The Crawford Hotel in Denver’s Union Station offers one of a kind accommodations that will make anyone who loves train travel giddy with delight. I haven’t been on the Orient Express yet (I can dream), but The Crawford embraces the wonder and mystique of luxury train travel while providing a fascinating experience at the city’s most glamorous icon, Denver Union Station.

Getting There

The Crawford is easily accessible via the new Light Rail route that runs from Denver International Airport straight into Union Station.

You hop on the rail and 43 minutes later hop off right in front of the hotel’s door. It’s the perfect way to get to the hotel, which has a spectacular train theme.

After hopping off the light rail, brace yourself for a show stopping entrance right into the Grand Hall of Union Station. The first time I saw it, I was in a swoon, and I never got over it. If I lived in Denver, I’d hang out at Union Station all the time. It’s a great atmosphere for working, with many work stations that offer USB ports and plugs. Giant art deco chandeliers hang from the ceiling, cool chill-out music plays in the background, and you have immediate access to all your heart desires from organic farm to table food, cocktails, shops, and easy ways to connect to other parts of the city and beyond.

The Room

If you are a design geek like me, you will go bananas for The Crawford. Each of the three floors embodies design elements from different eras of the building’s history. Every room is unique. I got to see a couple of rooms and they both knocked my socks off. We stayed in a LoDo Suite. It has a living room, bedroom and two bathrooms. This was originally the attic space of the building, and they left raw exposed beams in tact, as well as delicious exposed brick.

Look at those fun travel trunk tables. The red leather sofa is is a comfortable hide-a-way bed and that zebra chair adds pizazz. There’s an espresso machine on the desk, a television in each room, and two baths.

The Bath

My favorite room was the gigantic master bath with an exposed original wood beam, huge egg shaped bath tub and marble herringbone tiles. The exposed beam is original and lends heaps of character to the room, while the delicate chandelier balances out rustic masculine elements.

A double-sink is nice for couples while the tub would fit a family. Seriously–it’s enormous, you can’t really tell from the photo, but if you were over 6ft, you’d still have plenty of leg room. I took four baths in two days because this tub was so inviting.

The bedroom was sleek and cozy with a leather headboard, luxurious linens, and a large armoire for storing belongings out of sight.

Pullman Rooms

I did get to see other rooms (see more pictures in the gallery below) while I was there and it just made me want to come back so I could try one out. Those rooms really make you feel like you are in a fancy sleeper car on a luxury train.

Art

All of the artwork in the hotel is created by Colorado artists. My favorite pieces are the old cowboy photos, framed bus tickets, and other Union Station memorabilia like the blueprints for the 1912 remodel.

Amenities

The Crawford offers interesting amenities which you can request via the iPad mini you’ll find on the nightstand in your room. They have a complimentary Tesla car service for locations within a couple of miles of Union Station. You can use the car to head over to the LoHi neighborhood to check out Linger and Little Man, for instance.

A stay at The Crawford includes complimentary food and drink from some of the restaurants within Union Station. In the two days we were there, we were not able to use all our generous food and drink benefits. Each day, you get a pint of beer from the Terminal Bar, which is the old train station ticket counter turned into a bar.

They offer a huge variety of local Colorado micro brews. This is where you get the pucks for the table shuffleboard in the middle of Great Hall. You get a scoop of ice-cream from MilkBox Ice Creamery which is a sister shop to Little Man and offers delicious homemade ice-cream. Then (this is the one I used the most) you get organic coffee from PigTrain.

Food & Drink

In addition to complimentary treats The Crawford offers, there are several fabulous restaurant options, including The Kitchen Next Door, Stoic & Genuine, and my son’s favorite breakfast place–Snooze. Of all the food options available, the one absolute must is The Cooper Lounge, which gives you that Orient Express vibe in spades.

The Crawford Hotel, Bottom Line

The Crawford is one of the most unique hotels I’ve ever visited. It’s ideal for train aficionados and those using the train system. It’s an excellent location, with so much to offer that you need a few days to experience it all. Perfect for families (between the ice-cream shop, spray park water fountain, Snooze and cool train stuff, kids love it) business travelers (Great Hall is a wonderful work space), and romantic weekends, this is a hotel that will appeal to a wide variety of travelers. If you are headed to Denver, consider The Crawford Hotel for truly fabulous accommodations. Find out more on the hotel website HERE.