Well, just in case you were wondering, we’ve been exploring Minneapolis and St. Paul, in search of the very best hotel rooms. Minneapolis has some exciting new hotels, but we wanted to tell you about two of the newest, and perhaps most exciting choices.

W Hotels has done it again with the W Minneapolis, The Foshay. Housed in the historic “Foshay Tower” the W Minneapolis blends old and new, in one seamless package. The building itself is modeled after the Washington Monument, making this W unique, with 57 different room types. Yep, 57 room types! Each room is a bit different from the next, a feature we think is quite neat. Rooms are impressive to say the least, with contemporary decor and features that you won’t always find at other W’s. Select rooms feature bathrooms with windows, and all rooms have Oversized Glass Showers. The W Minneapolis Lobby or “Livingroom” is one of the largest we’ve seen, and is already “the” place to be in the city. For a real treat, be sure to check out Prohibition, located on the 27th Floor. This “old meets new” bar is one of the hippest in town, and features wonderful views of the Minneapolis Skyline.

The Westin Edina Galleria is another addition to the Minneapolis hotel scene, located just fifteen minutes outside of Downtown Minneapolis. Primarily designed with the business traveler in mind, The Westin Edina is adjacent to the upscale Galleria Shops of Distinction, as well as a host of local businesses. Guest rooms feature Westin’s Heavenly Beds, as well as generously sized bathrooms with separate showers and bathtubs. Swimmers will enjoy the Saline Saltwater Pool, a feature that can only be enjoyed in a handful of hotels across North America.

Attraction:   The Getty Center

Melrose Ave.

Food:           Taste on Melrose Ave.

Newsroom Café on Robertson Blvd.

Thillist.com: Unbeatable Source to know what’s “IN” before everyone else.  Be sure check in with Thrillist before you travel to LA to find “the” new restaurant or the best place to buy the perfect T-Shirt.  They have other Cities that they cover, but like us, they are growing and they will be adding more cities in the near future.

New Orleans    Minneapolis

Atlanta’s hotel list is innovative, fresh and one that continues to grow each year! TripKick is excited about launching this new destination in the coming weeks! We have spent the last couple of weeks touring hotels, seeing the latest and greatest members of the Atlanta hotel scene. There are a few hotels in particular which are worth mentioning, as they are either newcomers to the market, or have recently undergone impressive renovations. We think you’re going to like what Atlanta has to offer, especially when it comes to hotels!

The Ritz-Carlton Atlanta Located in the heart of Downtown Atlanta, The Ritz-Carlton Atlanta has recently unveiled a new guest room experience, complete with new technology enhancements, contemporary furnishings and rooms that take a complete departure from the old. Ritz has taken fresh turn in room design at this property, while also preserving a level of elegance that one would expect from the brand. Service here is simply amazing, as evident by our dining experience while visiting this hotel.

The Ritz-Carlton Buckhead: The Ritz-Carlton Buckhead is located in the prestigious community of Buckhead, just fifteen minutes from Downtown. Guest rooms at this property have also taken a new turn, by playing on the classic elegance of Georgian style, while also updating the old look. These rooms will really knock your socks off. For true indulgence, try booking a “Luxury Suite” complete with a bathroom that comes stocked with Bath Salts that probably cost as much as a standard room rate! Suite bathrooms have separate showers and bathtubs, while standard rooms come equipped with stand alone seamless glass showers. Rooms with 2 Double Beds have a shower/bathtub combination. The lobby has not yet undergone a renovation, but rumor has it that the hotel will maintain a classic traditional look with a few updates and refinements.

The Mansion on Peachtree: Also located in Buckhead, the Mansion is one of Atlanta’s newest properties, boasting some of the most sophisticated accommodations available in the city. With less than 130 rooms and suites, the Mansion offers the ultimate in privacy and luxury. We were particularly impressed with the bathrooms, as most offer windows for added lighting, as well as separate showers and bathtubs. What’s truly notable with these rooms however is the “hidden television” feature, which might leave you guessing where to find your TV. The Mansion has hidden their guest room televisions in a portrait, yes the TV is also an art piece! Hit the button, and artwork transforms into a TV… wow.

W Atlanta Midtown What can we say, W has done it again. This time though, we think W has really outdone themselves, as this property might just offer some of the best rooms in the chain. There is little or no resemblance of its days as a Sheraton, honestly, none! We’ve all seen bad hotel transformations, but this one is not. W has spent an incredible amount of money, essentially transforming the W Atlanta Midtown into a brand new hotel. Rooms are incredibly well finished with true hip W Style. Every comfort imaginable is at your disposal. All King Bedded rooms offer Stand Up Glass showers, while Suites offer huge Rainforest style showers with a window view of the bedroom. This is definitely one to check out.

Stay tuned for Atlanta Hotels!

Seattle Hotel Room Reviews are now Live!

You can now find your perfect room in Seattle. TripKick.com has profiled 28 hotels encompassing a great representation of what the city has to offer!

Here are the Top 5 TripKick Picks for Seattle

Best Boutique - Alexis Hotel

Best Business / Convention - Grand Hyatt Seattle

Best Hip & Trendy - W Seattle

Best Romantic Getaway - Hotel Max

Best Quiet & Serene - PanPacific Seattle

TripKick Seattle Recommendations:

Restaurants

Matt’s In The Market

Purple Cafe

Barolo Ristorante

Seattle Attractions

Pike’s Place Market

Future of Flight Aviation Center & Boeing Plant Tour

The Seattle Center (Space Needle & Experience Music Project)

Seattle Underground Tour

Test Your Seattle Knowledge:

Useless Knowledge that may come in handy.

(Highlight the Answers and they will be revealed)

1. Seattle has a population of nearly 600,000 residents making it the __ largest city in the nation.

A) 8th

B) 12th

C) 14th

D) 24th

Answer: D

2. Besides Starbucks…Seattle residents have had their hands in pioneering other brands that are big biz today. In 1907, 19-year-old Seattle resident James E. Casey borrowed $100 from a friend and founded the American Messenger Company which is now called ____?

A) USPS

B) UPS

C) Fed Ex

D) DHL

Answer: B

3. And staying on topic – which of the following four companies was not founded in Seattle?

A) Microsoft

B) Barnes & Noble

C) Boeing

D) Nordstrom

Answer: B

4. Built in 1962, the Space Needle was originally constructed ____?

A) to promote strong diplomatic relations between Canada & United States.

B) for a Seattle-hosted World Fair.

C) as an epitomized example of “modern” forms of earthquake proof buildings.

D) with a push from Seattle’s City Council as an effort to drive innovation, creativity, art, and architecture in the city.

Answer: B

5. Which Seattle Professional Sports Team(s) have won a National Championship?

A) Seattle Seahawks – Football

B) Seattle Mariners – Baseball

C) Seattle Supersonic – Men’s Basketball

D) Seattle Storm – Women’s Basketball

Answer: C (NBA Championship 1979); D (WNBA Championship 2004); Interesting: Seattle Metropolitans were the first American team to win the Stanley Cup in 1917

6. True or False: New York City, Philadelphia, Houston, Washington DC each receive more rainfall annually than Seattle.

A) True

B) False

Answer: A

Seattle is a wonderful destination, and we’re proud to soon be featuring over 30 hotels throughout the “Emerald City!” We had the great pleasure of staying at the W Seattle, located in the heart of downtown. If you’ve never stayed at a W property, you’re simply missing out. The W Seattle strikes the right balance of cool, sophisticated and comfortable, and we couldn’t have been happier with our stay. Our rooms offered stunning views of the Seattle skyline and Seattle Space Needles… simply spectacular.

We decided to include several major Downtown Seattle hotels, as well as hotels throughout the greater Seattle area including Bellevue and Kirkland, Washington. Whether you’ll be staying downtown, visiting the University of Washington, or in the outer lying areas such as Bellevue, we covered it!

Seattle will be our 11th destination, so you can say that we’ve seen our fair share of hotels and resorts across the county. We were impressed with the selection of hotels that Seattle has to offer. Just to mention a few newcomers that we covered, the Pan Pacific Seattle, the Heathman Kirkland, the Hotel Max Seattle and the Hotel 1000 were all noteworthy selections. We were particularly impressed by Hotel 1000’s indoor “Virtual Golf Course”, how neat is that? Golfers can use their own clubs and play on a variety of PGA virtual courses throughout the country.

We also had the pleasure of staying at the Westin Bellevue, located in the quaint and impressively clean town of Bellevue Washington. The Westin was upscale, hip and incredibly convenient to most everything in Downtown Bellevue. We particularly enjoyed the “Grand Deluxe” category rooms, which offers generously sized rooms with impressive bathrooms (separate showers and whirlpool bathtubs, a must!) These Grand Deluxe Rooms are only on select floors, but are well worth the upgrade.

Well, we should be launching Seattle very shortly, so stay tuned!