Only our second stay in Kimpton hotels but I have to say that I really, really like them. They update old landmarks in cities and give them this hip, trendy vibe but it remains timeless and elegant at the same time. Nice wine reception with hors d'oeuvres in the (upstairs) lobby in each hotel. Also stayed at the Palomar in DC--very nice. Join the free in-touch club for amenities and upgrades.

I am a big fan of the Kimpton chain, so when I and several colleagues needed to go on a business trip to Baltimore recently I suggested the Monaco,and everyone agreed. After our experience there, I don't think my colleagues will accept my hotel suggestions again any time soon. Although the hotel is beautiful and well located, we were repeatedly disappointed with the poor level of service and maintenance. This is a bit of a mystery, because nearly all the staff we encountered were enthusiastic and cheerful -- but again and again they were unable to respond to our requests in a timely and accurate manner. My guess is that they are simply understaffed; perhaps there is also a training issue. Whatever the reason, the quality of service fell well below the level I have come to expect from Kimpton.
The building itself is gorgeous, an historic office building with an impressive marble staircase and stained glass. The rooms vary considerably in size, with the corner suites being quite spacious. Many rooms come with enormous whirlpool tubs. The decor is typical Kimpton cool.
However, when they converted the historic office building into a hotel, they don't seem to have devoted much effort to soundproofing the windows. As a result, there is considerable street noise audible in the rooms, and the (disturbingly frequent) wail of sirens at night can clearly be heard. Adding to the cacophony is the loudest heating unit I have heard in a lifetime of hotel travel cycling on and off throughout the night. It did not make for a tranquil sleeping environment.
A few examples of the service issues: check in was slow, and the room was not ready when promised. The first room I was given had maintenance issues that required me to change rooms. The new room they gave me was much smaller than the one I had reserved, but they said they would move me to another room of the type I had reserved after the next night (which ultimately they did). The new room had further maintenance issues (lock refused to stay locked) which it took them three separate attempts to fix. Room service was tasty when it arrived, but sometimes was substantially delayed, and once was forgotten completely. A colleague received an early morning wake up call that she did not request. Another reported that her TV did not work and it wasn't fixed. Another wasn't told that a package had arrived at the front desk. And so on. The only departments that worked smoothly were housekeeping and bell staff.
As a result of our experiences I could not recommend this hotel.

The rooms were very spacious, the furniture unique, the bed a king and very comfortable and the bathroom all marble and very large. Only two blocks away from the convention center and the restaurant, B&O Brassier, located on the first floor. The lobby offered free coffee and tea in the mornings and wine tastings in the evening. Staff was helpful and easy to talk to. Go on-line and join the rewards program and they instantly provide free Wi-Fi. Overall, very nice and comfortable.

We had a very nice stay at the Hotel Monaco Baltimore. We used a "Capitol Deal" and thus got a great rate which included free continental breakfast. I highly recommend joining the hotel's InTouch loyalty program (which is free) as it gets you free wireless internet and at least $10 in credit towards the minibar at each stay. There's nothing like getting free stuff! Our room was quite nice, one of the King Premier Spa rooms with the very nice double person, jetted tub. We arrived very early in the day and our room was not ready yet, which was not a suprise given how early we had arrived. They stored our bags for us and called our cell phone when the room was ready - which was pretty much at the time that they told us it would be ready. All of the front desk staff were very nice and accommodating.
We did not use the valet parking. Based on other reviews, we decided that valet parking was a waste of money and we were glad that we made the decision to self-park. There is a nice garage immediately around the corner from the hotel entrance - I believe it's called "Edison Park Fast". It was only $20 for 24 hours. The garage entrances are secure and are accessed using your parking ticket stub. Much cheaper, and in our opinion faster/easier, than using the valet.
The free wine in the late afternoon in the lobby is a nice touch. When I mentioned to the front desk attendant that neither of us drinks wine, he gave us vouchers for 4 complimentary drinks at the hotel bar. This was fantastic! The bar was a nice setting, not crowded. The bartender, Jessie, went out of his way to make us comfortable and he was just terrific.

All in all, it was a very nice experience and we had a great time.