Really beautiful rooms. Very comfortable, stylish, great service. Nice breakfast. Cookie buffet and happy hour a very pleasant and welcome treat!

Rooftop pool and jacuzzi gave great views of downtown. Didn't use the workout facilities, but walked through. Very nice, clean, good variety of equipment in excellent condition.

Will definately stay here again.

we loved it. The convenience. The kindness of the staff and especially the Valet service. My kids loved the cookies and milk and we loved the service. The breakfast was great with a lot of protein choices! We were very impressed.

As a former starwood hotels employee, i wouldn't consider myself a hotel sommleia but, i do know a little about hotels.

The hotel is in a great location downtown. Close to all attractions, nightlife and corporations.

I found the boutique decor well appointed through out the hotel. Design was beautiful. My only complaint was that the front desk and lobby is sort of cramped. A small rotunda type area. Small walkways and to much furniture clutter the lobby. During busy check in and check out guests will find it difficult to get to the front desk and elevators.

The room was spacious, clean and well decorated. Comfortable bed. Bathroom was a little cramped.

Was there to see a a concert at the Toyota Center. I knew the hotel had comp transportation around the area. I thought the transportation would not be available so i asked for a cab. The bell desk advised me to wait one minute for the hotel van. The hotel van was a 2007 Suburban. They have two. In about a minute one of the vans dropped off some guests and we hopped in. 3 mins to the Toyota center. Very nice. After the concert it was to late to call for the transportation so we just walked. It was only a 20 min walk. Most was spent making sure we were on the right street and going around the construction that was going on in the downtown area.

The service was great. Check in was quick and pleasant. Check out wasn't the same. Everyone craming into the small lobby to get past guests to get to the front door was tough. The comp breakfast was great after a late night. Not just muffins and cereal.

If you were driving to the hotel, I-10 is about 6 blocks away. Great for a quick getaway back home.

Can't wait for my next stay.

I stayed at the Magnolia from August 19th-24th 2008 and found it very good indeed.The hotel was situated in a well placed position meaning it was only a brief walk to get to either the Preston Metro stop or the Main street square stop which served the rest of downtown Houston/Main st as far as Reliant stadium.

Getting to the hotel was easy as well with my regular method of using the Super Shuttle which worked out at $23+tip each way which was very good value for money as a door to door service,The magnolia concierge staff were on hand to greet me on my arrival to the front of the hotel opening the doors and offering to take my bags to my room if necessary and i also found that the Front desk staff and all of the staff in general were very helpful.

The hotel also offers a complimentary SUV shuttle to anywhere downtown within 2 miles which i didnt need to use but i spoke to people who had used it and they found it very handy especially if you are travelling without a car as the heat can make walking a challenge at certain times.

Location wise i couldnt really of asked for better,There was 2 metro stops within a 3 min walk from the hotel door as well as at least 5 main metro bus routes that serve further out destinations such as the Galleria,Reliant stadium,Bush international (if you choose not to get a shuttle or other method) and Hobby airport also,Theres lots of good places to get something to eat at also ranging from a Subway directly on the corner of the next street parallel to the hotel and also a mexican sub sandwich place,theres a dominoes pizza on Main street which is about 5 mins walk and they also deliver to the hotel on request which i noticed a few guests were doing,There is a mcdonalds not far from the hotel too directly next to the Houston Police department and a burger king and popeyes and a few other local eateries within a short walking distance too so you are never far from somewhere to eat.

As for the area itself as a solo traveller walking around at all hours including late night i felt very safe and although there is quite a noticeable amount of homeless people around they dont bother you if you dont bother them most of the time,As for the surrounding areas i found they were all pretty much ok to be in at anytime of the day although i would suggest that if possible you try to avoid the Wheeler area late at night or catch the metro/bus/cab if you need to get around there although to be fair you shouldnt have a reason to be in that area other than for connecting to metro services as there is nothing there apart from one or fast food joints.

There is a visitors centre located on Travis that guests can take advantage for and if you are staying in Houston for more than 3 days they offer you a complimentary 7 day pass for all of Houston's metro services bus/light rail as well as all of the bus maps/schedules and maps of the area and also sell quite a lot of nice souveniers and such.

The three main places i would definitely recommend that you visit although they may seem pricey are: The Houston Aquarium,The Houston Zoo and the Natural Science Museum which i thought were really cool,Hermann park is also a very nice place to get some great pictures and its not far to walk up to the Hollocaust Museum,Childrens museum and such from there also,I would state though that the Johnson Space center is not worth visiting and is a money raquet and would suggest that if you are interested in seeing rockets and nasa and such to visit Cape Canaveral/Kennedy space center in Florida instead which i thought was much much better as you get to see the shuttles on the launch pads and mission control etc.

The hotel has a really cool rooftop deck area that you can enjoy a swimming pool and a hot tub and also has tables and chairs so you can enjoy a great view of the Texan sun setting over the Houston skyline and see most of the city's attractions including right into Minute Maid park from there and the Aquarium looks great from the roof lit up at night also.

The rooms were very clean and spacious,I was on the 19th floor so i had a large window facing over the city with a panoramic view which was nice to look at in the mornings/evenings.The room came with a fully stocked mini bar,coffee/tea facilities and a iron,also a dressing gown for guests to use that can be purchased for $120.There was a large selection of films/channels on the cable tv and a nintendo 64 games system to use as well for entertainment and in the bathroom a well stocked facility of extra towels,soaps,shower creams,shampoo and conditioner,a shower cap,face flannel etc.

There is also a complimentary buffet on the 2nd floor in the Magnolia room every morning and evening and free milk and cookies in the lobby every evening as well as free alcoholic beverages every evening also.

All in all i would recommend this hotel to anyone who is looking to visit Houston and stay in a safe,clean,fun and enjoyable hotel that is a major hub for access to all of the local attractions/transport etc but also offers you a relaxing,peaceful getaway away from the noise that can be booked at quite reasonable rates depending on what time of year you travel.

Photos to come shortly.