress that they brought us (different, but it worked). I didn't find the a/c as bad as others, but I took the advice of someone else and turned the fan to on from the digital thermostat on the wall so that it would not be turning on an off during the night. A/C unit cannot be controlled on the unit itself, you have to use the thermostat. One complementary bottle of water in the room each day, and there is a small refrigerator under the sink which was a nice surprise. No drawers and very little "closet space", be prepared to live out of your suitcase.

Location/Nightlife: You could not ask for a much better location for going out in Uptown Charlotte. The Epicentre has many bars and restaurants and there are countless other options within a short walking distance. The hotel bar (which is in the lobby) was definitely a popular hangout for homosexual men on Friday night, that was not our scene so we moved on to the other bars quite promptly.

All in all it was a great trip and this hotel was quite a steal for $79/night (+Parking)

I will start off by saying that we found no basis for the negative comments posted about this hotel, with a few exceptions. We were looking for a reasonably priced hotel, centrally located so we could enjoy downtown Charlotte's bars and restaurants, and the Aloft is perfectly situated for that. The hotel does not have a large presence on the street, so it is a little difficult to find...you'll find it on College just up from Blackfinn's restaurant...there is a little valet sign on the street. The lobby is on the 5th floor of the building.

The lobby is very modern and colorful, fitting the image of a hip, youthful place to stay. It is definitely not stuffy. The receptionist, who was very polite and friendly, told us as we checked in that the entire lobby turned into a lounge at 5:00 p.m. We made a note to check it out and then went to our room. We had a king room, which we found to be compact but extremely well laid out...no space was wasted so we did not feel cramped. The bed was very comfortable, faced the windows and a large flat screen TV. The bathroom and the furnishings and textiles throughout the room were modern and appealing. I especially liked the shampoo and bodywash, which were provided in dispensers mounted on the shower wall, instead of in teeny little bottles on the sink. The bath products were quite nice. They also provide current magazines in the bathroom, including Spin, Wired and a couple of others. They were the latest editions.

We headed out in the late afternoon for some drinks, and the location of the hotel was very close to the places we wanted to go, including the two excellent Irish pubs, Connolly's and Ri Ra. After having a margarita and then a couple of pints, we headed back to the hotel to get ready for dinner. The lounge was starting to get busy, so we stopped in the lounge for mojitos before leaving the hotel again for dinner. The drinks were excellent and the lounge furniture was extremely comfortable, and of course the wait staff was friendly. We had another round of mojitos after returning from dinner.

We slept reasonably well, although there is a club in the Epicenter that was busy until after 2:00, and we could hear the music even on the hotel's 15th floor. Also, the plush, down duvet on the bed was a little too warm for me and I would have liked to have had another, thinner blanket to choose from.

We definitely would return to this hotel, and will stay there again the next time we are in Charlotte. Unlike most downtown hotels, the wi-fi at the Aloft was free, and they even gave us a free bottle of water in the room. Most places would charge an outrageous price for that.

I stayed at this hotel with a group of girls in April for a Bachelorette party. The location of the hotel is great for going out in downtown Charlotte. The hotel is located at the Epi Centre and the first 3 or 4 floors of the hotel are part of the Epi Centre and the hotel lobby is on the 5th floor. The rooms were fairly small and the walls were paper thin. We could hear everything going on in the room next to us and everything going on the hall. The only thing that helped block out the noise was the really loud AC unit. If you are looking for a hotel that is close to everything downtown, this hotel is a great choice. If you are looking for something a little more relaxing and quiet, you may want to look elsewhere.

There were several good things about this hotel:
1. The shower was great. Nice water pressure.
2. Beautiful view of the city
3. Great location downtown. We were within walking distance to the Convention Center, where my daughter played volleyball that weekend, and lots of great restaurants.
4. The room allowed me to hook up my portable dvd player and watch movies on the flat screen TV.
5. There was a beautiful view of the city. We stayed on the 7th floor.
There were several bad things:
1. You have to ride the elevator to the 5th floor in order to reach the hotel lobby.
2. The air condition was so loud it would wake you up at night.
3. If someone turned the light on in the bathroom, it showed in the sleeping area and would wake you up.
4. The walls were paper thin. You could hear people talking in the hall using normal voices. You could also hear the street traffic outside. I had to wear ear plugs.
5. The lobby looked like a party area. At night the lights were dim and candles were lit and there was loud music playing.
6. The bed was hard and you were provided with 2 small pillows for a king size bed.
This hotel is for young people who like to party and/or who don't mind not sleeping. It is not peaceful at all. I would not recommend it to anyone. The entrance to the hotel is on S. College Street with only a small sign in front of it. My 15 year old loved the pool table in the lobby.