Just wrapped up a wonderful stay at the hotel Palomar in Center city Philly and it was a great stay. Many, many pros with only 1 con. This was a girls only trip for myself and my 3 college roommates.
Since there was only 1 problem let's get that out of the way. As with any big city Parking is an adventure. It's a 40 charge per night to park at the hotel and retrieving your car takes a minimum of 30 minutes. Now that, that's out of the way. Onto the PROS
1) Location. smack dab in the middle of every thing. HIgh end shopping? Check 1 block on Walnut. More moderate shopping? check few blocks down on Market and Chestnut streets. Restuarants? check. way to many in walking distance to name. Every thing from Philly cheesesteaks to Ruth Chris steak house and every thing in between. Rittenhouse square was a few blocks down and had a lovely park in the middle. Every thing else is a short hop on the bus or very cheap cab ride away.
2) Amenities. Great. nice size fitness room on the fourth floor. room sizes were great. 2 Queens and a nice size bathrom. this comes in handy when traveling with 3 college roommates with enough luggage to supply Cleopatras barge.
Bar was a really nice place to unwind after a long afternoon. Coffe/tea and pastries complimentary between 7 and 10. then they also had a wine tasting nightly at 5.
3)Service and decor. Top knotch. truthfully our stay went so smooth I can't say if the hotel staff is efficient, we never needed them. front desk staff was great. friendly and knowledgable of Philly.
Hotel itself is very pretty. Contemporary with a nod to the historical area. LOL since the Army/Navy game was last weekend, hotel had the bust of ben Franklin in a Go Navy and Go Army shirts.

I plan on becoming a Kimpton rewards member and will definitely seek out their hotels whenever I travel.

Stayed here on a recent trip to Philly with my husband and had a wonderful time. I can't recommend it enough! We had been upgraded as 'VIPs of the day' to a King Spa suite- (comfortable, spotless, modern and with a bathtub to die for!) and were pleasantly surprised by a wonderful welcome gift in the room, as well as vouchers for free appetizers and drinks in the superb restaurant downstairs. Everything, from the building itself, the room, the people, service, was impeccable. I have stayed in Kimpton hotels in other cities and they would always be my first choice- they really set a standard for other hotels to follow, and the Hotel Palomar in Philly is leading the pack.

The palomar feels like a small hotel yet it has 23 floors of rooms. The rooms are small but the service is top notch. My husband left a jacket in our car that we had valet parked. He told the front desk who asked him to have seat in the lobby - he thought she went to get someone to find out where our car was, but 10 minutes later they handed him his jacket! That was unexpected. It feels homey yet is walking distance to some great restaurants, theaters, and shops. We had. Breakfast in the small restaurant and were pleased with an exciting menu. Also, rooms are exceptionally quiet. We were near the elevator but heard nothing all night. No neighbors tvs, no street noise, no elevators or passers by in the hallway. Very comfortable.

I stayed at the Morrison House, a Kimpton Hotel, in Old Town Alexandria earlier this fall. I had never stayed in a Kimpton property so was a little anxious as it was a special weekend for my wife and I. The experience there was absolutely tremendous. So, when we decided to head to Philly for the Army Navy Game (I'm a West Point grad), we looked at the Kimpton hotels there.

I am in Philadelphia often for business and usually stay at the larger chains which are crowded, impersonal and, quite frankly, nothing special. I was looking for "something special" for my wife's first A-N Game (and my first return since I graduated in '79). The Palomar did not disappoint!

The wonderful experience started with our arrival. We were warmly greated by the staff, given an early checkin and a room on the top floor with a great view. It only got better from there as the room was spotless, chic and well-appointed. Plus we were situated in the beautiful Rittenshouse Square area, located in a neighborhood of wonderful restaurants and shops and within walking distance to all of the key sites.

On the day of the game, we walked a few blocks to the Broad Street subway. Within minutes (literally), we are at the stadium. Although my Army Team lost (again), afterwards we were on the subway again and back at our warm and inviting hotel within 15 minutes of leaving the stadium. We walked down the street, had a great dinner at one of the many local restaurants (a wonderful Italian steakhouse) and then came back to the very cordial hotel bar for a nightcap.

I was a little worried about the night ahead as there were lots of fellow grads from both Army (and that other school...) at our hotel who were obviously going to be out late. The good news - the hotel is soundproof... literally... as while we could hear the returning late night reverlers pass our room in the wee hours, they were totally quiet once once they entered their rooms. Perfect!

We arose the next morning and the staff had coffee and kuchen in the lobby while we awaited our ride to the airport. A mistake on our bill was corrected without question, we were given a warm farewell and a genuine "can't wait to have you come back" and on our way to the airport where we arrived in only 15 minutes!

Great experience, great staff, great facility and great location. I am very critical... but the Palomar gets 5 stars!!! Great job, guys! I'll be back.