Cleveland’s most luxurious hotel has just come off an 18-month renovation, including a revamp of the arrival and lobby areas, fitness center, public spaces and creating an all-day/all-evening dining concept. When I stepped into the street-level entrance, I was immediately greeted by the valet and doorman, a personal welcome that continued throughout my stay as I was always greeted by my full name when I came into the building or to the lobby level.

After an elevator ride up to the sixth floor, I was shown to the front desk for check-in, and escorted to my room on one of the Club-level floors. The elevators are a tad confusing. One bank brings you from the street level to the lobby and restaurant, while the other takes you up to the guestrooms and Club Lounge. During the renovation, the 206 guestrooms gained Nespresso coffee machines, 55-inch and 60-inch smart TVs with Enseo streaming and Netflix access, automation, sensor lighting and mood lighting, RFID keys, digital safes large enough to fit laptops and marble bathrooms with oversized tubs and showers. My corner suite had a full-sized living room with adjacent powder room for entertaining, dining room with large dining table, master bedroom with corner view of downtown, master bathroom and huge walk-in closet with drawers, shelves and hanging space galore.

Booking a room that includes access to The Ritz-Carlton Club Lounge may initially seem like a splurge, but when you think about all it includes, it’s worth it. This lounge serves breakfast, lunch, heavy appetizers around happy hour and desserts until late night, as well as mimosas in the morning and wine, beer and cocktails throughout the rest of the day and evening. It also has a soothing, comfortable workspace with sofas, tables, chairs and plenty of outlets for all of your devices. I spent six productive hours there one day watching the snow blanket the city.

There are a few unique food and beverage options thanks to executive chef Richard Arnoldi; a bar of global salts from everywhere from Hawai’i to the Himalayas pays homage to the Cargill Salt Mine under Lake Erie, which produces 4 million tons of rock salt every year, and a selection of jerkies is procured from nearby West Side Market, built in 1912 and one of the largest indoor/outdoor markets in the country.

TURN Bar + Kitchen on the sixth floor is the hotel’s signature bar and dining concept, which gives a nod to the city’s industrial past via an onyx bar, glass gas fireplace spanning the length of one wall and shiny metal lighting and accents. It’s the start of happy hour that really drives home Cleveland’s history as a former steel city, when bartenders sound a steam whistle to signal the end of the work day and being “off the clock” and hand out samples of The Smoky Man, a smoked riff on the Manhattan that can also be ordered tableside. The food menu shows off global flavors in dishes like tom yum goong soup and Ahi tuna Niçoise salad, along with local specialties including beer-battered walleye, Polish meatballs and a dry-aged filet with paprika sausage and sauce.

Work it all off at Core Fitness Club, the property’s 4,500-square-foot facility with equipment from Technogym and VersaClimber; Peloton bikes with live-stream classes; fitness-on-demand; spinning, yoga and cycling classes; personal training; and locker rooms with waterfall showers and dry saunas.

When you are ready to step outside you’ll find there is a lot nearby to explored: The tables and slot machines in JACK’s Casino, housed in a former department store, are up the street; the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame is a short ride or 20-minute walk away; and the many glorious historic shopping arcades are fun to stroll through, especially in the chillier weather.

The Ritz-Carlton, Cleveland

Tower City Center
1515 W. 3^rd St.
Cleveland, OH 44113
tel 216 623 1300