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Located in downtown Kansas City, the 677 room Sheraton Kansas City Hotel at Crown Center (website here) provides sophisticated and modern accommodations in the middle of the city’s attractions. The hotel has an elevated indoor glass walkway that links it to the Westin hotel and the 85-acre Crown Center complex with its array of restaurants, entertainment venues, attractions, office complexes, and a residential community. Called the Link, it looks a little bit like a hamster habit trail when you first see it, but in the middle of winter, you’ll appreciate how practical and convenient it is.
The Sheraton Kansas City makes a great first impression. The atrium lobby is beautiful, full of well laid out seating, workspaces, grand piano, plants, and art. Although I have arrived at times when the lobby was full of people, the layout seems to disperse them in a way that doesn’t make it feel crowded. If there’s a line up to check-in, the concierge always is welcoming and inquiring about what we’d like to know about things to do in the area.
The multi-story atrium provides access to the second-floor restaurant, bar, and meeting space by way of an escalator and stairs. Additional seating and workspace on the second floor overlook the lobby and an artistic light installation ties it all together.
I’ve stayed at the Sheraton Kansas City several times, always in an entry-level room with either a King or two Queen beds. The room is good-sized for the entry-level category and is decorated in whites and neutral tonal shades. Sheraton offers signature bed and bedding – pillowtop mattress, featherbed, and duvet – and I’ve always found them conducive to a night of good sleep. The bed, sitting area, and desk all have good lighting which is important to me since I usually spend a fair amount of time working in my room. The usual room amenities are provided including a coffee maker and mini-refrigerator, also important since I like bringing leftovers back to the room.
One amenity that desperately needs an upgrade is the alarm clock which still has the old Apple dock connector rather than the lightning connector which was introduced over seven years ago. It’s long past time for an upgrade.
Club-level rooms are available on higher floors and offer views of the Kansas City skyline. These upgraded rooms offer access to the concierge lounge on the 41st floor that offers complimentary beverages, a hot drink machine with various coffee drinks, complimentary appetizers and breakfast.
If you will be staying long enough to take advantage of these amenities, this represents a substantial value. Breakfast at the hotel runs $19, an upgraded room is around $50 more per night, add in the other amenities and it’s a good value. If your personal budget or company expense account won’t allow for an upgraded club room, you can still visit the concierge lounge to enjoy the view, although not the amenities.
There are several restaurants in the Crown Center that you can access via the Link. I usually pick up some burnt ends from Spectators Pub at the hotel and head back to my room to enjoy barbecue without an audience. The restaurant is open for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, and also provides room service. While I’ve tried to call the restaurant to place an order, it seems that all calls are routed through the front desk and they cannot access the restaurant directly via phone. This is annoying when I’ve had a late arrival and I want to call in an order to pick up and take to my room upon arrival. The only current option is to head to the pub to wait, something no one wants to do after a long day of travel.
The hotel offers complimentary shuttle service to other restaurants and attractions within the area (don’t forget to tip the driver). I’ve found it works best to schedule a shuttle ride to the restaurant and grab a cab or rideshare for the return. It can sometimes be difficult to time a pickup, and I far prefer to control my schedule.
The hotel is located about 35 miles from the Kansas City Airport (airport code MCI) and does not provide shuttle service. Your best ground transportation options from Kansas City International Airport to the Sheraton Kansas City is via shared shuttle (about $20/person), taxi service (about $50), or rideshare service (about $45). If you’re traveling by train, Union Station is under a half-mile away.
The Sheraton Kansas City Hotel at Crown Center is located at 2345 McGee Street, Kansas City, Missouri. Rates start around $150 per night. You can book reservations here. You can also comapre rates and book at Expedia, Travelocity or other online booking sites. Onsite parking is $19/day, $26 for valet parking. Complimentary electric car charging stations are available. The hotel is pet-friendly and dogs are permitted for an additional fee.
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