The AC Hotel in Pittsburgh's historic Strip District is a comfortable, albeit somewhat standard hotel in the chain that offers budget-friendly rooms and a killer location right at the edge of the popular neighborhood and downtown Pittsburgh.
Whether you're coming in for a conference at the convention center next door or utilize this one as a base to explore Pittsburgh, you're in for a comfortable, no-frills stay here!
We are lucky to have many hotel options available in Pittsburgh, with several neighborhoods offering great accommodations for visitors.
Pittsburgh's Oakland neighborhood, home to college campuses like the University of Pittsburgh and Carnegie Mellon, is one such neighborhood. For those looking for a high-end experience with luxury at every corner, a stay at The Oaklander is a must as it offers lovely amenities all while being steps away from the highlights of the neighborhood that gives the hotel its name.
We got the chance to stay at this one overnight as guests of the hotel and had what may go down as arguably one of the best experiences we have had at any Pittsburgh hotel to date!
While Pittsburgh in December marks the start of winter, the city itself is in holiday mode more than anything. We have just come off the heels of Light Up Night, and our Christmas markets, numerous Christmas events, and other festivities are at their peak.
Of course, as with all of our other monthly recommendations list, we also have a few great places to drink and museums to explore on the exceptionally cold days that are coming into the city because, let's face it, winter is coming and sometimes you just want to be inside.
So if you are looking for things to do in Pittsburgh in December, check out the following options.
As avid travelers, we've done our fair share of overnight stays in hostels and boutique hotels- from $3 hole-in-the-walls in central China to high-end lodge-esque accommodations dedicated to hikers in Patagonia. Whenever we need to travel economically, we look toward shared dorms and private rooms in order to meet our travel goals.
One thing that always bothered me about the Pittsburgh hotel scene is that our budget and boutique hotel offerings are much more limited compared to higher-priced chains.
Traveler's Rest is one boutique hotel that opened up in South Side near Station Square and it certainly fills a need!
I was invited to the hotel for an overnight stay and wanted to share a bit more about this hidden gem in the South Side.
Note: I was a guest of Traveler's Rest Hotel for this review and have since returned for a tour after the property was upgraded to take updated photos and see the changes first-hand. As always, all opinions are my own.
When it comes to hotels in the Cultural District in Pittsburgh, it is hard to beat the Courtyard Marriott Downtown.
Part of this is because the hotel is right in the middle of the Penn Avenue business district, but the other part is simply that the hotel is within just a few blocks of the theaters, the convention center, Market Square, and so much more.
But the real perk of this hotel is that if you are lucky, you may also find a room rate that doesn't break the bank. A reasonable price with a location to match? That is a winner- even if this hotel doesn't stray too far from the mold of the chain.
As frequent travelers, we're always on the lookout for a great deal and an easy route flying out of Pittsburgh International Airport.
Whenever a new budget carrier comes to the airport, we find ourselves getting quite excited at the prospects as reaching new destinations for a far cheaper price-point.
So when Breeze Airways announced routes and subsequent expansions into the Pittsburgh market to cities that haven't been serviced in quite some time, we knew we had to fly on them as soon as possible. As it turns out, one such route was one we wanted to travel on and we booked our flight right away.
Pittsburgh International Airport has been making moves in recent years with the addition of direct flights to Europe.
Being frequent world travelers, we were eager to jump on one of these flights as direct, international travel have been something we've been dreaming of for years.
So what is the flight from Pittsburgh to London on British Airways like? While we quite enjoyed our flight, there are many things you need to know before you go (and most revolve around how bad Heathrow is).
Camp culture is big around Pittsburgh, and everyone seemingly knows several people with a camp outside of the city used for long weekends, summer vacations, and more.
But if you do not have access to your own camp, you are not completely out of luck. There are many great cabin rentals near Pittsburgh to help you get a trip out into nature. So in this one, we thought we'd share a few great options to consider for Pennsylvania rental cabins just a short drive from Pittsburgh!
Note: All rentals are listed on the VRBO booking platform. Images credited to the respective hosts. While we are frequent customers of these services, we have not personally stayed in the below properties. We reviewed many of the apartment rentals in Pittsburgh for what we normally look for when traveling, and simply think these are quite unique, interesting, and in most cases also have fantastic locations such that we would likely inquire about them if we were travelers. These reasons will be highlighted below. Amenities may have changed since initial publication and should be confirmed prior to booking.
When you think of popular Pittsburgh neighborhoods, you may instantly assume that any given one is home to several hotels for visitors. For a few, you'd be right. But there are many neighborhoods in the city that do not have hotels at all, and up until mid-2019 Lawrenceville was one that sorely needed a property.
It wasn't until the TRYP Hotel opened that Lawrenceville got its first proper hotel, and this one fits right into the trendy neighborhood perfectly thanks to its beautiful restoration of a former school building right on 40th Street.
Throw in a rooftop bar with a stellar city view, a nice restaurant on the first floor, and some modern amenities and you have enough to make us happy.
We got the chance to check this one out as guests of the hotel and share more in this full review!
As a travel writer by trade, I have seen many tourism campaigns from cities all over the world trying to highlight the main reasons outsiders should visit.
Some highlight geographical features like beaches and mountains, others promote the libations scene in the form of winery or brewery trails. Some push sports, others promote their architecture and history as a draw. Some push that the city is a popular tourist destination, others promote that they're under the radar.
For Pittsburgh, however, I don't think we can push just one narrative. In fact, we have all of the categories mentioned above, and it is only when you take a step back to appreciate how it all works together that you truly get a feel for what makes Pittsburgh the city that it is.
So if you have no idea what Pittsburgh is all about and need to learn more before deciding if you should visit, this one is for you!