I visited Detroit for a conference Feb. 28-30 and booked a king room at the Omni Detroit River Place.

Originally, I was to arrive in Detroit around lunchtime on Friday, but due to schedule changes I took a later flight and got in close to 8:30 p.m. By the time I got a rental car and got downtown, it was around 9 p.m. Unfortunately, two different sets of driving directions I had were both incorrect. I managed to get on East Jefferson, which is the main street, but could not find the cross street to turn on, Campau.

This hotel is located in the opposite direction of everything else downtown - big hotels, convention center, etc. It is not well lit in this area of town and looked sort of run down. This added to the problem of looking for a small street sign.

After driving up and down Jefferson for about 15 minutes, and asking a valet at another property - who said she never heard of an Omni River Place - I called the hotel directly. I was connected with Andre, who was wonderful. He was helpful and friendly and stayed on the phone with me until I had the hotel in view. He then greeted me warmly in the lobby.

Driving toward this hotel, which is on the riverfront, it was extremely dark and deserted. It was downright creepy. The hotel itself has a lighted sign, and a lighted roundabout, but there is nothing but deserted warehouses around it - not very welcoming at any time of day.

The valet took my rental car and upon entering, you are faced with stairs down and stairs up. It's about 5 stairs up to the lobby. There is not a traditional "front desk" but instead a couple of small desks, where you can be seated for check in. Unusual but not unpleasant. There is a fireplace, sofa and chairs scattered around the lobby, with some nooks to visit or relax outside your room.

I was assigned room 302, which was a trek to the complete other side of the building from the lobby, as I discovered when I got off the elevator. It was also by the exterior exit door, which I don't really like. I was tired, so I didn't feel like changing.

The room itself was nice. It was HUGE, with a huge bathroom. It had a king bed as requested, which had been turned down, and the tv set on a "spa music" type channel - soothing new agey type music. The bed had a down comforter and was plush and nice.

The downside to the entire hotel was that it was overall kind of shabby and worn looking. Brass plates were scuffed, carpet was faded, woodwork was scratched. The wallpaper seams in my room didn't line up and even gapped in places and the woodwork around the bathroom mirror had big holes where it looked like fixture had been ripped out, the door was all scuffed from being opened against a closet.

That being said, none of these things really bothered me overmuch, as the room and property seemed clean regardless of wear and tear.

My first night in the room I ordered a sandwich from room service. When I called to the restaurant, I heard a man's voice shout loudly, "No more room service!!" in the background, but the girl who answered was friendly and answered with "of course!" when I asked if I could still get food. It was brought to the room by Holly, who waited on me the next night in the hotel restaurant, and she was stellar both times - smiling, friendly, couldn't have been nicer.

Another unfortunate occurrence was when I finally tried to go to sleep around 11 p.m. and realized there was a whining, whirring, grating sort of noise that came and went and seemed to be emanating from outside the my room, possibly in the stairwell. I could not sleep and ended up turning the TV back onto the spa music channel to try to drown it out.

I was up very early and out the door, since I was in a conference all day on Saturday and then had a meeting after that until 10 p.m., so I dreaded another sleepless night since I didn't really have time to request a room change, but thankfully the noise mysteriously disappeared Saturday night. Thank goodness.

The bathroom had ample amenities like shampoo, soap, lotion and a nice hairdryer (which I did have to search out in the closet). Good water pressure and plenty of hot water in the shower.

I took the hotel shuttle to my conference, for convenience sake, and called and they picked me up in the evening, which was very nice. The shuttle drivers were very nice, friendly and courteous. Again, the staff made the difference at this hotel.

My guests Saturday night arrived while I was still at the conference, and they said the lady working the lobby (unfortunately I didn't get her name) was also top notch, directing them to the bar for drinks, letting them know the bar tab would validate their parking (so they wouldn't have to pay $18) and making sure they were comfortable in the lobby while they waited.

So, overall, a mixed stay. Location leaves a lot to be desired, although the shuttle is available to take you where you want to go. I imagine the river view is nice - my room looked out at the front courtyard. Staff was terrific and accommodating. I hope they succeed in developing the area around the hotel.

It's not all bad at the Omni Riverplace Detroit. In fact, with proper management, a makeover, and some customer service training I believe this hotel could have some great potential. As it stands however, I was quite disappointed with my stay at the end of February, 2008. The hotel is located in a rather dreary warehouse district a good distance from the action of downtown detroit. You can't walk anywhere. You need a rental car or a cab. I rented a car, and was disappointed to learn that there is no self park option. Mandatory valet parking which equates to $18.00 per night, plus a tip to the valet in and out. They've simply taken advantage of the fact that there's no where to park anywhere so why not charge an arm and a leg to park a guest's car. On the positive side, they do have shuttle service that will take you to any of the downtown tourist sights (e.g. - Joe Louis Arena, Casinos, etc.). Check in at the hotel was relatively smooth. I got a fantastic rate on Priceline, which was the only thing that kept me from being completely disappointed. The hotel was virtually empty, yet my request for a river view room was flatly denied. They go right by the rules at this hotel. Expect no bending on anything. Hotel appearance shows a hotel that once had its day, but now is in sorry need of a refresh. Tired carpet, scuffed furniture and trim.....really not pretty at all. I oddly found my room upon check in, in a state of disarray. The chairs to the room had been placed (stacked) in the bathroom, the drapes were all tied up and the end tables were turned sideways. Looks like they had cleaned the room then had forgotten to put the furniture back. The room was very cold, and never quite warmed up during my entire stay. The water temperature was also freezing. Couldn't be bothered at that point to change rooms. Do they not pay their bills? I had a fax sent to me and the hotel never informed me, even upon checking out the next day. I asked for 1 hour later on my check-out. Again...flatly denied. 12 noon, or there would be a charge. I asked if the hotel was full....the response......"no....but our rules are 12 noon check out". Great.....just want a customer wants to hear about - the rule book. One small positive in all this - there was free, wireless internet throughout the hotel. But all in all this hotel was a definite disappointment. I won't be back.......and you should steer clear........

We stayed in the Omni Detroit for our Honeymoon, all the staff were amazing and so friendly and helpful. They left us wine and a congratulations card in our room. The room was fantastic, with a gorgeous river view and a view of Canada over the river. The food in the hotel was so nice especially the breakfast! We were treated like royalty by all of the staff, even the bar staff and room service staff. They made sure we had a full itinerary, advising us of all the things we should do and places we should see, and their shuttle bus brought us anywhere we wanted within a 5 mile radius, for free! Overall we have never been treated so well by any hotel, if you are going to detroit you need to stay in the Omni it is well worth your money. We will definitely be going back!!

this was my third time at the detroit omni and i look forward to my next stay. my best friend and i went for the night after my appt. at the medical center. i was greeted at the door like an old friend. the staff is so nice and friendly. they give great service and go out of their way to help in any way they can. sure some of the hotel could use some updating but i think that's what gives it character and it's charm. the rooms are always clean and room service is wonderful. the food is very good. i will be returning several more times and i'm sure i'll enjoy each stay just as much. my friend said she has a whole new out look on detroit after meeting such friendly people and that she felt very comfortable and "at home" at the omni.