It is easy to get mesmerized by historic looking exterior and the renovated interior. I certainly was, I had to do a double take on whether or not this was still part of the Hilton family of hotels. The Hotel Royer has been a popular choice for myself as of late whenever I am in town as it is a very solid option in terms of locale, price point and amenities. Whenever I walk in, I immediately notice two things. First off, the decor really brings together the theme of the hotel. I felt as if I was being taken back a few centuries to some royal kingdom, with portraits of historical figures, and furniture that is modern to the touch yet antiquated to the eyes. I also notice the smell, it is clean smelling and inviting. It certainly beats the musty cigarette smell you get at some places. The rooms in general are pretty good. The beds are comfortable, the lighting is decent and the space is typically pretty clean. The bathrooms are okay in my opinion (I am quite particular about this aspect). Sometimes the showers take a while to heat up and the toilet paper is pretty low quality. I think the weakest part of the rooms are the fact that some rooms do not have a desk. I think this is a big miss, as someone who visits on business a lot, it makes doing work in my room impossible sometimes. Additionally, the WiFi is super inconsistent, I found my devices being disconnected at will! In terms of amenities, I think the Hotel Royer is much better than the average Hilton. While there isn't the complimentary breakfast, they have their own restaurant, a well equipped gym and a pool. They also have a bar and their own banquet hall, for big events. The hotel is well located, in a walkable area and not too far from campus. Overall, I am a bit weary to select this hotel on future trips where business is important. However, if I am looking for a relaxing and quality stay, then I know the Hotel Royer will have me covered! read more

The mattress:supportive The sheets: luxurious The pillows: cloud like The towels: thick and thirsty The toiletries: plentiful and nicely scented The water pressure: excellent The decor: modern while preserving the original. The parking: free and easy as pie The neighborhood: walkable with many wonderful independently owned businesses I really like this hotel. I have stayed here several times. Like some of the other reviewers, I remember it as Jumer's Castle Lodge. Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band stayed there in the 80s and I will never shut up about it. I think they have done a really good job with the remodel. Highly recommend. read more

Everything was excellent - world class hotel in Urbana, IL. Did not try the restaurant since the prices were quite high.

Love the design and decor of this newly-renovated hotel. My in-laws have been visiting the area all their lives and have seen many different iterations of this building as a hotel. With Downtown Urbana located nearby, there are many things to do in this college town. Check- in was smooth, and staff were kind and responsive. I called down for additional coffee cups and they were delivered to our room right away. Around 9pm, we went for ice, and the machine on the 4th floor was empty. That was a bit frustrating, especially with the mini-fridge in our room being rather warm. It got cold after we turned the temperature dial down. There is no microwave in the room, but there is one available for use in the lobby, near the bar. The room has a motion- sensor light in the closet area that is dim enough for use during the night for trips to the restroom. I really liked that feature. The a/c pumps really cold air into the room, which we appreciated and the water pressure was good. I'd suggest bringing your own provisions with you. The sundry offerings in the lobby are being heavily taxed! A 16.9oz bottle of Sprite costs $4, a Haagen Daz ice cream bar will cost you $6, and the pints of ice cream are $8! read more

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I remember when this hotel was operating under its former name Jumer's Castle Lodge. It had an old fashion feel inside that reminded you of a castle like feeling. When we would visit Lincoln Square Mall, my parents would walk us over to the lobby of the hotel because it was connected. The mall was actually built as an extension of the hotel and was one of the first fully enclosed shopping malls in Illinois. Now it has been redesigned and renamed the Hotel Royer after the architect that designed it Joseph Royer back in 1924. My wife and parents enjoyed this hotel when we stayed for a weekend getaway but my wife never seeing it before its transformation wasn't as amazed about it as we were. One of the hidden gems of this hotel is to make sure you ask the front desk where the older books from the library are located and where is the room with some of the old decor that they saved and stashed away. You will not see it unless you ask where it is. Whenever a business takes a building and recreates it, they are not able to have everything as if the built it new from the ground up. But they did very very well for what they had to work with. For the service and redesigning and upgrades, I was very pleased and would love to go back and stay again to enjoy this hotel. They have very high standards since they are part of the Hilton group. read more

We used to come here when it was Jumers and always loved the "feel" of the hotel. We loved how they kept a lot of the charm of the exterior and interior. It has been modernized and brightened up, however, there are so many touches of the old Jumers hotel. You can walk to Black Dog for amazing BBQ and HMart to pick up some treats. The view from our room wasn't great, but not a deal breaker. It is attached to the old Lincoln Square mall, which is pretty vacant. Nice and quaint and would definitely stay again. Our only true complaint is about the restaurant. We had reservations for breakfast and when we got there a sign was posted it was unexpectedly closed. It would have been good to have been told that the reservations would be cancelled - again, not a deal breaker. read more

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Reserved their 'loft' room, which includes a fireplace and desk, thinking I'd spend two days catching up on work. Nope. There's no desk. No work area, whatsoever. The pictures are flat out lies based on what you receive. Fridge is tepid. The elevator is a day's wait. And late check out? They don't even offer it. I asked for a 1PM and the front desk didn't even acknowledge me before saying no. Fine, they're busy that day, right? Nope, rates are HALF what I'm paying now. Take your money elsewhere. This place is just a money trap for people that are tricked into thinking it's upscale when it's anything but. read more

The stunning Hotel Royer has been lovingly and painstakingly renovated for 5 years after its predecessor, the Jumer Hotel, lay vacant for a number of years. They have done an exceptional job of modernizing while paying homage to the original hotel and its Old World Bavarian roots. Staff is extremely helpful and friendly, the rooms have all the updated tech and small amenities to make us feel at home (outlets with USB C AND USB A ports in outlets, Nespresso machine, mini fridge, garment steamer, quality shampoo, conditioner, soaps, lotions, etc). Even the art was thoughtfully selected to reflect the culture and character of Urbana-Champaign and the University of Illinois. What a treat. read more

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We had an excellent breakfast in the Writer's room. The staff was friendly and attentive. We had a party of 7 and everyone's meal was delicious including the s'mores pancakes, the oatmeal/yogurt parfaits, the French toast, the Avocado toast, the omelet and the classic breakfast. Not only did all of the meals taste great, they had an interesting flair like the sliced cherry tomatoes on the avacado toast along with eggs. Our server Stefan (sp?) was fantastic. read more

We stayed at this hotel 15 years ago when it was Jumer's castle, and it was a terrible mess back then. A lot of that has been fixed, but there are too many things that aren't quite right for me to give it more than three stars. So, on the one hand, it's got cool architecture, wonderful, lighting, and a library area that is old-fashioned and lovely. (although the suits of armor are all gone, as as the large stuffed bear that apparently was donated to a local high school). Here are the things that weren't quite right. First, there is a big wonderful swimming pool, but it was too cold to enjoy, and there is no hot tub. There is room in that space for a hot tub, but there just isn't one. Almost nobody used the pool. With no hot tub, they could at least have had the decency to raise the temperature in the pool by five or 10°. In addition to there being no hot tub, while the room havd a good shower, there is no bathtub. So, there is no way to submerge your body in warm water, which at my age is something I really like to do if I've been driving for six or seven hours on a trip. So, with no hot tub, and a pool too cold, and no bathtub, the hotel is really missing an important feature. Second, the rooms themselves have room for a microwave oven, but there is no microwave oven. And the windows in the rooms don't open at all, so either you'll have to run the fan all night , or it gets too stuffy. So, they did a good job in saving this historic hotel, but we wouldn't stay there again unless they addressed these issues. read more

Front desk team and check in was a 10/10. The room and pool areas were very nice and clean. Where our stay took a turn for the worst was the restaurant. Went to both dinner and breakfast services and I can at least say there were consistent. Consistently bad, unfortunately. People walked out of both services due to unacceptably long waits. The dining room only had 6-7 tables, why was it taking over an hour for appetizers and the basics to come out? Our server, Rocky, was great and the only decent part of our dinner service. Very apologetic and trying to make the best of a terrible situation. As for breakfast, the host who was grabbing drinks and cleaning tables was amazing, but one server who clearly did not want to be there taking care of the entire dining room was crazy. read more

The service was horrible! The food was awful! Would not recommend to any human. Total waste of time and a lot of money. read more

This 100+ year old hotel has a ton of history and nostalgia. Amazing architecture and woodwork, and the fireplace suites are roomy and full of charm. Although, I wish the fireplaces were still real! Renovations were just completed, although parts of it still feel a little worn out and I was not a fan of some of the decor and furniture selections. Overall, IMO, one of if not the best place to stay near campus. We had an amazing experience in the restaurant as well, although the bar was out of several things and was short staffed. read more

Just go here. Food is excellent. Not cheap but *excellent.* desserts amazing esp. great entrees, & breakfast. Lovely space-like being sonewhere other than Urbana (much as I love it)! Go there. read more

Lobby and restaurant area were nice. The room, not so much. We specifically reserved a room that had the loft bedroom. Well, there is only one air-conditioner in the room and to get the loft area comfortable for sleeping the rest of the room was freezing. If you wanted the downstairs comfortable the loft was way too hot. The loft area also did not have a dresser or chest for clothing, just nightstands. For that you had to find cubbys in the different furniture downstairs. There was what looked like a fireplace in the room, but since there were no remotes around, I think it was only there for decoration. It took a lot of room. I wanted more information about the hotel and it's restaurant's offerings, but there was no literature in the room. I went to the front desk to inquire about this and was told that the hotel had only been open about a month and that this material would follow. In the meantime please access the website for information. Not much there to specify what type of food offerings are available. Hummm, You can have personalized trash cans, tissue dispensers, welcome mats and so forth, but cannot provide written material about the amenities? Looks to me like Hilton got the cart in front of the horse on this one. We did not use the restaurant during our stay and still am unsure about their offerings. read more