Downtown Richmond Marriott: Recently Updated and Centrally Located

Looking for a reliable, centrally located hotel in Richmond? Your perfect stay might be at the Downtown Richmond Marriott.

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About the downtown Richmond Marriott

The downtown Richmond Marriott was somewhat recently renovated, reopening at the end of 2020.  This includes the tastefully designed lobby, restaurant and guest rooms. 

Richmond Marriott amenities

This hotel offers all the basic amenities you would expect from a large chain hotel.  There is a hotel bar and restaurant, and a fitness center.  

They also have the MClub, their 24 hour lounge.  This facility is free for Bonvoy elite members (platinum and higher) plus one guest.  If you are not an elite member, you can also use this space for $30/day. It includes wifi and select food and beverages. 

Dining & drinks

There are a few different food and drink services at the Richmond Marriott hotel, all of which are in the lobby.  There is a Starbucks, a lobby bar called Corner Rapid, and their restaurant Fall Line Kitchen & Bar. 

I ate at Fall Line Kitchen my first night in Richmond and was pleasantly surprised by the food.  Hotel restaurants can be hit or miss, but for me this was a hit.  I had their burger, and maybe it was due to traveling all day, but I inhaled it.  I’m also a big fan of a shoestring fry, which is what they serve. 

If you’re like me, you probably want to get food (and maybe drinks) outside of the hotel.  One block south of Broad is E Grace Street which is littered with fantastic bars and restaurants to visit.  Buttermilk and Honey offers lunch and dinner, and are well known for their fried chicken.  

Two blocks south of Buttermilk & Honey is Penny Lane Pub.  This is your classic English Pub, popular with soccer enthusiasts.  It is also one of the few bars downtown open late (2am). 

Wellness

This hotel has a very large 24 hour fitness center.  This gym is broken up into two spaces.  The first is the cardio room with treadmills, elliptical and stationary bikes.  The second, larger room has free weights and a few weight machines as well.  

Accessibility 

There is one elevator bank at the hotel which has 4 elevators. One however was out of service during my stay.  So with so many people coming and going, it did take awhile to get an elevator.  

The rooms

The good thing about a Marriott is you know exactly what to expect, and there usually aren’t many surprises.  But the flip side of that is, you know what to expect and it’s also pretty traditional and a little boring when it comes to the interior finishes. 

You pretty much have two choices when it comes to room types: King or Double.

Comfort

I stayed in a King room which was spacious for one person, and would be perfectly fine for 2.  The bed was comfortable, but the pillows (like 90% of hotel chains) were not great.  I have major beef with the pillows that start off large and then shrink down to an inch when you put any weight on them. 

The bathroom was a little cozy.  It was fine for me, but with multiple people it would start to feel a little tight.  However, there is ample counter space which I’m always happy to see.  

The big win for this room was putting the full size mirror in an actually functional spot.  

Cost

This hotel is actually pretty expensive for what it is.  The lower rate on the Marriott site starts around $200/night and goes up to $350 (or higher) on days with events or limited inventory.  This is likely due to the proximity to the conference center.  

I stayed here for a conference and paid $195/night on Booking.com, which was significantly cheaper than the direct booking price.  This was even with booking the room 8 months in advance. 

Service at the Marriott hotel Richmond VA

I didn’t have much interaction with the hotel team other than checking in and out.  There were maybe three conferences happening either in the hotel, or across the street, but the staff seemed to be well equipped to manage all the different groups. 

The only service issue I heard of was from friends that went for after dinner drinks at the lobby bar.  They said the bartender was not very friendly, and kind of ignored them. 

Richmond Marriott location

The Richmond VA Marriott is centrally located in downtown Richmond.  It is directly across the street from the Greater Richmond Convention Center, and about 5-6 blocks to one of the main historic areas of the city.  

If you head southeast on E Broad Street you’ll find the Virginia State Capitol and Old City Hall.  Two blocks north of the Old City Hall is the White House of the Confederacy and The Valentine museum. A little further west is the Richmond Main Street Station, and historic landmarks such as Lumpkin’s Slave Jail and Shockoe Bottom African Burial Ground.  The James River is about a 15 minute walk southwest of the hotel. 

This hotel is also the perfect place to stay when going to a performance downtown.  You can find at least seven theaters within 2-3 blocks of the hotel.  They are the 5th Wall Theatre, Cadence, Dominion Energy Center, Gottwald Playhouse, Quill Theatre, The Basement, and The National.  A little further of a walk is the Hippodrome Theater. 

Transportation to the Marriott Richmond VA

Flying into Richmond?  The airport is around a 15 minute drive (without traffic) to downtown Richmond. 

Coming in by train?  There are two train stations, and I learned the hard way that most of the stops are at the Richmond Staples Mill Road Amtrak Station and not the Richmond Main Street Station.  The Staples Mill Road station is where many of the southbound trains from DC stop.  There is a bus that picks up at the station and runs through downtown, but it wasn’t extremely clear how often this bus runs.  Instead, just get a rideshare.  It’s a 15 minute drive, and a lot less stress, especially after a 3 hour train ride (and a red eye). 

Speaking of buses, public transportation in Richmond is free.  Yes, FREE!  Or at least free until June of 2027, unless they refund the program.  But finding any free transit is a rarity in the US. 

Rideshares are also readily available in the city.  They are kind of slow to pick up, but there are drivers available. 

If you’re checking out the downtown area, the hotel does have a complimentary shuttle with pick up and drop off within 2 miles of the hotel.  This was actually a surprise to me when looking on the website because I don’t remember anyone mentioning this at check in, and I don’t recall ever seeing the shuttle. Definitely worth asking if you stay here about their hours and availability. 

Overall review of the downtown Richmond Marriott

I had a perfectly good stay at the Richmond Marriott.  It wasn’t anything super memorable (good or bad).  This is definitely a great place to stay if you will be in town for a conference.  The proximity alone is worth a little bit of an upcharge.  I do appreciate that with a Marriott you know what to expect, and they usually deliver on that expectation. 

If I were to go back and stay in downtown Richmond (and didn’t need to be near the conference center), I think I would look at The Commonwealth Hotel.  They have larger rooms and there is a little more thought and care put into the interior design. 

Where to book hotels in downtown Richmond VA

You can of course book directly through the Marriott website, but I almost always find better prices through the sites below. 

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