Portland, Oregon: Review of The Nines Hotel

The Nines hotel is part of the Luxury Collection of hotels, which are part of the Starwood hotel chain. It is one of the highest rated hotels in Portland and by far the fanciest I have seen in town! As I have stayed here for a near weekly basis over a long stretch of time, I have much to say about how great this hotel is and how much of a second home it has turned into for me.

Location:

The Nines is centrally located in downtown Portland, right across from the Pioneer Courthouse and near Pioneer Square. There is plenty of shopping and restaurants near the area. As it is in the downtown area, safety is less of a concern if traveling alone, even at night.

Eats:

The hotel has 2 restaurants, Urban Farmer and Departure. Urban Farmer is open throughout the day and Departure is a sky bar that opens only during evenings. The sky bar is a great place to check out and relax with a few cocktails with a view of downtown Portland. I recommend visiting Departure during the summer when the weather is nicer and the sun is out for longer hours into the night.

Urban Farmer seen from above

If looking for something outside of the hotel, there are several quick eateries a block away and many restaurants and bars a short walk away in the Pearl district.

Rooms:

One thing visitors will notice right away is how trendy the rooms look. There is a Tiffany’s blue and brown pattern that adorns the walls of the rooms. The bed features a cute, white tufted headboard and several fluffy pillows. The curtains are massive and hang off the ceilings. Some rooms will have a Tiffany’s blue sofa as well.

Hallway entrance into a two queen bed room

Bathrooms in this hotel are also really nice with marble flooring, a blue pouf, and sink/mirror setup towards the corner of the bathroom.

One of two caveats of this hotel would be where the rooms are located. There are two room types, inward facing rooms and outward facing rooms. The outward facing rooms will give visitors a view depending on which floor it is, but the inward facing rooms will make it feel like night time no matter what time of the day it actually is. Inward facing rooms may sometimes hear music coming from the restaurants late at night. The rooms are also generally smaller than other SPG properties. I think it’s more of a Portland thing but rooms in other US cities are much larger than they are here.

Hotel Atmosphere:

The Nines is on the trendier side than most hotels I have seen. The walls are adorned in pretty patterns and blue accents all around and there are pieces of art everywhere. The lobby on the 8th floor boasts a restaurant called Urban Farmer serving farm to table fare as well as a bar and library/pool room. There are many lounge spaces to sit and chat over a cocktail as well.

Service:

Service at the Nines has been phenomenal for me. I have not been at another hotel where it feels like a second home. If you become a frequent guest, the hotel staff will start to remember your name and bring your weekend bags up to your room before you’ve even checked in. I’ve also contacted the Nines hotel to ask about allergen information for food served in the lounge and within the next week or two there was allergen information posted on every dish. The concierge even had a box of gluten free goodies for me set in my room when I checked in and apologized for the lack of gluten free foods in the lounge! Some new and gluten free foods were put out in the lounge since then.

In general the service at the Nines is great whether guests are staying for just a few days to forever. The staff is very friendly and will go out of their way to make things comfortable for their guests, many times without even being told to do so.

Additional Perks:

If you are a platinum SPG member or pay $50/person upon check in, you will have access to the club lounge. The lounge is a great area to relax with a glass of wine or two and munch on some snacks. They serve complimentary alcohol during all hours of operation (7am-10pm). So get your wine, beer, and mimosa fix here! There is also breakfast, snacks, hor d’oeuvres, and dessert served throughout the day. The lounge is also a great place to get some work done and it’s not uncommon to see people typing away at their laptops in the evenings.