The Ritz-Carlton, Atlanta

The fact that I awakened first thing in the morning and saw that the Ritz Carlton Atlanta had an incident with their valet parking and theft, it clearly was a sign of the type of service this place was going to offer, not to mention the location. The news ran a story that a man was told by the valet that for $100 they would park his vehicle upfront and watch it, only to allow it to be stolen. He had $7000 worth of Christmas gifts for his child in the trunk. GONE! And they didn't tell him until he came down to pick up his car. This in itself should have been a sign. Or perhaps it should have been a sign that I thought from the photos that they offered an afternoon tea service, and the concierge directed me to properties other than the Ritz Carlton for that experience. Perhaps the fact that there was no spa, and I couldn't even make a reservation for a nice lunch onsite? So many signs!!! And in the end, I arrived and left extremely disappointed. Here is my story: As a titanium Bonvoy member, I decided to use my one free night as a "Staycation" in Atlanta. I needed some rest, relaxation, and rejuvenation. I thought the Ritz Carlton brand would be an amazing choice. I was excited to receive an email from Guest Services asking how they could help prepare for my upcoming stay. I responded enthusiastically and told them about my "Stay-cation" and what I wanted to do. As it turns out, they didn't have Afternoon Tea at the Ritz, and even the Lumen Lounge which looked fabulous online is not a restaurant but a bar and they don't serve lunch. I already knew there was no spa. At this point, I decided to just arrive, stay in my room and binge watch Netflix and relax all day. I asked for an early check in and an upgraded room. They accommodated that which was much appreciated. When I arrived I told the valet that I would handle everything myself. I wasn't sure who was involved in the theft and I didn't want anyone having access to my personal property.. They were very nice and clearly embarrassed about the news story. Same with the person at reception, who checked me in. She told me they already prepared my room for me, no mention of my staycation or any identifiers that this was a special day for me. I expected some level of elevated service with Ritz Carlton. But I guess not. My room was ridiculous! There was no closet. It was like an Aloft. I had a transfer chair bench in the tub. I called the front and spoke with a Nakim or Nahim? He had a Middle Eastern accent. I asked him if my room was a handicap-accessible room. He told me no. We ended up arguing about it, to the point where I asked him to send a manager up to tell me how a transfer chair in the tub is not a handicap-accessible room. He told me he would get a manager and call me back. After an hour I called him back. Nahim didn't apologize for not following up, just said, I can move you next door. after 20 minutes a nice gentleman came and helped me move. I told everyone how disappointed I was with this experience, and all I received was, "sorry." No, call from the General Manager, no complimentary glass of wine, or not even a text to say, "How is your new room?" I've stayed at lower-level Marriott properties and received better treatment, and that is without having a complaint. Other properties went out of their way to ensure I never had a complaint. So I know the difference. Lastly, there is no place in the area for a good breakfast. The area didn't even feel safe to walk and reception told me not to stand on the corner and get an Uber at Ellis and Peachtree but to ask them to come on property. Nakim made a bad situation worse, and should NOT represent the brand in a customer-facing role. PERIOD. I will never return, and I've already told 5 people who stay at luxury hotels who will now never stay here. A waste of a stay-cation.

We stayed here on a trip with the kids. It’s an older hotel but it has a great location and the amenities were great and really enjoyed the Mexican restaurant next door. The rooms were very spacious and they were clean and the staff took care of everything

It's difficult to describe the feeling of staying in a Club Level Room here at the R-C Atlanta. The intangibles are too numerous to mention. The staff really do go out of their way to make things special, even for a simple one-night holiday stay. The rooms are impeccable. One thing I would like to address that I see frequently in other reviews--the bathrooms are indeed small. There's literally no way around this; this building is one of the oldest of the modern R-C properties. You can't enlarge the bathrooms. If you have a QQ room, you will have a bathtub with marble tiles. If you have a K room, you will have a nice, updated walk-in shower. But what they lack in size, they definitely make up for in amenities. Rain shower head, first-rate shampoo, shower gel, and conditioner, as well as an assortment of toiletries such that anything you may have forgotten is covered and then some. The beds are feather topped and the Frette linens are sumptuous. There's a Nespresso machine in each room for really good morning coffee. The Club Lounge offerings are definitely getting better again; last time we stayed, it was during Covid, and the selections were more limited. We were impressed with the luch, hors d'eouvres, the homemade cookies, and especially the breakfast this morning on Christmas. The staff were super attentive and everything was near perfect. We opted for a simple burger out for dinner with a friend at the Hard Rock, so I can't comment on the hotel's restaurants, but if you do yourself a favor and stay on the Club Level, you can pretty much stay there and enjoy!

Harrison did an amazing job parking our vehicle during the CNN event. We had over 70 vehicle and Ron, Harrison and Timothy stood out! My party was a bit inebriated and I appreciated their patience. Harrison was a bit hesitant but the confidence that Ron got definitely motivated Harrison and we had AN AMAZING TIME! We got home, we are safe, and we have 0 complaints. Thank you guys! I hope the tip was worth it <3

The Ritz Carlton is an amazing place to stay!! What blew my mind was VALET! Evolution Parking gives OUTSTANDING SERVICE. I had a chance to speak to Ron and Kennedy. Kennedy gave me a warm welcome and Ron topped it off. I will be returning and also recommending Evolution parking to different hotels that j travel too. You never know who you meet.