Dieciséis Anos ?? Wow where did these 16 years go so fast, I asked my hubby. It was our anniversary and since we recently relocated to Raleigh we asked around about where could we do a memorable romantic overnight staycation. We kept getting the same answer..The Raleigh Marriott City Center http://www.marriott.com/hotels/travel/rdumc-raleigh-marriott-city-center/

In my former life as a healthcare consultant I had spent endless nights in Marriott properties, so I definitely heeded that advice and headed downtown for a nights stay. Being a new transplant to Raleigh I was always surprised as how vibrant the city center here is. People bound about. Popular Restaurants and trendy bars are everywhere. Rye, one of the hottest restaurants in the entire region just happens to be inside the Marriott. Downtown Raleigh also has various venues for plays and concerts and The Marriott City Center literally is in the center of it all. Convientely located on Fayettville St and connected to the Raleigh Convention Center, this property is ground zero for a downtown base for fun or romance. This is a full service property with an indoor pool and 15,000 sq feet of event space. They even have a concierge level of rooms with exclusive access to their concierge lounge and amenities. With that in mind, we headed downtown.

Check in was fast and efficient. The modern Lobby was stylish and bright. We found our suite to be luxurious but not garish. Marble bathroom and plush bedding was top notch. Our room had a great view of the Raleigh Skyline which came to life in the form of twinkling lights as the sun was setting.

Since it was our anniversary, also waiting in the room was a beautiful bright bouquet of flowers from the famous Fallons Flowers http://www.fallonsflowers.com/ They have been Raleigh’s premier florist for over 8 decades. Looking at these beautiful flowers I now know why. The arrangement was gorgeous! Fallon’s will be my Raleigh florist of choice going forward.

We had reserved their wonderful “romance package” room. They provided a bottle of Prosecco with a tray of chocolate covered strawberries. They also had 2 pouches of actual fresh red rose petals! We scattered them on the bed and spelled out how many years of marriage we were celebrating. What a great start. I took a quick swim in their rooftop pool and got dressed for a night out on the town. Before heading out we stopped by the bar at Rye for cocktail. Amazing bar atmosphere with attentive bartenders who explain how they make their cocktails out of fresh fruits and mixes.

The next morning we awoke with room service. A full breakfast was in order. They brought it up on time and as ordered. We both hated to say goodbye, but alas it was back to the real world. Until next time Marriott, until next time.