A 323 room Marriott Renaissance inside the 1901 Bartlett Building, a Daniel Burnham skyscraper that for a brief moment was the tallest office tower in Cincinnati, restored in 2014 after a fifty million dollar conversion.
"The Renaissance is the Burnham building reborn as a working four star Marriott. The lobby has the original two storey marble; the room product is consistent corporate Renaissance; the location at 4th and Walnut puts a guest exactly halfway between the convention centre and the river. The trade is honest."
The Renaissance Cincinnati Downtown opened in 2014 inside the restored Bartlett Building, the 1901 Chicago School skyscraper designed by Daniel Burnham at 4th and Walnut. Burnham was the architect of the Flatiron in New York and the Master Plan for Chicago; the Bartlett was his only Cincinnati commission and was for several years the tallest office tower in the city. After eighty years as offices and a long vacancy in the 2000s, the building was bought by Columbia Sussex in 2012 and converted at a cost of approximately fifty million dollars. The restoration retained the original two storey marble lobby, the brass elevator surrounds, and the Burnham terra cotta facade.
The 323 rooms include 40 suites and run the standard Renaissance brand product, refreshed in 2022 after the original conversion. Standard rooms are 28 to 32 square metres; one bedroom suites stretch to roughly 60 square metres with separated living rooms. The Burnham original casement windows have been retained where possible on the lower floors and replicated above; the interior fit out leans modern Renaissance with deep blue and bronze accents rather than the historicist palette some guests expect. Bathrooms carry marble floors and walk in showers in standard rooms with deep tubs in suites.
D. Burnham's, the ground floor restaurant named for the architect, runs an American steakhouse menu under chef Anthony Sitek with the city's best dry aged ribeye and a long bourbon list to match. The bar at D. Burnham's holds the original 1901 ceiling and is the quieter of the downtown lobby bars during the week, the busier on football weekends. Breakfast is in D. Burnham's; service is competent without being remarkable; the food is reliably good rather than ambitious. The hotel runs 14,400 square feet of meeting space across eight rooms, which makes it a regular booking for mid size corporate groups.
Service across the property is consistent Renaissance with two areas the staff actively own. The front desk team handles the convention centre traffic with practised efficiency, and the bell stand has been with the property since opening, which is unusual for a downtown hotel and shows in the small courtesies. The hotel is rated AAA Four Diamond and consistently sits in the top three corporate booking choices in Cincinnati. The Renaissance is the choice for a guest who wants the Burnham building without the upper end of the Lytle Park rate, or a corporate group who needs the meeting space at a downtown address.
For a Cincinnati corporate trip with meetings either in the hotel or at the convention centre, the Renaissance is the most efficient booking. The 14,400 square feet of meeting space is properly maintained, the executive lounge on the top floor handles breakfast and evening cocktails for Marriott Platinum and above, and the workspace within the standard rooms is genuine rather than ornamental. Corporate rates clear at sensible levels.
An anniversary at the Renaissance works for a couple who like the Burnham building and a steakhouse evening. Book a one bedroom suite with a south facing river view; D. Burnham's holds anniversary tables in the back room; the lobby bar handles the after dinner cocktail with the original 1901 ceiling overhead. The mid range pricing keeps the weekend reasonable.
The Renaissance handles a family weekend competently. Connecting rooms are available on most floors; the pool on the eighth floor is open year round and rare for downtown Cincinnati; the location two blocks from Smale Riverfront Park and the Roebling Suspension Bridge means an easy walk to the river and Newport on the Levee in Kentucky.
36 East 4th Street
Cincinnati, OH 45202
United States
Downtown Cincinnati central business district
323 rooms and suites
Doubles from USD 175 per night
Junior Suites from USD 320 per night
Presidential Suite from USD 600 per night
Check in: 4:00 PM
Check out: 12:00 PM
Opened 2014 inside the 1901 Bartlett Building; Daniel Burnham architect; Marriott Renaissance
D. Burnham's (American steakhouse)
Lobby Bar in the original 1901 lobby
Indoor pool (eighth floor)
Executive lounge
8 meeting rooms, 14,400 sq ft
Complimentary WiFi for Bonvoy members
From USD 175 per night. Reserve well ahead for Bengals home weekends, Reds Opening Day in early April, and any Duke Energy Convention Center week.
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