April in...Milwaukee?!

It's no Paris, and it was most definitely waaaay colder than we'd have liked, but we still had a most "rewarding" weekend in Milwaukee!

Travel Hacking for a Reward Night

So, the backstory is that we signed up for an IHG hotel-branded credit card through Chase a couple of years ago when they ran a special with sign-up bonus points that we could not refuse.  (Ok, yes, we really could have "refused" them, but the deal seemed pretty good, all in all.)  Over the almost two years we've had this card, we enjoyed several "free" nights at IHG hotels from points we either accumulated through credit card purchases or were gifted through the sign-up bonus.

One of the nicest perks of this particular card--which charges a relatively modest $49 annual fee--is a free "anniversary" night reward granted on the renewal date.  Just recently, IHG changed their policy such that any future anniversary nights awarded after March 31, 2018, were only good for lower-tier hotels (those that charge up to 40,000 hotel points per reward night), but it still seems like a decent deal since that would allow stays at most Holiday Inns, etc. which would typically cost far more than $49 per night anyway.

In any case, we still had last year's anniversary night to use up where we wished, before it expired.  While many credit card "travel hackers" would have urged that we use this last precious non-restricted anniversary night on a luxurious hotel at a more special location (Hotel InterContinental in Paris anyone?), we couldn't really bring ourselves to book an expensive trip elsewhere so that we could get the "most" out of a free hotel night.  Besides which, both Will and I come from frugal backgrounds where travel lodging choices usually consisted of "budget" or "none," and we find mid-grade hotels plenty luxurious enough for us, without risking unnecessary lifestyle inflation.

No matter.  We had been interested in taking a short weekend trip up to Milwaukee--just 70 miles north of us--and we wanted to bring Katie along, so I conducted my research for the nicest pet-friendly Milwaukee hotel we could find within the IHG brand.  My research ended up being a short one since there were really only two hotels in the downtown area that were pet-friendly.

Hmmm...  Should we stay at the Milwaukee Hotel InterContinental (no, not quite Paris) and pay $175 for the pet fee?  OR, should we stay at the better-rated, more expensive boutique hotel, within two blocks of the Milwaukee Public Market (our favorite Milwaukee destination, pictured at the top of the post), which had NO PET FEE?

Enter Kimpton Journeyman Milwaukee

We had not heard of the Kimpton Hotels, but we'll certainly be looking for these from here on.  They are "boutique" hotels in that Kimpton is a small brand, with something a little different about each franchise, both from each other and from other large hotel chains.  The decor is unique, slightly quirky, and the vibe is much more personable.  And Kimpton hotels are incredibly pet-friendly.  Look at their page specifically inviting guests to bring pets along!

No pet fee.  Pet treats by the lobby.  Pets allowed to stay in the room even while the guests were out.  Hotel staffers going out of their way to ask the name of pets and being super friendly with all animals.  Ceramic dog and water bowl in each room (see below!).  Offer to send up pet bed and food bowl.  The list goes on.

We took commonsense precautions not to be too much of a pain, of course.  We had Katie with us in the hotel lounge earlier in the day when it was not too crowded, but we left her in the room when we slipped downstairs to check out their social hour (more on that later) when we suspected the lobby would be a lot more crowded.

When we were in the lounge with Katie, she got a healthy dose of loving from many dog lovers who squealed with delight and who asked us if they could pet her.  Of course, we also got to meet other dogs throughout the weekend.  A young German Shepherd by the pool table who wagged her tail when she saw me.  An older Golden Retriever who got excited when Will grabbed a nearby pet treat (sadly, not for her).  A beagle outside the hotel taking its morning walk.  A Shih Tzu waiting to check out.

But lest non dog-lovers get too nervous, I should say that there usually weren't multiple dogs around at the same time.  Most pet owners seemed careful to appreciate, by not abusing, the hotel's generous pet policies.

Unexpected Membership Perks

But even aside from the pet-friendly nature, the Kimpton Hotels are delightful.  With our IHG membership, we got a $10 credit towards purchases at the bar or the room mini-bar.  So, that's why we were lounging in the afternoon, with Will enjoying a Lakefront Brewery Coffee Stout (above).

And because their bar prices were not outrageously inflated as they are at some hotels, we were even able to apply the remaining credit towards our after-dinner coffee and dessert (honey ricotta cheesecake with pistachio ice cream and phyllo nest), something we enjoyed in the lounge with Katie--searching under the table for any scraps (below).

A Very Welcoming "Social Hour"

Let's say you don't have access to the IHG credit.  What then?  As far as we can tell, all Kimpton Hotels host a social hour from 5-6pm during which they are generous in pouring beer or wine to guests who show up.

This particular hotel offered flatbreads as well, but the vultures--sorry, the other guests--gobbled them up before we got there, towards the end of the hour, just to check out the scene.  One of the staffers pouring drinks was the same friendly young woman who checked me in, and she even welcomed me by name and told me how glad she was that we made it!

Since we were going out to dinner shortly after, we didn't really want much to drink, but we asked for a tiny bit of the Pale Ale on draft, which was quite delicious.  It was clear though that other guests do take full advantage of the social hour since we saw plenty of people, even right before the end of the hour, going up to get large pours of the wine on offer.

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The next morning, even though the weather outside really was frightful, we were warm and cozy in the hotel restaurant, digging into some "Tuscan Chicken Fritte" with rosemary biscuits nestled on top of Italian sausage gravy and, sort of more for breakfast-dessert, cinnamon pull-apart monkey bread.  Yum.

With their check-out being fairly late, at noon, we were able to relax with the New York Times after breakfast before rounding out perhaps the cheapest and one of the most pleasant weekend getaways!