The luxury hotel Alluvian in Greenwood, MS, continues to receive moderate ratings for a reason. Despite charging luxury hotel prices, the facility is out of place in its location. Further, it doesn’t provide amenities that are almost compulsory for luxury hotels, such as easy access to coffee or tea, complimentary or otherwise. We chose this hotel for the convenience of attending a Viking Cooking class, which was an excellent experience. If we attend another class, we’ll look for other accommodations.
Location: The hotel is one of the few signs of commercial enterprise for several blocks. Always consider the surroundings of a hotel before traveling on foot after dark. Driving to the hotel was reminiscent of a post-apocalyptic small-town movie scene. When we arrived, two men, sloppy in appearance, greeted us at the curb. They offered to take our luggage; we declined. We never saw these men awaiting other travelers for the rest of our stay, which has left me wondering. No valet service was offered at this luxury hotel, only directions on where to first try parking, and then where to go if that parking lot was full.
The Hotel: The interior of the hotel is clean and well-maintained. We booked the hotel’s version of a suite, which is more often categorized as Jr. Suite in other hotels. The couch was well-used and in need of replacement. There was no television in the sitting area and no whole wall or door to separate the sitting and sleeping areas. A proper suite often affords one person an opportunity to nap, undisturbed, while another occupant works or watches TV in the sitting area. The air conditioning was only sufficient to keep the room from getting hot. If you prefer a cool sleeping temperature, this won’t be optimal. The temperature and a mattress well past the replacement date made our stay unrestful.
Amenities: If you are an early riser who likes their coffee soon after waking up, bring your own solution. No complimentary coffee or tea was offered in the room, lobby, or ground floor near the hotel’s ingress and egress points. If the hotel did offer coffee or tea, outside of breakfast service, it was not conveyed to us when asked. As alluded to, we had to wait until breakfast was available on the fourth floor. Arrive with your drinks and snacks. The hotel’s selection is minimal, and they charge a premium, as most hotels do. The adjoining restaurant, Giardina’s, is quaint and a good dining option. However, the hours make access restrictive, Mon-Sat 5PM-10PM. The higher, but appropriately priced dining, may be an unwelcome expense to most, caused by a lack of convenient options. Other dining choices would require additional driving.
