Mr.. Milton DeVaughn, your Front Office Manager, is a professional and wonderful employee who we are hoping you value very much. He’s in the hospitality business and it must be his vocation because he’s spot on! He welcomed us with a sincere smile, when I shook his hand to thank him for the cookie, his good service and quick check-in, he noticed my hands were cold from the winter air and he began warming them and again, with a warm smile. How personable this professional is. He is naturally charismatic along with being charming; he was concerned with our comfort, he’s a sincere gentleman my husband and I think, and Milton gave us the wonderful room of #321 and we were quite happy in that room. The way an employee can be rewarded for such service is most certainly with comments and encouragement but also bonuses, raises and title changes. This man is worth you investing in. Please value and take care of this very excellent employee. Thank you for your time, Kathy & Joe

Sending our daughter off to college for the first time is an exercise in letting go. We originally stayed at the Colonade back in August as a family (when dropping our daughter off for her freshman year at JHU). During our week long stay, we became friendly with many of the staff members at the hotel. The hospitality extended by the employees made us feel welcome in a city that can otherwise feel big and intimidating to people like us who come from a small town. One of the employees who made our stay most enjoyable was Paul Masai. He greeted us with a smile and warm cookies every day of our stay and seemed genuinely concerned and attentive as to how our stay was going. Since the Colonade is right across the street from the JHU campus, we talked with Paul about the possibility of having our daughter stay at the Colonade during stressful times (e.g., during finals) so that she could have a brief respite from the chaos of dorm life and get a restful night's sleep on occassion. Paul told us to call him anytime and he would personally make sure that her visit was nothing short of relaxing. With finals week ahead of her, we decided to book a stay in December and as promised we contacted Paul to let him know when our daughter would be arriving. Paul returned our call right away and he assured us that he would make sure that everything was taken care of when she arrived. True to his word, Paul not only made sure that our daughter's stay was restful, he also put her safety first by reserving her a room on an upper floor in a non smoking room, with no adjoining rooms. Paul arranged the perfect room for her where it was quiet enough for her to study and where she felt safe. My husband, our daughter and I are so grateful for the extra care and attention that Paul (and his staff) gave to our daughter during her stay. It is comforting to know that even though she is far away from family, there are kind people (such as Paul and staff) who care enough about others to make sure that they provide a safe and restful environment for their patrons at the Doubletree Inn at the Colonade. Many thanks to Paul for arranging such a comfortable stay for our daughter.

This is a copy of the letter I sent to the manager of the Inn of the Colonnade this past week,after our second visit there ....this is a wonderful place to stay. Beautiful surroundings and competent, top-notch customer service!


Dear Manager,

Please extend our heartfelt gratitude for the excellent service and care we received this past week at your hotel.

My husband and I first stayed at the Inn in mid-September, when he came to Baltimore for a consultation at Johns Hopkins for his cancer. We were still in shock from his diagnosis, and needed to work out many emotions. The room you provided was beautiful and we so enjoyed every minute, relaxing in the whirlpool bath and on the balcony, watching life continue around the university as we made important decisions. The staff was wonderful, even though very few knew of our situation; this was all the better because we knew that they genuinely cared about customer service overall, not just because we were going through a difficult situation.

When we heard that my husband needed major surgery and could have it done at JH, we again decided to stay at the Inn. We came down actually a night early, so we could spend some time together before his surgery on Oct. 7th. Again, the staff was wonderfully caring and supportive; they were there to help, whether it was with directions around the city, getting our car at 0500, allowing us to get breakfast items from the café the evening before (to take along since we left so early), or offering a warm fresh-from-the-oven cookie.

You all earned a perfect “20”; a “10” certainly isn’t high enough for your hotel!

I will also be mentioning your Inn and the quality of your services when I write to Johns Hopkins. I feel they should know about your excellent hotel so that they could recommend you to their patients and their families who are not from the area.

Your team made so much difference for us as we went through this ordeal. Thankfully, we think that my husband will eventually be fine….the operation was successful, but he needs to recuperate and get back to normal over the next 6-12 months.

Thanks again for all you did…we hope to be able to return in the future!!!!


Blessings,

The rooms at this hotel are clean but rather dark, especially the sitting rooms in the suites. Service is a little lacking - the phone in my room didn't work and wasn't fixed when I requested it. The balconies are nice. The gym is a poor effort. Proximity to Johns Hopkins Homewood is unbeatable.

The staff is a mixed bag. I have had nice conversations with a manager-type guy and with the maintenance staff. When I asked someone at the front desk for a suggestion of a good restaurant to take a business client downtown, she suggested Hooters...

I have stayed at this hotel several times, and it seems to me that each time I am there, the restaurant is under new management with a new name but the same clueless staff. I had a lunch there that was disgusting. Huge hunks of bread and undercooked chicken. The following morning I had a breakfast meeting that was absurdly bad. The buffet eggs were green and they only make one omelet at a time. Plus, the waiter brought us our bill before anyone had consumed so much as a sip of coffee. I've never seen that done before.