From the Olathe Prairie Center with its open vistas over the plains to the rocky mountain biking loops through the trees of Shawnee Mission Park, Kansas City, KS is full of trails. And during my time on the trails in the Kansas City area, I stayed a night at the DoubleTree by Hilton in Overland Park.

5 pillows and a cookie? Not a bad night’s stay

“Here’s your chocolate chip cookie,” said the front desk agent as she finished checking me in.

“Thank you,” I replied in wonderment, taking the warm, paper wrapped cookie. I couldn’t remember the last time I’d been welcomed at a hotel with a cookie. I very nearly dropped that cookie when I opened the door to my room. Room? No, that’s not the right word. Suite. Thanks to the Overland Park Convention and Visitor’s Bureau, I got hooked up at the DoubleTree.

Hello beautiful!

The corner room had a separate living area with a couch, easy chair, and small dining area, and a flat screen TV that swiveled so it could be viewed from the couch or the bed.

All of those are nice (as was the mini fridge and the comfortable bed with white linens so you know without a doubt that they’re clean), but it is the little details that stand out and make a hotel more than just a bed for the night. It’s always the little things. Here, it was the separate sections in the wastebaskets for recyclables and trash (love that! Every hotel should have those!) and the Wolfgang Puck coffee maker.

Beyond the room, there was a pool, whirlpool, sauna, and workout room. OK, a lot of hotels have those. But how many hotels have a racquetball court on the premises?

Racquetball – who would have guessed?

Tucked away behind the pool area, two men were working up a sweat in the little room. I silently applauded them for their efforts, and then headed back to my room to lounge around, watching TV from the bed then getting up to watch it from the couch as I took notes on the trails of the day (Olathe Prairie Center – mowed loop options with pleasant picnic area in the middle. Shawnee Mission Park – popular with local bikers and well-maintained and signed).

And wanting to get the full experience of the hotel, and not wanting to put on shoes, I called for room service from the Trofi Restaurant. Pricey, yes, as room service and hotel food tends to be, but it was delivered quickly and was yummy.

With its location near Corporate Woods and its loads of meeting and convention space, it’s popular with business travelers, and for anyone who needs a last minute gift from a trip, there is a small gift shop in the lobby.

So if it comes down to this hotel vs. another similarly priced hotel in the same area, remember, this one will give you a free cookie.

If you go:
From $115
10100 College Boulevard
Overland Park, Kansas, 66210-1462
TEL: 1-913-451-6100 FAX: 1-913-451-0386