Philadelphia Marriott Downtown Reviews
Reviews
4.6 out of 5 rating
4.6 out of 5 rating
32 Reviews
91% recommend it
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Featured
Brittany Sent on 10/03/2021First Wedding in 18 Months!
Our wedding took place in September 2021, and we signed our contract with the Marriott in February 2020. Everyone we encountered with the venue was extremely professional and wonderful to work with, especially our venue day-of coordinator Alicia. She worked closely with our external coordinator to develop a timeline, connect with all of our vendors, and set-up/break-down all of our decor. Throughout our planning process we discussed COVID concerns with our contacts at the venue, and they provided regular updates and assured a safe event. We worked closely with the Marriott to ensure a safe event, and some of the COVID precautions included: the ceremony room chairs were social distanced, appetizer display stations were changed from self-serve to an attendant/small plates, the rooms were reorganized to allow for social distancing in cocktail hour and the reception, hand sanitizer stations were placed throughout the venue, etc. This was the first wedding held at the Marriott in nearly 18 months, and the team showed up wonderfully! We were extremely impressed by the level of service they provided to us and our guests, and would highly recommend the Marriott as a wedding venue.Philadelphia Marriott Downtown's reply:
Thank you so very , very much for your review. It means so much to our staff your kind words and support of our hotel. Wishing you both a wonderful First full Month Anniversary! Thank you again we are all appreciative of your thoughtfulness. -
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![Ali]()
Ali Sent on 10/16/2019Amazing wedding experience at marriott
My wedding on 9/28/19 was the most amazing time because of the Marriott! Barbara was our sales woman and was amazing to work with. She explained all the details and showed us where the event would be held. Once we booked, she even offered us free flyers tickets in a box! It was the best time!
Gerard Mendoza was our Wedding Planner & he was the most incredible person! He catered to our every need, was always quick to respond to any questions we had. We wanted to make a lot of changes to the food and other things and Gerard made it happen. He made the whole day stress free for us. He even got little gifts for our flower girl & ring bearer and was pretty much taking care of them throughout the night. Everything looked beautiful and turned out amazing! Gerard gave us the suite for an extra night and provided transportation for our honeymoon as well. He goes above and beyond and is simply amazing at what he does! I would put my full trust in him for any event. I cannot thank Gerard and the Marriott enough for making my wedding the day I have always dreamed about! -
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![Ashley]()
Ashley Sent on 11/07/2018Amazing experience at the Marriott!!
My groom and I had an incredible experience with our 10/20/18 wedding at the Marriott. I wrote a small novel to share our experience but I wished there were more reviews when I booked the Marriott so I hope this helps! Here are a few of the major areas where we had a great experience with the Marriott team.
* Intros / Contract – We started the process with Barbara Bruck who gave us our tour, after which she treated us to a drink and apps at the lobby rest ‘13’. She was very accommodating during the process and stayed in touch but was not pushy. She also provided a detailed folder of information with menus, and floor plans of event space and guest rooms which I used up through the event to help with planning.
* Planner Assignment – after working with Barbara, Gerard Mendoza was assigned as our day of coordinator. He was AMAZING from the beginning – immediately started off very personable, responsive to all requests, and I never had to keep pushing on any specifics (he just remembered and got it done). He was on vacation out of the country the week prior to our event but was still responsive to questions, and his team was able to help me through questions in his absence. Once the event was over – we genuinely missed Gerard since we got so used to talking to and emailing him for the past 10 months! He also made a huge impression on our parents, and even our bridal party, who consistently said he was extremely helpful, friendly, never stressed, and provided any day of request without hesitation.
* Pricing – One of the most attractive points of the Marriott is the package that they offer and the all inclusive rates for tax/gratuity. It was an extremely reasonable cost especially for Center City Philadelphia. Gerard also threw in a handful of extras beyond what our package stated which was a huge treat.
* Accommodations – a huge benefit of the Marriott is the amount of rooms that were provided as part of the package. I (bride) was given a VP Suite starting Friday evening and was used for bridal prep the day of wedding and sleep the night of. This was a 3 bay room with a full dining room, living room, kitchen, powder room, and then a standard bedroom with huge bathroom. More than enough space for 3 makeup artists, 6 girls, bride, moms, and a few others that hung out during the day. See pics for a few of the VP suite. The groom was given his own room for Friday night which was attached to a “grooms suite” which was a cool wood paneled room for groomsmen prep, as well as storage for all of our DIY items. Our parents were upgraded to Marquis Suite rooms (living room area, small kitchenette, bed/bath). The other point is we had multiple requests for locations of other guests’ rooms – to ask that they be near parent rooms/etc to accommodate children. Gerard did a great job accommodating all of these requests which was extremely helpful for our parents. He also guaranteed late checkout for us, and allowed us to have the groomsmen suite/storage room through Monday so we had enough time to pack up and remove all of our decorations. This was a really stress free part of the process and I can’t imagine having to have planned all of this with an independent hotel if we had chosen a venue without a hotel attached.
* Food – we had heard great things about the food prior to our event, and we were glad we heard correctly! First the tasting is amazing – come hungry! Lots of apps of your choice, plus you get a healthy tasting of each of the entrée options. When it came time to pick our selections, Gerard was very generous and threw in a few extra app options since we had too many favorites. As for the day of, we had no complaints on the food – the guests loved all of the options at cocktail hour. There were multiple servers walking apps, there was hand passed champagne and wine, and the pasta station was a hit. We really loved the soup/salad combo for the appetizer which was unique and the guests said it was delicious. The entrees were great - Gerard forced me to eat dinner (thank you!) and the filet was so tender and a very generous size. They were also very accommodating to food allergies – we had a few GF plates which were no problem, and a couple major milk/nut allergies and they were very keen on cross contamination. As for the bars, we worked with them on bar placement to make sure we had enough bartenders per guests, and I had multiple compliments on the signature drink and lack of long lines to get a cocktail.
* Extras – Gerard isn’t just the Marriott “do-er” – he helps with so many other things, here are just a few of the extras that he provided to us throughout the process:
- Uplighting – he provided a deal on uplighting through the in-house vendor which saved us hundreds of $$ after obtaining independent quotes from other vendors, and it looked amazing the night of.
- Meals – we met multiple times over lunch at ‘13’ and was always covered – even the day before the wedding, the groom grabbed lunch with a couple friends – Gerard popped in and saw, and made sure the entire meal was covered.
- Welcome Reception – prior to our Rehearsal at the church, Gerard organized a 1 hour cocktail reception with wine/beer/cheese – which was so nice for family/friends to congregate before our walk to church which was also just provided by the Marriott
- Pre-Cocktail Hour Reception – additionally the day of, we had a private bridal party only cocktail reception with wine/beer and all of the passed apps for cocktail hour – gave us an opportunity to take a breath and EAT prior to mingling with all of the guests
- Room Treats – Gerard made sure all of the parents had drinks waiting in their rooms based on their taste, and cheese plates on Friday to have a mid day snack. He even made sure that a few of our friends who had just flown in had drinks sent up to their room. Beyond that, we had choco covered strawberries and full coffee/drink service the day of the wedding. They even brought some cake to my room so I could enjoy it the next day since I didn’t have time the night of
- Setup/Help – I had a handful of DIY items I brought – Gerard’s team helped to setup the day of, and pack up after the reception. The also made sure all some things I didn’t want lost (champagne flutes, cake cutters) were delivered to room with the cards/gifts and other valuable items.
* Staff/Service– overall, the staff was amazing, from all of the servers the night of, to even the staff at the lobby restaurant ‘13’. The night of, they had one server dedicated by table (we had 23 tables) and they were able to get plates cleared quickly and have food put on the tables quick. My MIL worked in catering for years and was quite impressed, which reinforced my thoughts that they did an amazing job in that regard.
* Overall – we were extremely pleased with our experience at the Marriott and would recommend it to anyone – especially working with Gerard!! We had a family party 2 weeks post wedding and still had people gushing over how amazing everything was - wish we could do it again!
Philadelphia Marriott Downtown's reply:
WOW Ashley, thank you so much for your wonderful review! We at the Marriott can't thank you enough for your confidence in our hotel to make your wedding dreams a reality. Congratulations and thank you for writing on Wedding Wire your experience!
Sincerely,
Barbara Bruck -
![Koch Bride]()
Siobhan Sent on 09/24/2014We used the Mariott for our hotel block and their service was incredible. As the bride and groom, they truly made us feel special. The night of our wedding was made extra special when we came in to a little card reading, "Mr. and Mrs. Koch" a long with chocolate covered strawberries and some champagne.
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User1708051 Sent on 07/12/2014We had the BEST WEDDING EVER and the Philadelphia Marriott was partly to blame. Their staff (especially Gerard Mendoza and Katie) went above and beyond what I would have expected and took care of absolutely everything from making sure I was able to change into flip-flops when my feet hurt to collecting of our belongings by the end of the night (guest book, cards, table numbers) and having them in our upgraded room before we even started looking for them. We have had so many compliments on how amazing the food was and how beautiful the Liberty Ballroom looked. This staff is professional and 110% accommodating. We loved being in a place where our guests could go right down to the hotel lobby bar after the party, stay over and then meet for breakfast the next morning. Highly recommend! -
User1288729 Sent on 08/15/2013I can’t even begin to say what a pleasure it was to work with the Marriott. My bridesmaids and I were completely spoiled by the Marriott during our stay-- I really felt like a queen in their care. The day of our wedding was flawless—every staff member was so kind and professional, particularly our event manager, Jessica. Jessica was a superhero—incredibly sweet and friendly, professional, and willing to bend over backwards to ensure the day was perfect.
Our wedding was a 200-guest Indian fusion wedding that was going to be very complicated—and about half our guests stayed at the Marriott. Jessica ensured perfection throughout the entire process and completely put me at ease. I was particularly impressed with how thoughtful and organized Jessica was—I had a lot of little details (tablecloth color, lots of diy decorations, a special memorial table, etc) and she fulfilled everything I asked, exactly to my vision. My centerpieces had to be partially put together at the Marriott and Jessica and her staff executed them perfectly. We brought so many boxes of decorations and supplies the day before it looked like we were moving in, but Jessica remembered to set everything out—beautifully--and when my husband picked up our stuff the next day, every last thing had been packed up neatly and in perfect condition by the Marriott staff.
Every staff member we encountered was so kind (and I mean everyone—we even had an amazing bellhop who packed up our entire hurricane of a room the next day because I was literally too exhausted to move). I’d also like to give a special shout-out to our bartender, Sharnette, who concocted the most impressive specialty drinks I’ve ever had the pleasure of tasting (strawberry-lavender vodka, anyone?). The Liberty Ballroom was a stunning backdrop to our festivities with its gorgeous crystal chandeliers and portico overlooking Market Street. Overall, I can’t say enough good things about the Marriott. -
User1322401 Sent on 09/10/2013We are so happy that we decided to have our wedding at the Philadelphia Marriott Downtown. Everyone we worked with throughout the planning process was helpful, patient, available, and knowledgeable about the process.
Our initial interactions prior to booking were with Nicole Trotter. She was extremely helpful in working with us to define the terms of the contract and she made sure that we were getting a fantastic deal that included all of the features that we wanted our wedding to have.
After booking, we worked (for months) with Gerard Mendoza to plan our wedding. Gerard was amazing to work with and it’s primarily because of him that our wedding turned out to be spectacular. Gerard assisted us in making all the major decisions and was always available to answer my many, many questions about the different elements of the wedding. Gerard was very flexible in letting us do what we wanted and he made sure that all of the details were taken care of. We did not have to worry at all on the day of the wedding because he ran the show and worked with all of the vendors. All we had to do was get ready and get caught up in the moment.
We held both the ceremony and reception in Marriott’s Liberty Ballroom. The room was decorated exactly as we discussed, all of the details we had worked on were set up to our specifications, and the day progressed on schedule. All of the staff, including the waiters, bellmen, and bartenders were friendly and professional throughout the day.
One of the elements of the day that particularly stands out is the food. We LOVED everything we had at the tasting and it was very hard to choose what we wanted for dinner. We must have chosen correctly because we still get compliments on how good the food was. We had different options for appetizers and dinner and based on feedback from our guests everyone loved everything that they tasted.
I highly recommend having a wedding at the Marriott. -
User1013397 Sent on 11/12/2012The Downtown Marriott (Independence Ballroom) provided exceptional service and catered to my families every request during the 18 months we planned my wedding. A wedding coordinator is paired with you from the moment your contract is signed and answers every question and request you could possibly have in addition to liaising with your outside vendors leading up wedding day. Every detail was perfect and our coordinator went above and beyond to ensure my family and 180 guests were well taken care of.
The decor was gorgeous, the food delicious, the staff professional and gracious, and in general we were made to feel extra special the entire weekend we spent at the hotel. This venue should be at the top of every Philly bride's venue list! -
User2055884 Sent on 03/02/2015I could not have asked for a better experience. Eveyone I dealt with at the Marriott was a true professional. Gerard, Katie and Anish were exceptional. Incredible servic and attention to detail.
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