I really hoped Marriott would send me a survey for this one so I could add it to the ones on the site. I spent over a month here, and will be returning after my time abroad. I LOVE this hotel.
I live in hotels year round, so I'm a decent judge of hotels from fancy to everyday extended stay. Obviously, the basics such as a clean kitchen and bathroom, and a comfortable bed are a given (and all present here). But what you don't always find, even with a luxury price tag is the absolutely exceptional customer service and care present at this TownePlace. Lacy and Nikia are the reason I came when I did. I had a reservation later in the year, but a sudden change due to an unexpected situation had me walking in off the street, meeting these two customer-facing brilliant and hospitable agents. They smiled, helped, worked with me, and were not just able to get me booked at the rate I needed, but also did it patiently and like they enjoyed their jobs. What a pleasure!
It's clear why they do enjoy their jobs: I would later not only interact further with them, but with the other managers, sales director, and housekeeping staff. Everyone here is absolutely top notch! Johana, Kim, and GM Christine, plus the awesome housekeeping staff, all made it a pleasure to be there. I was not treated just some random customer with cash who didn't matter. They treat guests as people who are valued, and hat does matter. I would often return from getting groceries and run into Nikia who would immediately ask if I needed help. Sometimes I would be checking something at the front desk and Christine would walk by, not realizing Lacy was in the process of helping me, and immediately ask if I needed help. Everyone was always willing to help, answer questions, whatever.
I don't know about you, but more often than not these days, it seems this is the opposite of the norm in many places. It's almost like we have to choose between friendliness or expertise; here both come with the package.
The only "issue" I had was that as a remote worker, as well as a (very late) night owl, I work some odd hours, and this hotel is popular (for obvious reasons). The hotel is pretty quiet (much more so than many places I have lived, and in an extremely quiet neighborhood as well), but with my hours, I realized I probably needed to be more toward the end of a hall and out of the way if possible because I was working at midnight or 1 a.m. when people were exiting the elevator and having normal chatter back and forth after events. This is not unusual, of course. Yet when I popped downstairs to ask if I could relocate my stay to an area at the end of a hall, the GM, Christine, happened to be on duty, and she didn't blink twice. She moved me, and that solved it.
Look, it's a TownePlace, so of course, it's not going to have 600 thread count sheets and down comforters. You're at an extended stay hotel, not the JW in Rio has or the host of Marriott 5-star resorts in Spain. In return, you are getting a full-sized refrigerator, cooking facilities, with pots and pans provided, a dishwasher, and surprising closet and organization space. Even in a queen studio, the front entry closet and the bathroom closet with wardrobe organizers is impressive.
Housekeeping here works so hard. Extended stay hotels are extra work. Generally, I did not need a lot since I live in extended stay hotels and this was one of my shorter stays (this time!). I would just set my garbage outside the door each night (early morning for me since I worked so late) and it would be taken by housekeeping. But it is a hotel designed for long stays, so housekeeping teams may have to clean up after people who leave gross dishes or the oven or microwave and stovetop a mess, maybe with ice cream that leaked in the freezer or oil on the countertop (or butter in the fridge), you get the idea. I often saw a manager upstairs checking off rooms--while I did not ask, I presumed it was to ensure quality. This is an older TownePlace "template," which I like. But this whole team takes great pride in it and maintains it well.
Despite it not being a newer TownePlace, everything is clean and maintained. I feel certain the shower curtains are bleached they are so clean, and the bathtubs were glistening white. I need a bathtub for my back, and so that mattered a ton to me.
The air con works well. I get overheated way too easily. That thing made me too cold sometimes (my friends will tell you if I have to turn an air con higher than it can go, I am a happy person).
Overland Park and the KC Metro area in general are not known for being walkable despite their many walking and biking trails. This hotel is an exception to that. Across the street is a terrific grocery store (Hen House), which anchors a large shopping center with some decent eating options too.
One of the best parts about this hotel is the location in the Deer Creek area of OP (and you can take 133rd if you want and avoid the busy streets and highways). It's in the midst of shopping and restaurants, and an easy hop to Leawood and the State Line area of KC, MO; however, it's quiet and almost makes you feel you're driving into the woods when you pull in due to being across from a golf course.
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