I’m back! First a quick shout out to my fantastic guest bloggers – my very own parents, Jack & Linda, and fellow OHLAer, Christi. When you surround yourself with other people that love travel, it’s never an issue finding people that want to share their experiences when you’re out discovering the world! In the next few posts I’ll be scattering amazing photos and stories from our anniversary trip to Europe among posts from around our great state. To kick off my return, I want to share with you one of my favorite new hotels. Sadly, it isn’t in Ohio, but it’s so close you can smell the bourbon wafting from its bar, you can feel the luxurious furs adorning its lobby and rooms and you can see the sparkle across the river, glittering from the chandeliers…I present to you the fabulous Hotel Covington located just across the river, within Greater Cincinnati in the town of Covington, KY.
The Hotel Covington is an example of my favorite type of hotel formula – historic space with luxury, modern amenities. If you haven’t been, downtown Covington, has lots of great old buildings and the Hotel Covington is no exception. This building was the state’s first modern skyscraper and high-end department store. If you didn’t know this going into the lobby you might have had an inkling – you’ll find touches of the past swept into the decor, including my favorite – a blinged-out manikin bust is the main focus of a floating wall full of fashion related knick-knacks, dividing the front desk area and the lounge.
If you’re like me, as soon as you’ve see sparkly things your eyes start to wonder, looking for more. The public space is full of reminders of luxury – from the furs draping chairs and window seats to the immaculate lighting fixtures throughout the lobby and dining areas. The bar sits dominantly in the center of the first floor, wrapped in dark woods with shining bottles of bourbon lining its shelves. One of my favorite pieces on the entire first floor is the ode to our region, penned by Kentucky native, Jesse Stuart,
“If these United States are to be considered a body, then Ohio would be its Heart and Kentucky its Soul.”
So let’s step into the elevator and head upstairs, because the guestrooms are just as impressive. I opened my door and the first thing I noticed was the floor. It’s not too often you’re greeted with
such fantastic entry flooring in a hotel room. The room was decorated in rich blues, grays and tans. I was INN LOVE. At this point, it has been a very long day, and all I wanted to do was curl up in that amazing looking bed, but there were so many intricate details, I couldn’t close my eyes now! The trash can was gold and looked like a
shopping bag; the shelves were lined with interesting local books and games; the hangers (!) had cute phrases like “simply lovely” and “hello handsome.” I headed to the bathroom and was greeted by one of my favorite pieces of bathroom art (pictured below)- right up there with the wet dog photo at the Kimpton Schoefield in Cleveland. This piece is a picture of Cincinnati’s Roebling Suspension Bridge and it reads, “Sorry, Brooklyn, I was first.” (John Roebling built Cincinnati’s Roebling Suspension Bridge in 1866 making it the time’s longest suspension bridge, which came almost 20 years before his son built the nearly structurally identical Brooklyn Bridge.)
I wish on this particular trip I would’ve had more time to check out some of my favorites nearby Hotel Covington – the famous Mac n’ Cheese at Keystone Bar & Grill or a sip of that fine Kentucky spirit at the Old Kentucky Bourbon Bar. But I guess this just means… I’ll have to go back!
“People don’t take trips, trips take people.” – John Steinbeck