Birmingham's oldest operating hotel, opened 1925, 120 rooms across fourteen floors, a rooftop bar with the city's most-loved skyline view, and the room where Hank Williams spent his last night on earth.
"The Redmont is the one genuinely historic hotel still operating in downtown Birmingham: 1925 bones, a rooftop bar that locals actually drink in, and a price band that lets you book the room Hank Williams died in without flinching."
The Redmont sits on the corner of 5th Avenue North and Richard Arrington Jr. Boulevard, three blocks north of the BJCC and five blocks from the Civil Rights District. The hotel opened in 1925 as a 100-room property designed by Birmingham architect George Turner; at the time it was the city's first hotel built with a private bath in every room. The building, a fourteen-storey brown-brick tower with a deep cornice and a small parapet, has run continuously as a hotel for a hundred years, the longest unbroken operation in Birmingham. The hotel was purchased in 1947 by businessman Clifford Stiles, who converted the top floor into a New York-style penthouse with terraces, a private elevator, and a pet lawn. In 1952, country singer Hank Williams spent the last night of his life in the Redmont before his car-bound death on the way to a New Year's Day concert in Canton, Ohio. The hotel was bought in 1983 by an investment group that included NBA Hall of Famer Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Ralph Sampson, and was comprehensively renovated in 2015 before reopening as a member of the Curio Collection by Hilton.
The 120 rooms run across fourteen floors with three primary categories. Standard king and queen rooms (around 320 square feet) carry the post-2015 renovation in cream, charcoal, and brushed-brass, with restored crown moldings and 40-inch HDTVs. Premium king rooms add city-view orientations from the upper floors. The one-bedroom suites include a walk-in shower and a separate sitting area; the Penthouse Suite on the 14th floor preserves the original 1947 terraces and is the property's flagship at roughly 1,400 square feet with a small private elevator vestibule. Every room includes a Keurig coffee maker, an ergonomic work area, complimentary WiFi, and Curio Collection-signature bedding.
The rooftop bar, Above, is the property's clearest selling point. The 14th-floor terrace opened with the 2015 renovation and is the most consistently busy rooftop in downtown Birmingham, with a four-direction view, a serious cocktail programme, and small plates from the kitchen of Harvest Restaurant downstairs. Harvest, on the ground floor, runs a Southern farm-to-table menu through breakfast, lunch, and dinner, with a strong Sunday brunch programme. The hotel also runs a small lobby bar with a thirty-bottle whiskey list and a quiet corner that the city's lawyers and bankers use as a late-afternoon meeting room.
The Redmont's operational signature is that it works as both a historic landmark and a functional downtown hotel. The fitness centre is on the second floor with a small business centre; the meeting rooms on the mezzanine handle weddings, depositions, and corporate retreats; and the location three blocks from the BJCC, two blocks from Regions Field, and five blocks from the Civil Rights Institute makes it a practical base for any reason to be downtown. Service is friendly and informally Southern rather than European-polished, the staff is unusually long-tenured for a 120-room property, and the Curio Collection affiliation handles the Hilton Honors recognition programme. The Hank Williams room (838) can be requested at booking with a $50 surcharge and a small framed history on the wall.
For a solo trip to Birmingham organised around the Civil Rights District, the city's restaurant programme, and an interest in American music history, the Redmont is the right address. The 1925 building gives the stay a sense of place that any contemporary build lacks; the rooftop bar is the cleanest evening anchor in downtown; and the price band leaves enough room in the budget for the Hank Williams room request without overspending on the night. A four-day solo trip here is a self-contained experience without ever needing to drive.
For a business trip to the BJCC, Regions Field, the federal courthouse, or any of the downtown professional services firms, the Redmont is the practical middle option in the Birmingham market: more character than the convention-hotel stock, lower rates than the Elyton, and a location three blocks from the BJCC. The mezzanine meeting rooms handle small-group bookings; the rooftop bar runs as a client-entertainment room; and the Curio Collection affiliation handles the Hilton Honors recognition without sacrificing the boutique scale.
2101 5th Avenue North
Birmingham, AL 35203
United States
Three blocks from the BJCC convention complex; two blocks from Regions Field; five blocks from the Birmingham Civil Rights Institute; six blocks from the Lyric and Alabama Theatres
120 rooms across 14 floors
Deluxe king and queen rooms from $150/night
Premium king from $210/night
One-bedroom suite from $320/night
Penthouse Suite to $480/night
Check-in: 4:00 PM
Check-out: 11:00 AM
Built 1925; comprehensive renovation 2015
Curio Collection by Hilton; AAA Four Diamond
Above rooftop bar (14th floor, four-direction city views)
Harvest Restaurant (Southern farm-to-table)
Penthouse Suite with original 1947 terraces
Lobby whiskey bar with thirty-bottle list
Mezzanine meeting rooms
24-hour fitness centre and business floor
The Hank Williams room (838) available on request
Complimentary WiFi throughout
From $150/night. Suites and high-season weekends in Birmingham book three to four months ahead; weekday and shoulder-season rates are the value pick.
View Rates & Dates →The AAA Four Diamond Kessler hotel on the Birmingham Botanical Gardens.
The 117-room downtown boutique in the 1913 Empire Building, one block south.
The AAA Four Diamond golf resort in Hoover.
A ranked shortlist, a special offer worth booking, and the overpriced stay to skip. Straight from the editors.