Travel Guide: The Ivey's, Charlotte, North Carolina

My parents and I went to Charlotte, North Carolina to visit my younger sister, Callie for the weekend (it was also my mom's birthday!). If you don't know, Callie moved to Charlotte for a job back in February. I miss her so much, so it's always nice when we are all back together. Everyone here in Pittsburgh misses her! Just last week, I had dinner with my cousins, Aunt, and Uncle and it was sad Callie wasn't there. She is so loved and while I'm glad she is thriving in Charlotte, I miss her a lot. 

We arrived on Friday in the late afternoon and headed to check into our hotel, The Ivey's, which is located in Uptown Charlotte. The Ivey's is a somewhat new luxury boutique hotel. The building was originally built in the early 1900's and was a department store but has since been renovated into residences and The Ivey's Hotel. 

The location is ideal. You are basically in the center of it all. We were surrounded by great restaurants, plenty of coffee shops, the library, and more. We were also only several blocks away from Callie's apartment, which was so nice, too! 

{There was a clock theme all throughout the hotel and this one in the lobby dates all the way back to the 1700's!}

We checked in on the lobby level. I loved checking in because the lobby area felt like a beautiful living room! We went upstairs to the second floor which is where all of the 40+ rooms are located. You can see in the photo above, the hallways are even beautifully decorated. I loved all the vintage framed advertisements that lined the hallways. I'd stop to read each one! 

The room was so spacious and luxe. You can tell they really thought of everything a guest could need while traveling. I really appreciate when hotels have iPod docks with speakers, USB ports for charging devices, and bottles of water. It's things like that that you don't necessarily 'need' while traveling but it really makes for a much more pleasant experience. 

The beds were beyond comfortable and I loved the Italian linens they used because they were so soft. The mini bar was fully stocked with all sorts of goodies from Dean and Deluca that were way too hard to resist. Also hard to resist? The Nespresso. To say we got good use out of it would be an understatement. 

The bathroom was beautifully done in white and gray marble. There was a beautiful marble shower and a large bathtub, too. I love that the tub had an area where it would hold your wine glass for you. Talk about ultimate relaxation. 

Another really cool feature? The TV. I feel like I've never really noticed a TV in a hotel room. I don't often spend time watching TV while traveling, but I've never seen a TV like this in a hotel room, ever. It was HUGE and was 4K with Bose speakers. When you walk into your room, the TV is on and there is a slideshow of beautiful images set to spa-like music. It's such a nice way to be welcomed back to your room! 

No doubt you can see the hotel is eclectically beautiful. But what really sets this hotel apart are two things: the details and the service. As we wandered throughout the hotel during the weekend, we kept noticing little details we hadn't before. All of the furniture was custom made for the hotel and things like the art were carefully curated. Even the rocks glasses in our room were something special. What I think I am most impressed by when it comes to the hotels' decor is that the quirkiness was never tacky but always stunningly beautiful and spot on. The decor gave me so much inspiration and made me want to move in or redecorate at home!

As for the service, it was impeccable. All of the staff was beyond friendly and went out of their way to accommodate your every need. Whenever we passed someone in the hallway, we were warmly greeted and asked if they could get us anything.

The turndown service was also wonderful and included a box of Amelie's macarons each night. Amelie's is a local French bakery in Charlotte- I love that they utilized local vendors when possible. 

Another amenity we enjoyed was the Library. It is a large, beautiful room that is warm and inviting. It's only steps away from the rooms and caters to your needs. This is where we had breakfast each morning. The Ivey's takes continental breakfast to the next level, that's for sure. Each morning, we were spoiled with croissants, bagels, lox, pastries, yogurt, parfaits, eggs, fresh fruit, and so much more. They had a large Nespresso where you could whip up cappuccinos. There was also always had a refrigerator stocked with water, juice, sparkling waters, hummus snacks, and more that was replenished throughout the day. We also enjoyed wine and cheese in the library around cocktail hour. 

Lastly, there is such a cool lounge called Sophia's that is located downstairs from the rooms and the Library. Sophia's has a lovely selection of craft cocktails, small bites, and lots of beer and wine choices. It is known for being home to Top Chef alum, Jamie Lynch. We went to Sophia's on Friday night after enjoying wine and cheese in the Libary. Callie had been wanting to go to Sophia's since it had opened and was glad we would all be going there together. The decor is somewhat similar to The Ivey's Hotel in that it is very detail oriented, luxurious and eclectic. All of the seating was very plush and comfortable and made it really hard to leave! 

My favorite cocktails on the list were The Last Word (gin-based with a lime that was on fire!) and the Come on Sp'in (which had jalapeno, yum), and The Oasis (which is rum-based and isn't normally something I go for, but it was fantastic). My favorite dishes were the Maine lobster sliders, smoked shrimp, and filet mignon toast. Sophia's was fabulous. I definitely recommend it. It'd be great for a celebration or a date night. 

All in all, our stay at The Ivey's was amazing. We're so glad we found such a lovely place to stay while visiting Callie- I'm sure we will be back and I can't wait until then! 

Right now, Callie is headed to Paris- just two weeks before I go! I can't wait to hear all of the details about her trip! I'll be back early next week with a full post on what I wore and what else we did while in Charlotte.