Hotel Review: Hotel Phillips Kansas City, Curio Collection by Hilton

Hotel Phillips Kansas City, Curio Collection by Hilton, is a hotel in the dynamic Power and Light District in downtown Kansas City, MO. Like many Curio Collection hotels, Hotel Philips has an interesting historical background. The site used to be occupied by another hotel, the Glennon Hotel, which housed a haberdashery shop that former President Harry Truman operated. After the Glennon Hotel was demolished, Hotel Phillips was built in 1931, becoming the tallest building in Kansas City. Since its initial establishment, the hotel went through many hospitality brands, from Radisson Hotels to Wyndham Hotels, and it finally became a Curio Collection property in the late 2010s.  Intrigued by its history, I visited the hotel a few months ago. While I appreciated the historical charm of Hotel Phillips, my corner suite was different from what I originally envisioned. Here’s my review of Hotel Phillips Kansas City, Curio Collection by Hilton:

• What Card(s) Should You Use to Book?

• Location

• Lobby & Check-In Review

• Bedroom Review

• Bathroom Review

• Gym Review

• Positives & Negatives

• Summary

Hotel Phillips Kansas City, Curio Collection by Hilton is located at 106 W 12th St, Kansas City, MO 64105.

What Card(s) Should You Use to Book?

American Express Hilton Honors Aspire

The American Express Hilton Aspire card is currently offering a signup bonus of 150,000 Hilton Honors points after spending $4,000 in 3 months. Be aware that since this is an American Express (AMEX) card, you’re only allowed to receive the signup bonus once per lifetime. With a valuation of 0.6 cents per point, the signup bonus is worth about $900. The annual fee is $450, but cardmembers get a weekend night certificate (redeemable on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday nights at non-premium hotels), $250 incidental credit towards your airline of choice, $250 Hilton resort credit at select Hilton resorts, and Hilton Diamond status, the highest in Hilton’s member ecosystem.

The American Express Hilton Honors Aspire card is one of my favorite credit cards for its benefits and perks. Photo by American Express.

The Aspire Card earns 14X per dollar spent on Hilton hotels and resorts when booked directly through Hilton and 7X on flights booked directly with airlines or amextravel.com, car rentals booked directly with select companies, and U.S. restaurants. All other purchases will earn 3X per dollar spent. As a Hilton Honors Diamond member, you’ll get a 100% points bonus and 10 extra points per dollar spent at Hilton properties. Therefore, the Aspire card earns a total of 24X per dollar spent on Hilton properties when booked directly with Hilton, yielding a grand return of 14.4%. With Hilton’s frequent points promotions, you can rake in a serious amount of Hilton Honors points in no time. Even if you don’t stay at Hilton properties too often, this card is definitely worth the annual fee due to its amazing perks and benefits, and I strongly believe it’s the best hotel credit card available on the market right now. 

If you’d like to apply for the AMEX Hilton Honors Aspire card, please consider using my referral link. It will continue to help fund my blog operations and help visitors make informed decisions to maximize their rewards. Thank you! Click HERE to access my referral link!

American Express Hilton Honors Business

Alternatively, I could’ve used my American Express Hilton Honors Business card to book my stay. The AMEX Hilton Honors Business card is currently offering a signup bonus of 130,000 Hilton Honors points after spending $3,000 in 3 months, which is also worth about $780. Like other AMEX cards, the card is subject to the once-per-lifetime signup bonus rule. The annual fee is $95, and unlike the Aspire, it doesn’t come with airline or resort credits. However, it can be a great workhorse card as it offers generous everyday and business multipliers. It earns 12X Hilton Honors points per dollar spent on hotel and resort purchases booked directly with Hilton and 6X at U.S. restaurants, U.S. gas stations, U.S. wireless telephone services, U.S. purchases for shipping, and flights booked directly with airlines or with AMEX Travel. All other purchases earn 3X points per dollar spent. Because cardmembers receive automatic Honors Gold status, you’ll get an 80% points bonus and 8 extra points per dollar spent at Hilton properties. In addition, you’d receive 10 complimentary Priority Pass visits and have an opportunity to earn a free weekend night certificate after spending $15,000 in a calendar year. As a result, the Surpass earns a total of 20X per dollar spent on Hilton properties when booked directly with Hilton, yielding a return of 12%.

The American Express Hilton Honors Business card can cover a wide range of daily expenses and still comes with a great multiplier for Hilton stays. Photo by American Express.

If you’d like to apply for the AMEX Hilton Honors Business card, please consider using my referral link. It will continue to help fund my blog operations and help visitors make informed decisions to maximize their rewards. Thank you! Click HERE to access my referral link!

Location

Hotel Phillips is located in the Power and Light District of downtown Kansas City, MO. If you are visiting the city for the first time or want to enjoy shopping, sightseeing, and nightlife, you have chosen the right location. Its proximity to the National WWI Museum and Memorial and LEGOLAND Discovery Center Kansas City makes the hotel an ideal location for any age group.

 

Lobby & Check-In Review

I arrived at the hotel a bit earlier than expected, and my room was ready. The front desk agent recognized my Hilton Diamond status and informed me that she could give me a corner suite if I were ok with waiting about 30 minutes. I wasn’t in a rush, so I accepted the offer and wandered around the hotel.

Not sure if some guests already dropped off luggage, but it looked messy behind the front desk.

The lobby was a great mix of 1930 art deco and contemporary interior design elements. Various seating arrangements were on the first and second floors, with a vintage chandelier hanging from the top.

There were more tables and seats on the second floor of the lobby.

At one end of the lobby was a beautifully decorated bookcase wall, and my favorite piece of furniture was the green velvet couch in front of the wall. A “business” center and a communal table with electric outlets were tucked in the corner of the lobby.

The lobby exuded mature and classic character of the hotel.

The lobby also housed shuffleboard, but the space was dark and uninviting.

I appreciate any form of entertainment in the lobby, especially when it is free.

The ground floor was home to the hotel’s Italian restaurant, Tavernonna, and you could also access P.S. Speakeasy, a 1930s speakeasy in a basement mail sorting room. Unfortunately, my flight was early in the morning, and I didn’t get a chance to try either of them.

The hotel kept the original elevator design from the early 1930s.

After hanging around in the lobby, the front desk representative informed me that my suite was ready, and I went up to the 18th floor, where my corner suite was located.

Bedroom Review

The centerpiece of the bedroom was a gold canopy bed. The canopy frame naturally made the ceiling appear taller, and its presence certainly made the room feel more upscale and impressive.

The canopy bed frame instantly modernized the bedroom.

However, the upper portion of the box spring was left exposed, and I wish the hotel had paid more attention to small details like that to deliver its deluxe image of the suite fully. I quickly realized that gold color was the central theme of the room, as nightstands and wall lights by each bedside featured the matching colorway.

The bedroom consistently used gold accents in furniture, but some pieces were showing age.

The king mattress was bouncy but comfortable, and the beige/gray microfiber headboard complemented the gorgeous gray crown molding on the ceiling.  The media console across from the bed had the same gold frame as the nightstands, but it was disappointing to find a regular TV instead of a smart TV.

The media console followed the same color scheme, but sadly it was tattered as well.

The suite carried a Keurig machine but only had disposable coffee cups. A narrow work desk and a small closet with a metal mesh panel occupied the corner of the room. Again, the gold color was everywhere–including the work desk, closet, and even the picture frame on the wall. The work desk’s narrow profile significantly restricted the desktop space, and I ended up working on the bed. 

The work desk didn’t have much usable surface area, and I grudgingly moved to the bed.

Overall, I was somewhat discouraged when I entered my corner suite. The canopy bed unquestionably grabbed my attention, but unfortunately, the suite's highlight ended with it. The consistent use of the gold color as the theme of the room began to tire me slightly, and the room's amenities were outdated. Even though my room was a corner suite, the bedroom only had two windows, and they weren’t big enough to let ample sunlight into the bedroom.

Hotel Phillips was surrounded by high rises in downtown Kansas City.

Being a historical hotel shouldn’t equate to an outdated property; if the hotel could thoughtfully upgrade amenities in the suite, I could imagine the room delivering its experience to what the name implies. 

Bathroom Review

The bathroom had simple white marble-patterned tiles on the floor and plain white piano tiles on the wall. The bathroom featured a double sink vanity with brass trims, but the countertop space was quite limited.

I valued having a double sink vanity, but the countertop could quickly get crowded if you were to share it with someone.

It appeared to me that the hotel’s regular toiletry brand was Crabtree & Evelyn, a staple among Hilton DoubleTree properties, but the hotel also threw in a shower gel by BeeKind. Neither brand was based in St. Louis, and I was slightly disappointed that a Curio Collection property didn’t partner with a unique local toiletry brand.

As a Curio Collection hotel, I hoped for a more exclusive toiletry brand.

The shower gel came in handy because the bathroom came with a clawfoot tub. It had interesting vintage legs and was diagonally positioned in the corner of the bathroom.

Bathing in the clawfoot bathtub was a great way to decompress at the end of the day.

The tub was on the smaller side and could accommodate only one adult at once. The walk-in shower featured a regular shower head, but it was positioned high enough for tall guests.

The rest of the bathroom remained basic and simple.

While the shower came with a glass screen, it couldn’t completely prevent the water from splattering to the bathroom floor. What I appreciated the most about the bathroom was the windows. There were two decently sized windows, one next to the clawfoot tub and another one by the shower, and they let in a healthy amount of natural light, making the bathroom brighter and more inviting.

The bathroom was more impressive than the bedroom, particularly with large windows and satisfactory space.

Unlike the bedroom, the bathroom was welcoming, and the vintage element of the clawfoot bathtub appropriately matched the hotel’s character. However, the repetitive gold design theme and unoriginal toiletries fell short of my hope for a distinctive suite bathroom.

Gym Review

The gym was located on the fourth floor, and it immediately felt quite claustrophobic, and the low ceiling was partly responsible for the initial impression. A few outdated LifeFitness cardio machines were positioned against the mirrored wall.

Even with wall mirrors, the gym felt cramped the moment I entered.

Two ancient cycling machines occupied the middle of the gym, along with gym balls.

None of the gears was defective or broken, but I think it’s time for Hotel Phillips to upgrade them.

The only equipment for strength exercises was a standard set of dumbbells and medicine balls.

With only one bench, I had to wait for another guest to finish his workout.

Unfortunately, the fitness center only had one adjustable bench, but to be frank, another bench would’ve made the gym feel even more congested. Given that Hotel Phillips was a historical property, I wish the hotel incorporated its past or even used vintage décor similar to the Union Hotel in St. Louis.

Positives & Negatives

• Positives

  • The hotel's location is in the heart of Kansas City, making Hotel Phillips a great choice if you are a first-timer or want to stay close to the city’s main attractions.

  • Bathing in the clawfoot bathtub was a relaxing way to end my hectic day. Additionally, the bathroom was spacious and inviting, thanks to large windows.

• Negatives

  • My corner “suite” didn’t feel like a genuine suite. The canopy bed frame was certainly a wow factor, but the overall room felt short of my usual lodging experiences at suites. Most furniture was clearly showing age, and amenities were not distinctive.

  • The gym was quite outdated and didn’t have a wide range of equipment. Even having one all-in-one strength machine would’ve changed the game.

What did you think of Hotel Phillips Kansas City, Curio Collection by Hilton?

Summary

While I appreciated the historical charm of Hotel Phillips, my corner suite didn’t deliver the opulent suite experience I originally expected. The clawfoot tub in the bathroom was charming and allowed me to decompress and relax at night. I appreciated that the hotel continuously reinforced the use of a gold color theme in many interior design components, including the canopy bed, which was the room's highlight. Nonetheless, other in-room amenities failed to meet my expectations. The story wasn’t different when I stepped out of the room. The gym’s compact profile immediately made the environment feel congested, and even though the hotel was a Curio Collection hotel, there wasn’t any unique character to the space. Now, I can finally understand why the hotel kept switching from one brand to another. Hotel Phillips desperately needs to discover its brand identity, and until that happens, I do not recommend Hotel Phillips if you are looking for a distinctive lodging experience in Kansas City, MO.