Artisan Hotel Memphis

Staying in Memphis, TN

My wife and I recently went to Memphis for a Juice Plus convention. We couldn’t afford to stay downtown near the convention center. Good thing too because downtown is so full of beggars and homeless that we could hardly walk anywhere without getting hit up for money. The Artisan hotel is about 5 minutes from downtown. The neighborhood is a bit run down but not trashy. The hotel lobby is Eclectic to say the least. Rooms are small, a little worn but comfortable. Drug store is across the street, Major coffee shop across from that. Donuts down the street were very good. The hotel recently lifted the charge for parking which was great. You’ll need a car because the cab rides will eat you alive. $14. each way to downtown. DO NOT RIDE THE BUS! They make the Chicago under city look nice. AND NEVER, NEVER at night. Same goes for the trolley unless you’re with a large group I’d say 6 or more. The hotel does not offer any amenities. coffee is in the lobby. Afternoon it doesn’t need a cup, it stands on it’s own. Nothing in the room except fridge (plug it in) hair dryer, ironing board and iron. Needs personal coffee pot. All in all I’d recommend it unless your nose is to high in which case I’d say stay home and don’t go to Memphis. Town is old but the people are quite nice.

Check out Beale Street both during the day and the night. Saw a 15 year old kid at BB Kings that really rocked. Check out the Gibson Guitar Factory. Check out Sun Records. Check out the Peabody Hotel’s duck walk. Check out Graceland if you can afford it. We couldn’t it’s $30. bucks per person which is ridiculous. So we drove around the neighborhood. Sad, Elvis must’ve been the only one there with any money.

Not too impressed.

Location was the best about this. Just seemed not clean.

Very nice...dont expect the ritz now but very antiqueee nice!

It was not downtown but close enough! There was also a starbucks across the road. The interstate was near by and also was a straight shot to downtown!! And also a good price!! Would stay here again.

Traveler's tip on saving a few bucks

it was right off the interstate like maybe two blocks. and was a straight shot to downtown.

comfortable and spacious

bathroom was clean but showed it’s age. Was great for a weekend stay.

Traveler's tip on local attractions

Near the city without dealing with the trafic of being directly downtown. If you have children it’s near the zoo and overton park.

Would stay again

This hotel is okay. The rooms are in need of serious upgrades but the price is right and its close to downtown and plenty of places to eat.

ok

not much close to beale street

looks nothing like the pictures, very old and dingy

I was not impressed with this hotel.

recommended - with footnotes

I’ve stayed at the Artisan several times over the years. Disappointingly, it’s remained the same over the years; meaning few upgrades. While the lobby is fun-funky, the rooms are terribly old-style average. BUT they are usually clean for the most part and the beds are comfortable. The Internet price is very reasonable and the location is excellent. I think the location is the main selling point and the reason I’ve stayed there. I am surprised there aren’t more hotels to choose from in Midtown. There is a large drug/convenience store and a Starbucks across the street with a grocery store one block away and plenty of bars and restaurants in the area. I slept well, the airco worked well every time and the location was convenient. So I recommend the Artisan - but don’t expect the Ritz as it’s more like a Rodeway Inn. Regardless, I’ll be staying at the Artisan again.

Traveler's tip on getting the most out of your stay

Since the Artisan offers only coffee throughout the day (and granted not the best), make use of the Walgreens and Starbucks across the street for breakfast items. The grocery store down the street also offers more options, as do the bars and restaurants in the neighborhood. There’s also a main city bus line on Union Avenue to take you downtown.

Acceptable... that’s about it.

The room, bathroom and pool area looked nothing at all like the pictures provided. Carpeting and fixtures are ancient, only one ice machine on property, only one drink vending machine (which was out of order.) On my floor all the rooms on my side of the hall had electronic locks while the others had conventional keyed locks (it didn’t appear anyone was staying in these rooms though.) The towels the hotel provided were well-worn and pretty small. TV in room was old and grainy. The restaurant and lounge were not open, and looked like they hadn’t been for years. The "fitness room" had 5 cardio machines, one of which was in working order. Overall, it was a clean and affordable place to spend a few nights in a decent mid-town location, but nothing else. Some renovation and the addition of some amenities might make it a more desirable hotel.

Good for the price

The hotel is good for the price we paid. The only draw back was that they did not come and clean room daily. Also, they did not replace towels with clean towels. Other than that we were satisfied.

Not impressed

Don’t be deceived by online pictures and descriptions of this hotel’s ammenities. They make their hotel look like a resort when in fact it was not. The hotel restaurant was not in operation and the pool was nothing like it appeared in pictures. The air conditioning was broken and it wasn’t even that close to tourist locales. I would not come close to staying here again and would not reccommend this hotel to anyone.

Public transit not the best

If we were to stay in Memphis again, we would definitely stay downtown close to the action. We attempted to save on the hotel and use public transit. While there were stops right in front of the hotel, most trips required going to the main terminal and then transferring onto a trolley to get to the action. This was time consuming and a bit confusing to learn.

Adequate for short term needs

A boutique hotel sounded charming for my two-night business stay this time around. Although a couple of miles from downtown, Beale Street and that immediate area were easy to reach. However, the hotel definitely showed its age. There were no hangers in the doorless closet, and the bathroom, while clean, definitely was pretty worn out. The restaurant inside the hotel had recently closed down, which was a real problem after day long meetings and just feeling too tired to go out to find a decent restaurant. But the people were extremely courteous, and additional pillows and hangers were delivered within minutes of requesting them. If all other hotels were full, I’d would not have a problem staying here again. It jut wouldn’t be my first or even second choice.

Smokey but comfortable

Great price and location. Pretty good room service. My room smelled like smoke but it was comfortable. Nothing much you can do about the smoke.

Memphis’ Worst Hotel!!!!!!

I must start by saying that I am not one to be quick to complain or give a bad rating.....But this hotel was horrible, I have stayed in motels that were better. First of all, when I enter my room, I go to the bathroom and the light is out. I immediately call guest services and inform them of the problem. I wait.......and wait. Then I notice that the window to my room is wide open on the 7th floor! So, my room is hot! Then, I noticed that there is no garbage can in my room! About a hour has passed and still no light in my bathroom. I had somewhere to be, so I assumed by time I get back to my room the situation whould be taken care of. Not!!! I get back to my room later that night(around 1:00am,remind you that check- in time is at 3:00pm), the light is still not fixed..And in addition to that, my iron is now gone from my room..This hotel is a negative reflection on Exdedia and they should look into taking this one off of the list, because it is a very bad represention on Exdedia’s quality of service. I really wanted a refund but did not pursue it, but I just want future travelers to Memphis to know that this hotel is Memphis’s Worst Hotel!!!!!!

Not impressed

This hotel was badly run down. The carpeting throughout the hotel is very stained and dirty. Only one of the two elevators was in service and the one that did work, had a mind of its own (example: when you were trying to go from your floor to the Lobby it always bypassed the lobby and ended up on the 1st level of the parking garage). The pool was extremely dirty. There are only two ice machines in the whole hotel, one on the 6th floor and the other on the 8th. If you needed extra bath towels or drinking cups, you had to go to the lobby to get them yourself.

Inexpensive but very basic

I have now stayed at the Artisan several times over the last year. The maintenance and cleanliness continues to decline. On this visit I was given two bath towels, no hand towels, and no washcloths. On the first night a rather large roach fell on top of the bed! However, it is quite a bargain and if you are not bug shy and one towel will do, you will save money staying here. If you plan to use the internet service provided, you must request a room close to the elevator, or your connection will be very sporatic.

Traveler's tip on saving a few bucks

Always book this hotel through Expedia - the rate is almost half of what it would be if you contacted the hotel directly.

It is a budget Motel disguised as a Hotel

First off let me say my stay here was comfortable but if you need ambiance and luxury go somewhere else if you need a clean place to shower and shave this is for you. It is centrally located of a main road and highway the parking lot is easy to access but a little creepy at night but I never felt unsafe at anytime. Hurry and stay here because it will be taken over by some huge chain and it will be the end of the last real bargain.

I doubt that I will ever stay there again.

The carpet in the room smelled horrible. There were 3 people in our room. We only had 2 washcloths and towels. No face towels. The staff answered our questions about area attractions but weren’t friendly at all. The room and bathroom looked nothing at all like the pictures on the internet. The parking garage was horrible. I hated paying to park in it. It might not have been so bad if it was valet parking. The lobby was beautiful. The hotel was very close to everything we wanted to see.

I doubt that I will stay there again.

The room and bathroom looked nothing like the pictures on the internet. The carpet smelled horrible! The staff answered my questions about different attractions in the Memphis area, but were very cold and unfriendly. Parking was bad. It was disappointing to have to pay $6.50 a day to park in such a bad parking garage. It might not have been so bad if I was paying for valet parking. We had 3 people in our room and only 2 towels and washcloths. No face towels.The location of the hotel was good. It was close to what we wanted to see. The lobby is beautiful.

Average

The hotel was just average. Not many extras. No coffee maker or facility on site but Starbucks across the street so not a problem. Stayed one night and it served its purpose. Don’t go here looking for ultraclean all new facility. Minor blemishes in halls and in room. Fine for price.

Second stay

This is the second time staying at the Artisan and again was satified with the Hotel. With a 3 mile or less proximity to most everything of interest makes it a location to stay. The staff could be a little more prompt with extra towels and was a bit disappointed in the lack of a restuarant and lounge, even though the hotel still advertises it as being in existance. Also they still charge extra to park in THEIR garage. Something I don’t understand. Overall it was satifatory for the price.

Good Atmosphere

The location for our needs was perfect and the atmosphere was nice. The only thing I would recommend is having coffee in the room or at least in the lobby.

Mediocre

It was a little out dated, but the rooms were clean. The service could have been much better, I would give it a 5 ona 1-10 scale.

This place is stayable

We will stay here again. The neighborhood is safe and I felt comfortable staying here. We drove to downtown and walk/rode trolley. Our key card didn’t work 3 times, but the staff was nice about getting it re-carded. The staff were nice the hotel could use some fixing up. But it was comfortable for our trip. We basically slept and showered and were out...

Traveler's tip on saving a few bucks

Want to save a few bucks don’t eat downtown. The food is much more expensive. We went the opposite direction. For our anniversary we ate at the Half Shell great food good people we enjoyed it