The Richardson Hotel

Incredible historic majesty

We were very impressed by the cleanliness and comfortability of the room and bed. However the pictures online showed large rooms and bathrooms which they showed fit 2 pack and plays and that wasn’t the case. Both kids did not fit and they refused to upgrade us to a bigger room or a suite. But other than the size of the room being very small very good stay.

My husband and I stayed at the Richardson this past weekend when I was home visiting family (7/31-8/1). I was SO EXCITED to stay here as I am Buff State Alumni and walked the grounds of the Richardson every day to get to my classes in the late 90s. The hotel is gorgeous; beds are so comfortable and rooms are well appointed. We loved the exhibit in the basement that highlighted former residents and their stories. The bar area is so gorgeous, and our bartender was friendly, attentive, and a highlight of our stay. Checkout was wonderful, the front desk gentleman asked about our stay and invited us to return soon. A few things that i was disappointed about included our check in, the front desk clerk welcomed us with a gruff "checking in?" and did not give us any information about the hotel which I would think is standard for a $400 hotel room. The second clerk never looked up from her phone during the whole check in process. We were not given alternate parking instructions as the lot was full at 5 p.m. when we checked in, so we dragged our luggage over from a lot that was part of one of the abandoned buildings. I don't know if luggage carts are available or there are elevators from the lot, so you don't have to drag your luggage up the stairs. We were left to figure out many of the hotel particulars by ourselves. All in all, we had a wonderful stay and will definitely be back next time we are in town.

We had a wonderful stay at the Richardson Hotel. The hotel has been renovated in a very modern and stylish way, without losing its historic charm. Our room was very comfortable and particularly impressive thanks to the high ceilings and large windows. We also really enjoyed the small exhibition in the basement about the building's history. Breakfast was excellent. Instead of a buffet, you order from a menu, which we found very convenient. The coffee was delicious, and the pancakes were huge and absolutely delicious. We received friendly and warm service at all times, both at reception and in the breakfast room. We especially loved the unique historic ambiance. The quiet, somewhat secluded location and the special atmosphere of the former hospital made the stay a truly memorable experience. However, we were very disappointed that we weren't offered the two-hour historical tour on Sunday when we arrived on Saturday. Since these tours only take place on Saturdays and Sundays from 10:00 AM to 12:00 PM, we unfortunately missed the opportunity. We would have loved to see the historic hospital wings from the 1970s. One minor criticism concerns the air conditioning. The airflow was directed straight at the bed, which made it uncomfortably cool at night. Overall, we had a wonderful stay and can highly recommend the Richardson Hotel to anyone who appreciates exceptional hotels with history and a special atmosphere.

top hotel

My husband and I stayed here for 6 nights from July 12th - 18th. We stayed in the Delaware Suite (room 402) and it was very spacious with high vaulted ceiliings and exposed beams. I believe the Delaware suite is the ONLY suite that is situated this way because we saw room 400 and it did not have an open layout or the vaulted ceilings and the layout didn't make much sense. Room 402 has 2 decent sized closets in the bedroom, nightstands, a TV and it is very roomy. The living room has a mini fridge, microwave, large coffee maker, couch, coffee table, TV, two arm chairs, 3 end tables and a small dining table with two dining chairs and it is very spacious. The room was cleaned well but the wall to wall carpet did have noticeable stains (appeared to be coffee) and the dining chairs and arm chairs looked a bit worn. It is also worth mentioning that 402 has a small flight of stairs from the bedroom and bathroom level up to the living room area. The shower is smaller than standard - approximately 2'8" x 4'. Also important to note that no rooms besides the suites have mini fridges or microwaves. There was a very strong odor in parts of the hotel especially on the first floor that in my opinion smelled similar to a Band-Aid but it was very noxious. For some reason I did not notice any smell in the lounge which is located on the first floor but I did notice it near the front desk which is nearby. The ground level where the museum is located also had this horrible odor. I don't know if floors 2 & 3 where rooms are also located have this problem or not. The 4th floor (where the suites are located) did not have this odor. So strange. The lounge has tasty pizza and they make really good cocktails. The 3 different employees we encountered there on separate occasions were all very friendly. Be prepared to wait for service in the lounge. No fault of the staff but they only had 1 person bartending, taking food orders AND waiting the tables every time we went. It seemed like the entire hotel was understaffed during our entire stay. The location was not what I was expecting it to be. The surrounding area didn't feel entirely safe. It seems the hotel is located in an area that is the buffer between one of the lower income areas and the Elmwood Village section and a park area that seemed very nice (near the AKG museum). Keep in mind that this is a very large property and the majority of the original building is abandoned and deteriorating. I knew this going in but seeing the scale of it in person is a different story. We saw security vehicles occasionally driving through the property but that didn't make me feel safe enough to walk around or walk anywhere to and from the hotel. We chose to drive everywhere, which would have been necessary most of the time anyway. It was very quiet on the property, so that was a huge bonus. It was a very unique experience and it is an incredible building. The hotel is about 10 minutes from downtown by car, a short drive to the 2 Frank Lloyd Wright houses/museums in the area, minutes from the AKG art museum and only a 30 minute drive to Niagara falls. Despite the negatives that I pointed out I would still recommend staying here in room 402 (can't say I'd stay in any of the other rooms). All in all it was a really great trip and we are happy we went!

good hotel

Pros: Very close to my classes at Buffalo State. 5 minute walk. Bar is very nice and the staff is amazing. Food is also amazing. Comfortable bed, clean linens. Cons: No refrigerator, TVs are TERRIBLE! I would update your TVs to smart TV's. If you have an xbox or Playstation bring it so you can use that for your streaming services. Definitely do not provide enough coffee for the mornings. 2 Pods is not enough. There are no vending machines on each of the floors. If you want a drink you need to go down to the lobby and get it out of the refrigerator, then wait for someone at the front desk to come to pay for it. Only found 1 ice machine that worked, luckily that was on my floor. I bought a pizza at the bar but didn't eat it all, unfortunately I had to throw it away because there was no refrigerator to put the leftovers in. Next week I will bring a cooler with me to put all my drinks and food in and just use the ice machine to fill the cooler. Also there are no dressers to put clothes in which I though was very strange. All in all, it was a nice play to stay. I just hope they begin updating rooms with more modern amenities.

nice hotel

nice hotel