Lancaster Marriott at Penn Square

For the money they charge, Lancaster Marriott is not worth it. Building is nice, in great location, and rooms have decent amenities (mini fridge!)
However, getting in is impossible, the valet staff is super slow/​inefficient in keeping the front of the building cleared of cars. It was stopping up traffic all the way down the street all day on a Saturday when we visited. This is crucial because the walk from the parking garage isn’t easy with luggage. It’s long and not super pedestrian friendly.
Also, they nickel and dime you to death. For $ 200 in Lancaster (normal room, not a suite), you’d expect a full hotel experience. Not here. Wifi is $ 12, parking is at least $ 18 if you do it yourself (deck entrance is off duke street), no free breakfast and no breakfast credit at the hotel restaurant… The list goes on.
Rooms are nice, but smaller. Comparable to an NYC hotel, not in a good way. Only 3 elevators, so be ready to wait, they always seemed to be on top floors. Lobby and the hallways get really crowded when there’s an event in the convention center.
2 stars for location and room amenities/​cleanliness. No additional stars because of parking, no wifi, all the extra charges (food, shelter, wifi… That’s all people really need!)

Oh, where to start. This restaurant makes me sad beyond words. It has such potential. I liked the décor and our server was very nice. The food was bad. And when I say bad, I mean rotting. As in fuzzy and brown. Two bowls of strawberries that were rotten. Lemons that were rotten. This wasn’t the buffet but rather breakfast ordered off the menu. The waiter seemed embarrassed to have to bring us the food. They didn’t charge us for it but there was attempt by a manager to apologize. And that probably wasn’t his fault either. We saw (who we thought to be the manager) clearing dishes and carry a busboy’s tray.
The worst part of the experience was the bathroom. I’ve been to this location a few times over the last year for events and the bathroom is terrifying. No paper products & water and sludge on the floor. I think they’re having a problem with street people using the bathrooms.

The man who checked me in at the front desk was wonderful. He was super friendly and very informative about the hotel, surrounding area, and events going on. The room was clean and modern; it overlooked the nice part of the city, so that was a plus. We didn’t hear a peek from any of the rooms next to us or the street below. Had breakfast at the hotel restaurant; that could have been better. The service was VERY slow but the food was great. The pool and spa on the fifth floor are beautiful and very, very clean. There wasn’t a single other person at the pool which made for a very relaxing few hours of me time.

I just checked in and the guy that checked me in was very nice. I asked for a non-​adjoining room and he made a change since that was what I was supposed to be in. The rooms are as good as 209.00 should get you. Not sure what people expect for 209.00! I have been here for conference last year and the food was pretty good!
The hotel is a few years old and you can hear the room above you. Not anymore than any other hotel for $ 200.00!
Would stay here again.

Really like everything about this hotel except 2 things: parking is way too expensive and the pool is way too cold.
I’d love to see them renovate the pool into a more child friendly and fun area and warm up the frigid water.

My mother & I stayed at the Marriott Lancaster and it was beautiful, the rooms were very nice and comfy, it was in walking distance to many restaurants shops and entertainment but the reason we picked the hotel was it had a pool and the pool was disgusting cold and dirty very dissapointing, invited some friends and was very embarrassed, they really need to correct the temperature and clean the up the pool and hot tub that was not working our whole stay.

I thoroughly enjoyed my stay. I booked the hotel through Sight and Sound Theaters.
Room service prices were reasonable. Loved the décor. Breathtaking views. Overall an enjoyable weekend. Hotel staff was excellent. No complaints.

Very bad customer service. I requested two full beds because I was staying with another couple for a wedding and we were trying to save money on rooms. This hotel could not guarantee me two full beds even though I booked my room months in advance. At first when I made the reservation they said I could put the # of beds in my request and then I could call a few days prior to my arrival to check the status of my reservation. Then when I did that they said I would not find out how many beds were in my room until I checked into the hotel. I kept receiving different information from different people and most were rude and unhelpful.

Was trying to book a room here but 3 different people in reservations (rudely) told me they couldn’t honor a military rate for one of the nights because they only allow a certain amount of discounts per night. This is has never been the case at any marriott we’ve been too. We even did our room blocks for our wedding at a marriott, gave and continued to give them lots of business but because military is grouped in with AAA as well as AARP members, we’re SOL. Guess it doesn’t matter that my husband just spent 7 months in Afghanistan defending the rude people who «helped» us on the phone just now. Not giving them any more business. Being a manager in customer service for over 10 years, I’d never hire any one of the 3 people I just spoke to. Horrible.

Marriott never disappoints me, beautiful rooms, customer service is 100% as always ! The room view breathtaking, comfort of the beds and bring an elite member always has its advantages!

Been here several times over the last 2 years for company holiday parties and conventions, stayed this past April for a convention. Staff are extremely helpful with any questions or concerns we had. Attached parking garage was a great perk as Lancaster traffic can be a nightmare and we got discounted parking for convention attendees.
Room was nice, beds were a bit small to accommodate the 3 of us but the location to the convention center and downtown restaurants couldn’t be beat. Attached restaurant is pretty pricey ($ 20-​$ 30 per meal) but there are several cheaper options around. (We ate at the Subway right across the street for most of the weekend) Elevators are crammed and slow, but I think that might be due to the nature of the convention.
Nice place to stay if you’re visiting the area.

Beautiful hotel. Parking is a fortune, $ 30/​day for valet, $ 18 if you do it yourself. That was a bad starting point… we checked in, got to the room and there was someone’s food in the fridge. There was a rooftop band across the street that you could hear in the room, the played until 11. I went to the gym, they were out of small towels and sanitizer. Again, nice looking hotel. Nice room. Internet was $ 13 a day (way too much). The bed was very comfy.
There were too many small failures. Location was convenient to lots of things, but for the price, I’ll find somewhere else to stay if I go back.

This was an absolute treat of a hotel to stay at. The staff is wonderful, the restaurant (during breakfast times) was good, and the bar area was a good time with pretty good happy hour prices. In addition, the concierge lounge on the 18^th floor proved to be a welcome getaway in getting hors d’ oeuvres, alcohol (on an honor system where you fill out a paper with your room # on it), soda, and other snacks. Parking is within an adjacent garage area that you have to walk toward the rear area of the hotel to enter.
This Marriott is massive. While it seems to be «just another downtown building» from the outside, the lobby that links to the convention center seems to go on, and on. The room itself was quite comfortable. You can tell that Marriott spent some serious money within this location due to it not having that typical old and not renovated type of feel to it.
The hotel’s location is right in the middle of downtown Lancaster. If you don’t want to eat within the restaurant, you can walk across the street to Subway or any number of eateries that are about 1 – 2 blocks away. While the breakfast can be somewhat pricey, its worth a try at least once.
Lancaster Marriott, I will be back!

Our second visit to the Penn Station Grill restaurant inside the Marriott and a much more formal dining experience then the first.
I wish I could rate on the food alone but unfortunately I have to take the big picture into consideration. Here’s the pros and cons based on our experience on a Friday evening in Feb 2015.
PROS: dinner was delicious, steak was cooked properly and was generously sized and presentation was lovely.
Had a coupon courtesy of Lancaster Newspaper for 50% off our one meal.
Atmosphere was romantic and décor was beautiful — this would be the ideal place to bring someone you are trying to impress.
CONS: Without the coupon we would have never been able to dine here, even with the coupon a meal for 2 + 1 dessert and no drinks was half our grocery budget for the week (for a family of 3!) Meals are in the $ 28-​$ 30 price range, although I did see some sandwiches for $ 14
The place is cold, most diners ourselves included ate with our coats on.
Service was misleading and unorganized. If you come thru from the hotel as we did there is no hostess and it’s kinda a free for all. We flagged down a scurried employee for directions on where to sit and if we should seat ourselves. It’s the opposite if you come thru the King Str entrance where we saw several people waiting awkwardly in a congested walk thru area just to be seated while the hostess ran around. She didn’t seem very efficient in her methods. Our waitress however was wonderful.
Overall we are glad we came but probably won’t dine there again unless it’s a special occasion and I have a coupon.

Best Marriott i have ever stayed at. I travel every week for work all over the country and this is by far the best Marriott I’ve ever stay at. Staff is beyond pleasant at check in. Room was clean and smelt good. Workout room is highest in its class, really nice spa, which ill be taking advantage of in the future. And for us high members, the concierge room is the best ive ever been in. All day snacks, yogurt, full sized bottled water (its the little things that matter :)) i didn’t valet, i parked around the back in the garage which has a private entry to hotel. I walked to dinner and around town, its a really nice little town. Im looking forward to coming back in the future:)

I stayed here for four nights with my boyfriend, who is an elite member. The hotel itself is very clean, spacious, and the layout is well designed. There are usually whoopie pies or cookies at the front desk which is awesome because I love sweets. The staff is very courteous for the most part.
There were some problems with this place. First of all, when we entered our room, we noticed that the complimentary toiletries (shampoo, conditioner, lotion) were all used and not replaced before our arrival. The sheets and comfortable also had some noticeable and questionable stains. It made me wonder what else was not cleaned before we came.
We also had a huge problem with the WiFi, which is through iBahn. It was freaking terrible. We had to call the iBahn network every day to get connected and had to give the operator the IP address of each device we wanted WiFi for to get connected. It was a tedious process. We alerted the front desk of our issue, which wasn’t that much help and even when they told us it was resolved the next day, it was not. The connection itself was super slow as well. We both had to do work so we made do with what we had but most of the time we resorted to using our cell phone data because of how long it took for pages to load. For people who are not elite members, WiFi is not free, I believe it is about $ 13 per 24 hours.
I would not recommend this hotel if you need to do work in your hotel room. If you are here to visit down town lancaster, it is a very convenient location, close to the Central Market, bars, and restaurants. Check your room to make sure your toiletries are new and your sheets are clean.

Overpriced, overrated at 2 stars. Stayed here with a wedding party. Our room was joined to the «presidential suite». Overall disappointed. The rooms were tiny and unremarkable. The elevator smelled like vomit, The billing was inaccurate, no complimentary coffee. No free breakfast. $ 30.00 per day valet. Being downtown is a driving nightmare 13.00 per day Internet, what? NO FREE INTERNET? Wtf! McDonald’s offers free internet You’re better off staying at a holiday inn express.

You have to love crossing over from NJ to PA — not 100 feet into the state and you’re bombarded with billboards for fireworks, God and repenting, and guns and ammo. (Oh, and Cracker Barrel.)
This was our second time doing the family vacation in and around Hershey Park but our first time staying in Lancaster and we loved the Marriott.
Driving to the hotel there’s a few rough patches and you start to wonder how safe it’s going to be but then you arrive and you can breathe easy. The hotel is big, clean and smack in the middle of everything. You’re within spitting distance of countless bars, restaurants and shops. And during our stay we basically had the entire pool and hot tub to ourselves.
It only took my kids a day before they knew the layout and wanted to stay forever. (Perhaps I should be concerned that I have future Howard Hughes on my hands?!)
Cheers to the bartender Kevin — who not only made us our first Negronis the first afternoon but the one night we were White Trashing it and brought down a bottle of our own wine and he was totally cool to open it for us so we could venture back to our room on the cheap.

Hotel is relatively easy to find but the unloading area is small and can get tight. Attached parking garage was very easy to use and the walkway was convenient. Check-​in was extremely smooth.
Our room was nice but had a non-​functional plugin media station. The technicians who quickly came up could not fix the issue and without us requesting it, got us another room on the same floor. It was a bigger room that was even better and made our weekend much more comfortable!
Staff was very responsive to our needs. Convention center is nice and the hotel is located within easy walking distance of several eateries and other businesses. Elevator banks do get crowded around checkout if the convention is large.

Anytime you arrive somewhere and they give you freshly made whoopie pies before anything else happens, it’s bound to be a good thing (I preferred the peanut butter).
Perhaps I’m confusing regular Marriotts with Courtyard Marriotts, but this hotel is much nicer than I was expecting (and MUCH bigger). Although, it should be at the rates we were paying in Lancaster.
Either way, no complaints at all about the stay. The bed was fantastic (some folks wanted to steal pillows, but I wouldn’t allow it), the shower pressure great. All the staff members we encountered were friendly and helpful, and the entire, huge place was spotless. The Bath & Body Works toiletries are a nice touch, and really the amenities all around were more than satisfactory.
It might not be the cheapest accommodations in the city, but this Marriott is a good hotel in a good, central location.