Ultimate Salt Lake City Tour in Salt Lake City, UT

Although my experience in Las Vegas wasn’t so great, I decided to go for another bus tour in Salt Lake City. The company, City Sights, offers a few different types of tours including a 1.5-hour trolley tour and a 3-hour copper mine tour. The shorter tour around the city didn’t seem like it would offer all that I wanted to see, so I opted for the 3.5-hour Ultimate Salt Lake City Tour plus Organ Recital. If you're staying at a downtown hotel like I did, the bus will pick you up from your hotel and drop you back there at the end.

On this tour there are a few stops (including a break for lunch at the Beehive House—being part of the tour gets you 10% off your meal), but the time at each location is pretty short; I definitely could’ve used more time at Pioneer Heritage State Park (we had about 20 minutes). Outside of the organ recital at Temple Square (which anyone can attend for free), my favorite part of the tour was our walk through the State Capitol building.

I had already gone through the previous afternoon, but the Capitol was nearly empty on the Saturday of my tour which made it easier to take pictures and I appreciated that I was with a guide who could give some background. (It should be noted though that free tours of the Capitol are also available.) As luck would have it, my trip happened to be during the time that the Transcontinental Railroad Exhibit was featured at the Capitol. I had missed the sign during my solo trip through the Capitol, so I was really happy that the tour guide took us through the exhibit. In all, the tour was a good way to get familiar with the city so tourists can make note of what they want to visit when they have more time, but I would’ve liked a longer tour that gave me the chance to explore without having to come back on my own.

Kimpton Hotel Monaco in Salt Lake City, Utah

As I continue to knock off states in my quest to see a concert in all 50 of them, I headed to Utah for Memorial Day weekend. My initial plan was to stay at a Hyatt property less than a mile from the venue, but then I discovered the Kimpton Hotel Monaco was within the same price range, only slightly farther away, and part of the American Express Hotel Collection. The Hotel Collection comes with a $100 incidental credit for stays of two or more nights. This made the Kimpton a better deal than the Hyatt.

I arrived a few hours before check-in, but was greeted as an American Express cardholder and informed that my Deluxe Queen room had been upgraded to the Monte Carlo Suite and was ready for me. I’d also found a “code word” (a promotion that Kimpton occasionally runs) to give at check-in which granted me an extra $25 incidental credit. I ended up making use of the entire credit at the hotel restaurant Bambara for dinner, drinks, and brunch. My restaurant experience was great for dinner, but lacking at brunch when the waitstaff virtually ignored me and let my water glass sit empty for quite some time. The food at each meal was good, but overpriced. The drinks didn’t seem to contain any alcohol.

But on to the room. The elevator was controlled by the keycard, so I could only access the lower two levels (the fitness center and conference rooms were on the second floor) and the third floor where my room was located. The hallways to the rooms were a bit of a maze, but signs pointed me in the correct direction.

The first thing I noticed upon entering my room was that the door had no security bar. When I went into the bathroom, that door had no lock (Is this now commonplace? My room in Las Vegas didn’t have a bathroom lock either.) but I did find good quality shampoo, conditioner, and body wash (in full size bottles so I didn’t get to take any home which was sad because they smelled so good) plus hand soap, lotion, q-tips, and cotton balls. There was also a hair dryer and a pullout mirror to the side of the sink. With this Kimpton having been built in 1926, it did take quite a while for the water to heat up but the pressure was fine.

I next checked out the entry way closet where I was delighted to find two robes (sooo comfy!), an extra pillow and blanket, an iron and ironing board, an umbrella (handy for my rainy day arrival), and a yoga mat. (Kimpton properties all offer a yoga mat in the room and bicycles in the lobby.)

The living room and the bedroom were separated by a red curtain (red was definitely the theme here). In the living room, there was a pullout sofa with mismatched end tables and lamps plus a chair and wobbly coffee table. In this part of the room there was a desk (which had two built-in outlets and another two outlets on the lamp) with a chair.

There was also a large TV above what doubled as a dresser/safe and mini-bar. The mini-fridge was stocked with non-alcoholic drinks. The drawer above the mini-fridge had a variety of snacks and some personal care items. All of these were, of course, outrageously priced. A coffee maker is only supplied upon request. (Complimentary iced coffee with regular, vanilla, and caramel syrups was available in the lobby each morning.) An empty mini-fridge could also be requested.

As for the bedroom, my upgraded room had a king bed, which I found quite comfortable, with nightstands on each side. Both nightstands had a lamp with an outlet and there was an alarm clock.

There was another chair plus a dresser with a TV on top.

The lack of USB outlets indicated the hotel hasn’t done much updating, but the furnishings didn’t seem outdated or show too much wear. The in-room WiFi (free for IHG members) seemed just as fast as my LTE cell service.

In the room there was a sign to put out to refuse housekeeping in exchange for a $5 dining credit good for the restaurant or room service. No one cleans up after me at home, so I went ahead and took the credit. In the morning, I found a card on the outside handle of the door. I presented that card at Bambara and the $5 was taken off my bill.

My only real disappointment was the lack of a happy hour which was touted on the hotel website. On my first night I went down excited for the free beer/wine and maybe a few snacks. Instead I found the iced green and black teas (with peach and blackberry syrups), lemon- and lime-flavored waters, and apples that had in the lobby since I checked in. I waited a while thinking they were behind schedule, then inquired at the front desk. I didn’t get much of an answer (a different person from when I checked in was now working), but she confirmed that this was the happy hour. Later I got a text from the hotel asking about my stay, so I asked about happy hour again. This time I was told, “Unfortunately, the Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control has ordered a cease and desist on our hotel. We’re working on getting our license back, but in the meantime, we’re unable to give guests free alcohol.” The missing happy hour was out of their control in terms of alcohol, but the hotel could’ve put out a sign as they did about the restaurant being closed on Memorial Day and they could’ve put out snacks beyond the apples to make up for the lack of alcohol.

As there’s normally a happy hour, it makes sense that people would spend a bit of time in the lobby. As such, there’s plenty of seating with charging stations. They also offer a lot of games like an oversized Connect Four to play while enjoying your beverages. The lobby also has free newspapers (local and national). Here’s hoping Kimpton gets to serve alcohol at happy hour again soon!

Since the Kimpton seems to focus on health with the yoga mats and bicycles, I wasn’t surprised to see a really nice gym. Along with the standard weights and machines, the gym offered up some more “fun” items like hula hoops.

There's no spa, but facials and massages can be scheduled in room. As usual, I didn’t bring a car, but it’s worth noting this property is valet only at $26/day. The hotel is also pet-friendly.