I stayed at the Houstonian because of some of the favorable reviews on this site and its setting on wooded acreage in town, assuming it would be an elegant hotel in a beautiful location. I must say I was somewhat disappointed. You definitely aren't on the freeway or anything (like a lot of the Houston hotels, such as the Intercontinental), but the setting isn't all that memorable, either.
There's a reason you can't find one exterior photo of the hotel on any website. It looks like a four-story high 70s all-glass office building set on an awkward angle very close to other similar vintage office buildings. That would be okay, but it's laid out oddly on the small piece of land it takes up. Half the rooms have views of the parking garage (unforgiveable, really), which is less than 50 feet away from most rooms. The other half look into another office building. There are trees everywhere, but once the leaves come out this spring, you will be looking into foliage and nothing but. Not to say that looking into other office buildings this time of year is all that attractive. The windows are floor to ceiling and the width of the rooms (which aren't very wide), but the whole feeling is vaguely claustrophobic. And I stayed on the top floor.
The rooms are nicely appointed with very good beds, although the carpet was stained by the door. And, as others have mentioned, the bathrooms are ridiculously small. I mean, insanely so. Motel 6 bathrooms are larger. They are nicely appointed with some marble tile, but you just can't believe how tiny they are. If the rooms had been better designed, there is entry space that could have been alloted to make them normal-sized at the very least. At these prices, the bathrooms should be better.
The club lounge was very well-stocked and nicely designed, with a roaring fire going all day in the fireplace. The staff there was exceedingly friendly, and you get free internet access and printing. A classy touch.
The concierge I had (a young woman) was one of the least informed individuals I have met in her profession. When I asked about dining at a restaurant that would be unique to Houston, she recommended "McCormick & Schmicks," a national chain based in Seattle. She also made vaguely rude comments about how I was not suitably dressed for dinner in a nicer establishment in her city. I ended up dining at Brennan's, (I found out about it myself and called them directly), a very nice local restaurant and got a great table, dressed exactly the same way I was at the hotel. So my experience with her snobby attitude and lack of knowledge was quite the waste of time, not to mention off-putting.
Next day, I checked out the pool area. Very large. Sort of like a 70s resort pool. No staff in attendance. Had to walk quite a ways to get a towel. A Mom with three annoying children descended on the hot tub as soon as I got there. Had to save her youngest from drowning as she was not paying attention.
Location is very convenient to the nicer areas of Houston and good shopping.
The walk from self-parking to the hotel is extremely confusing, as others have stated, and I got lost several times.
All in all, they treated me quite well. But this place feels like it's hanging on to former glory. Everything is well-maintained, but it just doesn't feel like a real four-star hotel. The decor is "Western" in the lobby, but the rooms and narrow hallways are really nondescript. All in all, not bad. But I doubt if I would return when back in Houston. It felt claustrophobic, dark, and past its prime.

Stayed at the hotel for two nights attending a course. I can highly recommend it despite the fact that the interior and the park gives a bit of an artificial feel. Lobby, rooms, dining hall, bar and park are inviting and very well maintained. Not much has to be said, just watch the virtual tour on their website, it's wysiwyg.

The Houstonian has a wonderful feel and the surrounding property allows you to forget you are in the middle of a major city. There are areas to walk around the campus and it also is very close to Memorial Park so runners can leave the property and have a number of trails to enjoy. The rooms were pretty typical of an upscale hotel although the bathrooms are very small. The Houstonian Club is included in the stay and is an outstanding gym. A pro that we noticed was the free daycare for up to 3 hours at the Club while you workout, get a spa treatment or swim in the pool. Would recommend also a room on the concierge floor where there is a continental breakfast and snacks throughout the day. We received a wedding party rate which was very reasonable so I cannot speak to the value when it relates to the typical cost of a stay.

From start to finish, it was probably one of the worse hotel stays in my life. The staff was snooty. We found an old tobacco chew container in our room. When we went to use the ice bucket, we found it was full of water and it spilled on us. The elevator in the main lobby smelled like vomit. The shower had a slimy feel to it, as if someone had not washed it in a few weeks. We saw where one guest decided to put out a cigarette on the carpet walking into their room: the first time I’ve ever seen that.

Yes, they have a nice pool. They have a nice workout gym. But I genuinely felt bad for a couple that looked like they just got married and they were checking into the hotel.

In my humble opinion, the hotel needs better management, and it definitely needs a renovation.

I wouldn’t stay at this hotel again for any reason.