We stayed at Graduate by Hilton Bloomington on Thanksgiving night and had a great experience. The hotel is right in downtown Bloomington, which makes it an easy base for getting around. Since it was Thanksgiving, the restaurant was not open that evening and the hotel was not very busy. That worked in our favor, as parking was plentiful and check-in was smooth. I also received a complimentary room upgrade, which made an already nice stay even better. The room itself was excellent and easily exceeded expectations. The next morning we ate breakfast at the hotel restaurant and were impressed. Good food, good service, and an easy start to the day. Overall, a really solid stay and absolutely worth it. This is now my new favorite hotel in Bloomington, and we will be back. read more

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Have stayed there 3 separate times now and has been fantastic every time. Would definitely recommend. Aiden helped out at front desk most recently and was very friendly and helpful. Pros. Great Location to Restaurants, Bars, Kirkwood and Campus. Friendly Staff Fun Decor Solid Coffee Shop. Large Rooms. Cons. No "real" bar in lobby. Parking is a bit pricey for Bloomington - $20/night for self and $27/night for valet. In Room coffee no good. read more

Note: Check-in time is 4:00 PM. I recently returned from my first stay at The Graduate Hotel in Bloomington and have nothing but high praise for both the property and the staff. From the moment I arrived, I was greeted warmly and made to feel welcome. Every interaction with the team was pleasant -- they were consistently friendly, attentive, and eager to help. The hotel itself is beautiful, conveniently located near great restaurants and the Indiana University campus. During this visit, I was fortunate to receive an upgrade to a suite, which was spotless, spacious, and very comfortable. The staff mentioned that the on-site bar will be opening soon -- I'm looking forward to seeing it on my next trip. I'll be visiting Bloomington frequently in the years ahead and plan to make The Graduate my home away from home. read more

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Let's talk value: ZERO. Surge pricing is INSANE at least give me 1500/night service. Maybe a Kuerig instead of powdered coffee. Lesser hotels have Keurigs. How about complementary bottled water in my room or even at the front desk. Decor is unironically your grammas house. Rooms are small. Too small to find space to put more than 1 carryon size suitcase. No suitcase stand so it's on the bed or the floor. I do not want to kneel on the floor to get my stuff. Its lower cost sister hotel in town provides free bottled water. When we inquired at check in they told to us to buy water at the cafe. Later in our stay I saw them give water to other guests. By then we bought a case of water of our own. For the surge pricing give me designer water in my room. You make more than enough on one night for one room to pay for it. Housekeeping. Kept our rooms clean each day but I would swap that to get them to stop waking us up two mornings in a row. I have trouble falling asleep and staying asleep. The absolute WORST is getting woken up out of a deep sleep. They knocked aggressively on Saturday morning without announcing who was at the door. You know, the traditional 'housekeeping' announcement. Sunday they knocked more quietly but no announcement. They then knocked again 1/2 hour before our checkout. This is NOT 5-star hotel service. Students working in computers for hours all over the place taking up chairs and table leaving no room for guests to have coffee or breakfast. I guess it's popular. The line at the cafe was insane Parking is awful. They said if lots are full then go to valet but valet wasn't there. We had to park in the bank parking lot according to front desk. Not great with the tow away signs and a flight we can't miss. Pickings were slim for hotels but this was not it especially for the price. read more

Hotel is beautiful. Lots of room for gathering. Beds are very comfortable. Front desk staff at check in was fine. Seemed on auto pilot, not what I'm used to at a Hilton hotel. Front desk ran out of bottled water. Blurb in room said there was water in the mini fridge but there wasn't. Hotel felt very clean. read more

I had to stay overnight for work and ended up staying here at the graduate. What a cool hotel! Not only is the staff very helpful and personable, the whole set up of the hotel is just something you have to see to believe. I loved looking at all the pictures and the history, and thought that my room was one of the cutest I had ever stayed in, and I've stayed in a lot! If you are in the area, consider graduate bloomington for your stay, it's an enjoyable time, and very close to many attractions in Bloomington. read more

Graduate by Hilton Bloomington - Hotels Near Me - Bloomington, Indiana

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Serious question- why do so many hotels (even high end ones) lack a fan in the bathroom? Can make for extremely unpleasant odors when multiple guests in a room! Happy to say Graduate hotel had a robust fan in their bathroom! This made one very happy momma traveling with a 15 year old! Hotel hit all other marks including cleanliness, unique design, quiet, excellent location and friendly staff. Decorated with kitschy sports themed IU memorabilia (think lots of thrown chairs A La Bobby Knight)! Price range is higher end, however it is fairly priced. Will be looking to book the Stranger Things room next time! Special hotel! Highly recommended! read more

Graduate by Hilton Bloomington - Jack & Diane Terrace - Hotels Near Me - Bloomington, Indiana

Very friendly staff, little dining area is great. wifi not good Rooms are pretty cool with Hoosiers theme and staff is very friendly read more

We love this hotel! We only stayed one night, because we went up for the eclipse. They were very welcoming, parking was easy, and they were great hosts, allowing us to sit on the fourth floor patio to watch the eclipse. They had it all ready for us with food and drinks. What a great experience. The inside of the hotel was also fantastic. All the details in the rooms, including the lace curtains were fantastic. We will definitely stay here again if we are ever in Bloomington. Not sure it's likely that we'll go back, but we won't forget about this hotel anytime soon. read more

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Close to campus on Kirkwood across from the library. I love the location. They have a tiny garage. It costs about $20 to park. The decor is fun with the Cutters/Bobby Night/IU paraphernalia.. but wow lots of patterns. Flowers, checkers, eagles ... they have it all on the carpet, lamps, walls. I like that they you can text for service/questions. I dislike that early check in was not avail, so we had to wait till after 4:00pm to get in. But alas, another excuse to day drink and walk around. read more

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Always stay here when in town. Best hotel in Bloomington by a mile! Front desk service is always fantastic, the upgraded rooms are always very large and awesome. King with terrace is pretty amazing. read more

Graduate by Hilton Bloomington - My room terrace is huge - Hotels Near Me - Bloomington, Indiana

This is such a cool little place. It has the ideal location and a tremendously cool vibe. You are close to so many great restaurants if you stay here as well. Definitely recommended. read more

What a fantastic hotel! My family stayed here for a weekend while in town for a wedding. The overall college sports theme of the place was awesome. The staff was super friendly and helpful, from the font desk to the restaurant workers to the housekeeping crew. There was a small parking lot in the building and an additional lot across the street. They also offered valet parking. There was a great lounge area on the first floor to meet up with family, hang out, and we even got the kids together to play games. There is a great outdoor rooftop patio to hang out on. They had a small restaurant with some simple breakfast and lunch options that were all very good. The rooms were very nice and very clean. Loved the closet that looked like lockers, the pennant on the wall, and the creative do not disturb sign. We had an excellent experience all around and will definitely stay here again if we end up back in Bloomington! read more

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Great staff. Cozy hotel. Lovely character for decor. Love the balcony. Perfect location! I was there for a conference in B-town. I've stayed in many hotels. This was nice! Lots of college students there studying no and such. I wasn't concerned as I went elsewhere for food and coffee. read more

LOVE THIS PLACE! By far the coolest hotel concept in B Town! Best location in the heart of town & adjacent to campus, easy parking, awesome staff, great lobby coffee shop & common area, clean rooms, adorable bedroom themed guestrooms, top notch showers with malin and goetz everything! If you're tailgating or visiting students, a stay at this joint makes it a true pleasure! Doesn't feel like you're staying in a sterile hotel but a warm 4 star guest house in the heart of a college town. read more

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Kara Plotz Local Guide·23 reviews·6 photos a minute ago New I had a pretty unfortunate situation with a front desk employee and manager. I arrived to IN on a red eye flight for a school course knowing that I'd likely have to kill some time before checking in. I called the Graduate the night before and asked if I could get an early check in. Like hotels always do, they made no promises but assured me my reservation would be flagged for the morning crew to see. I arrived just after 8am. I spoke to the front desk who let me know it would likely be a few hours before room came available. But said likely 12 30/1. She took my number and assured me she'd let me know when one came available. I came back at 12:30, she assured me she still had my contact and it would likely be closer to 2pm. I came back at two and that's when they told me I couldn't check in till 4. Noone could. I respectfully asked why that is when rooms are cleaned one by one and they come available all day long. THEN the same person I'd been talking to since 8:30am told me that it wouldn't be be fair to let some of us in early and not others (I'm part of a large group). At this point I obviously felt strung along and asked to speak to the manager. She came out and gave me a new story that this was there policy bc I was associated with a large group. And then blamed it on the school for not communicating that to us. (Which is did validate there was no communication about that). So instead of checking us in one by one as we arrive they would like to have all 120 of us stand in line at 4pm to check in? I travel every week and am gratefully reminded why I don't choose Hilton properties. Not once has Marriot ever pulled something this non-sensical. Not only was I strung along for 6 hours but they have no common sense read more

My family and I stayed here in the Stranger Things Suite for a little weekend trip. This was such an awesome experience! I would recommend staying here especially if you're a Stranger Things fan! It's pricey, but so worth it! There's so many photo ops in this suite, in fact there's a Polaroid camera that you get to use (film provided). There's also a few costumes to wear for some fun photos. The room key cards are fun! They look like ID cards of the characters from the show and the best part is that you get to keep them! So cool! The hotel was very clean. The suite has a comfortable king size bed and a pull out sofa. There's a mini fridge and microwave. There are two bathrooms one with shower/tub combo and the other with a shower only. There is no tv, so if you're gonna do some Stranger Things bing watching during your stay you'll have to watch it on your phone or tablet. The staff was outstanding, very friendly and helpful with any questions I had. There's an attached parking garage that you can use for $15 and valet parking for $20. The Poindexter Coffee shop on the main level had some Stranger Things themed items on the menu. I tried the Upside Down Burger and it was tasty. You can also get a Hopper's Triple Decker Eggo Extravaganza for free just for staying in the Stranger Things Suite! My family and I had an awesome time staying here in the Stranger Things Suite. I believe fans of the show would love it too! read more

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This review is specific to the coffee shop and public spaces at the Graduate, as I have not yet stayed there since I'm local. But I'm going to because the public spaces are great, and those who have stayed overnight really enjoyed the experience. I recently met a friend for coffee at the Graduate and it was terrific. What a cool space, with plenty of room to meet, study, or just sit and enjoy coffee or whatever beverage/snack with a good book. The coffee menu is a standard menu, and my drink was a basic cold brew - was great, the service was quick and friendly, and the price was about what one would expect from a local coffee shop. The space is really nice, open and kitchy. I'm honestly not sure if that's the proper spelling of 'kitchy' but I'm not looking it up so it'll suffice. We hung out for a long time and didn't ever feel rushed or pressured to buy more or move along, so that's a plus as well. I'm definitely returning as it's likely going to become my go-to downtown coffee option. There is street parking in the neighborhood, though you'll need to hunt during busy time periods. It's worth it. read more

This is a super cute hotel and probably one of the best in the area. The decor is lovely and the service was good as well. My only complaint was cleanliness. Unfortunately, I didn't think our room was the cleanest. There were lots of stray hairs in the bed and shower. read more

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This is a review for the downstairs area/coffee shop: decor is impressive and fun - a nice way to spend time with friends. Food is limited and ok; the healthiest item I could find, the avocado toast, was so-so: a little too greasy and an overkill (oil and garlic and avocado, pumpkin seeds and what else ???). Staff really friendly. I can see this becoming a nice place to hang out (especially when the bar offers alcohol), but they have work to do... read more

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Bugs crawling on ceiling and curtains. I was relocated to a smaller room on 3rd floor. Elevator would not work so carried luggage up 3 flights. TV powered on but would not power off. No vending machines and was suggested I walk to service station to purchase a drink. read more

Pretty unhappy with my experience here so far. The "smart" TVs won't connect to iPhones or iPads. And there are no apps on the TV so you can't watch Hulu or Netflix or anything. The internet app on the TV doesn't work either. Come on y'all, it's 2022! We should be able to watch more than just basic cable. Also housekeeping seems to have issues. I specifically asked the front desk if I needed to request daily housekeeping or it just came automatically and they said it was automatic. Well, nobody came to make up my room. I even ran into the housekeeper in the hall on my way out this morning and said my room was ready to be made up. But I come back to an unmade bed, trash nothing taken out. I barely have any time to relax on this trip and now I can't even do that cuz I'm waiting for housekeeping while I'm supposed to be resting. Not okay. read more

This is such a cool hotel! The theme is really cute and creative. Our room was very comfortable, I loooooved the shower. The location is extremely convenient for walking anywhere downtown. I was really happy with the precautions they took for sanitation. All the elevators had hand sanitizer right next to them and wipes with trash cans inside the elevators. Some of the tables in the seating area/lobby were closed off to facilitate social distancing. They also took out all the shampoo/conditioner which is a good idea. I'm not sure if they had small containers at the front desk or not. We had a dog with us and the fee was only $25 which was way better than other hotels in the area. Overall I was very happy with our stay and would be happy to stay here again. read more

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Fast response time with amazing service for our college reunion trip. Looking forward to another great stay at a Graduate. Thank you, Laura!

If I could give a hotel ten stars, I would - for sheer friendliness, cleanliness, and ambience, the Graduate Hotel chain beat any other place we've stayed. This was no exception. From the moment we arrived, when valet Devon not only offered to unload our bags but helped us to our room and placed them as requested, to the front desk helpfulness in arranging everything from non-feather pillows and duvets to restaurant recommendations, to the pub-like dining area with actual handmade food and darn, it was good! - we couldn't have asked for a better stay. Every Graduate Hotel I've stayed in has been very good, but this was even above that standard. Oh, did I mention the beds? Best Serta mattress we've slept on. Best pillows we've slept on. Best duvet. Usually, if you request a non-feather duvet, your replacement is an afterthought. Not so here. If we could have loaded the entire bed and bedding onto our car and taken it home, we'd have done so. Five stars and above. Much thanks. read more

This is a nice hotel, but when it comes to clean, maybe I got unlucky. When pulling our sheets back there were stains on the sheets. Did they change the sheets from the previous occupant, or did they just didn't clean the sheets that well. All we know is that we were grossed out and since this was late at night, just slept on top of the covers. Talked to the front desk on checkout, they picked up our parking fee. That didn't really didn't help with being totally grossed out. Wish I took a picture. read more

Would give 10 stars if it went that high! Kimberly and Devon (sp?) were the epitome of hospitality. We were in Bloomington visiting my nephew and he wanted to stop in and see the hotel after we told him about a great experience we had in Ann Arbor at that Graduate. We were met by Kimberly who had equally as much passion for what she does (and is going to do) as knowledge of the hotel and surrounding area. Devon and my nephew carried on a conversation about school and different activities. We will plan to come back and stay overnight (tonight we just came home since we live in Fishers). Thank you Kimberly and Devon for really making our visit to B-town one that we will never forget! read more

Graduate hotels are all across the nation near colleges and I really liked my stay in this one in Bloomington. First of all the theme is super cute, it's designed like a semi-vintage "school/college", with the history of IU in Bloomington. The rooms are nice. The closets are designed like wooden lockers, very cute. The bathroom is probably my favorite, they have cute wallpaper and a fancy shower lol. They also have large suites for more people. They have a really nice cafe on the lobby which is a hangout spot for the college students in the area--but it's great for breakfast if you're staying at the hotel. Unfortunately the bottled water in the room is $5 but luckily they serve free coffee and water in the cafe the whole stay. Overall, I enjoyed it!! read more

I love this chain. This hotel particular is conveniently located to campus. Staff was friendly. Hotel and rooms were clean. Pillows= sheets = . Our room happened to be near the entrance to the 4th floor terrace. At first I thought it was going to be awful. It closes at 10pm and all the families are tame. We were all able to enjoy wine and beers with pizza ++. Coffee and cappuccinos downstairs in the morning were good. I didn't love our bfast sandwiches, but who cares. All in all it was a great stay and we saw our boy. read more

I love this hotel. I've stayed here one time before, but after realizing it's right next door to an Orangetheory gym, as long as I'm still a member, this is where I'll be staying. The hotel is decorated beautifully within its theme and our room was very clean. I love their soap products and the coffee. There's an attached cafe/ restaurant next to the lobby. Everyone is very friendly and helpful. When i didn't get an answer when trying to call the lobby from the room, they saw the missed call and called me back! Parking was an extra charge I believe. read more

A clean and well maintained hotel with a great local location in the heart of Bloomington IN. However, my experience this time was not all it was cracked up to be however. Especially for the premium price you ask. Due to COVID restriction there is not room maintenance unless it is request by 2pm on the day service is needed. I complied with this demand on day two by 830 am and left for the day. It needed it after two days of no service and piling up trash, linens and pizza boxes. I then called again at 330 pm since nothing no cleaning had occurred as I was going out for the night. I returned at 1030pm to a room in the exact same condition as when I left it. Now I understand mistakes can be made but being ignored is intolerable. I was assured by housekeeping both times that it would be taken care of and that they were just 'running behind'. Lied to and ignored does not sit well with me and is a poor reflection on the management of this site. It is a nice hotel that can clearly do better for the price being charged. read more

Very clean and chic. I love how it's designed around the school spirit. Stayed here for a job interview at the iu hospital. Awesome staff , clean rooms , great decor. And great cafe in the lobby. read more

This is such an incredible, immaculate, and such a cool decorated hotel. It takes a LOT to thoroughly impress me and I was extremely impressed! Staff was very friendly and even brought a microwave up to our room! There's no coffee maker in the room either, but you can have free coffee in the cafe all day. We truly enjoyed our stay! Thank you so much, Graduate Hotels. read more

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Awesome hotel with lots of cool Indiana details. The staff were very helpful and friendly, especially Matt, Dave and Kayce. The Poindexter Cafe had great coffee and atmosphere. read more

This is the coolest hotel. We didn't want to leave. Seriously. We've wanted to stay at The Graduate since it opened, but we ordinarily use Marriott points when we spend the night in Bloomington. I'm so glad we skipped our usual stay at a Marriott property... The Graduate is worth it! Every detail is thoughtful. It's so hard to execute a theme without crossing into tacky, but the decor is incredibly well done. Every staff member we spoke to was knowledgeable and friendly. Our room was comfortable and clean. The bathroom has automatic lights and travel size toiletries that smell amazing. I also appreciated the extra measures being taken to keep guests safe during COVID. read more

Graduate by Hilton Bloomington - Lobby area - Hotels Near Me - Bloomington, Indiana

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Although the website lists coffee makers as room amenities, they don't exist. And there's no way to even heat water. I definitely wouldn't have booked the room had I known. But I'm here, so . . . The room is nice and the decor is creative. Plenty of nods to IU without being obnoxious. The lighting is great, which I really appreciate. One exception is that the bathroom light is motion-sensored. Problems with that: 1. Wastes electricity because I don't usually need the interior light when I go in, and it stays on longer than I'm in the room. 2. It shut off halfway through my shower so I had to step out, dripping, and wave my arm. 3. I don't want it to blast me with light when I go to the bathroom in the middle of the night, so I had to rig up a way to block the sensor with a box of kleenex and a rolled up towel. Overall, nice stay and reasonable rate. I won't be back, though, because of the lack of coffee when I wake. read more

I know why it's called the Graduate. Because you will graduate before you get your food! Really cute place but some of these cookie jars freak me out--like the jack in the box cookie jar staring at me while I write this. Back in the box creep. Little mister is stoked for the hash browns I'm just ready to chow. Eaten here before know it's good. read more

Graduate by Hilton Bloomington - Creep - Hotels Near Me - Bloomington, Indiana

LOVED THIS HOTEL. It's right in the heart of Bloomington. We were easily able to walk to all of the restaurants and bars. THE ROOMS. They were adorable. There were so many mis matched patterns that you would think they'd be an eye sore but they're not! It's all IU basketball themed down to basketballs in the carpet! The beds were super comfy and our room was HUGE. For 4 people we were very comfortable. My only thing is that I wish there was more light in the bathroom. It was hard to do my make up. What's really cool is the coffee shop attached to it. I had their frosted mint mocha and it was really good! Parking was easy. There's $10 self park with in and out privileges (which is a steal for parking downtown). I commuted when I went to IU and occasionally stayed at a hotel over night during finals. I wish this had been opened then! It would have been perfect. read more

Visiting Bloomington has some limited hotel options that are in close approximation to campus. The Graduate fulfills all your needs for a weekend trip to Bloomington. As is with this particular franchise of hotels, The Graduate is decorated in all IU-themed decor. Discussing with the staff, it appears that current students like to frequent their coffee shop to do some work and group projects. A meeting location I wish I had while a student. The suites are nice with a great roof access. Each suite comes with ample outdoor seating and an outdoor ping pong table. The room is equipped with a mid-size refrigerator as well which makes entertaining in the room a breeze. If you need a quick bite to eat their attached coffee bar offers some simple menu items as well which hit the spot. Parking is a breeze with their parking garage which makes finding a place for your care in a busy college town not a problem - although you will have to pay some. This is my place when I visit Bloomington. read more

Cute and fun hotel! The decor, even down to the room keys, is Hoosiers-themed (the movie). The room has an eclectic and vintage feel, but is very clean and functional. Includes a Keurig, mini fridge, and blue tooth speaker. The bed was comfy enough. Bathroom was really cool looking and included large dispensers for shampoo, conditioner and body wash, rather than the small sample sizes. Location was great. We could walk to serval restaurants and bars. Price was very reasonable and self-parking is just $10/night. The Jack and Diane terrace of floor 4 is worth checking out. They have corn hole, giant Jenga, lots of seating and tables, and a neat view of Kirkwood street. We would stay here again. read more

Graduate by Hilton Bloomington - Cornhole on the Jack and Diane terrace - Hotels Near Me - Bloomington, Indiana