**The Independent Hotel permanently closed in 2020.**

“Life is what happens to us while we are making other plans.” 
― Allen Saunders

Planning hasn’t been working for me this year. In January, I decided to sublet a place until November – the only problem was the actual apartment holder ended up getting a job back in the city and told me she needed her place back in June. In April, I started a position through the temporary agency I’d previously worked with in 2014 to get the position I held all the way until my role was phased out last winter. I think we both realized it wasn’t the best fit but instead of talking about it and coming up with a plan, they ran after me on my way home one Friday evening and let me know in the parking lot in front of Chipotle that they were going to hire direct rather than take the temporary agency route. I poured hundreds into my car only for it to act up again a week later. More importantly, my daughter was officially diagnosed with Myasthenia Gravis after only being ocular for the past few years.

With no apartment, no job, and my child facing new obstacles, I threw some stuff in a bag and jumped on the next (Mega)bus out of Charlotte. We stopped in DC, before heading to New York City for a few days, and ended up doing an overnight in Philadephia to be closer to the Trenton airport for our flight back to Charlotte.

As spontaneous as this whole trip was, Philly was an absolute last minute, day before, super spur of the moment kind of trip. I only booked our Queens Airbnb through Thursday and needed something for that night. I checked all the airports and Frontier Airlines had the best rates home from Trenton, so I purchased our plane tickets, then decided on Philadelphia due to it’s proximity (30 minutes away) to the Trenton airport.

Megabus offered several buses throughout the day to Philadelphia, so we took our time taking in the last bit of New York before I even bothered to purchase our tickets. I was pretty sure I wanted to stay in a hotel and I find Hoteltonight rates are made for procrastinators like me get better and better the later you wait, so I wasn’t pressed for that decision. The trip is about 2 hours, nonstop, and let us off right in the middle of downtown Philadelphia, which is where we wanted to be.

Once we arrived, I hopped on the Hoteltonight app and decided on a super cute boutique hotel, The Independent Hotel, that was only a 19-minute walk from where we were. The hotel is located in the city recognized “Gayborhood” area of Washington Square West, named as such due to its large concentration of gay and lesbian-friendly small businesses, services, and restaurants. The area is clearly marked by the gay pride rainbow flag symbols located on the street signs.

I’m not quite sure what I was expecting, as I’ve never stayed at Hoteltonight’s “charming” labeled hotels, but The Independent Hotel was even more lovely than whatever that expectation was. It’s got one of those rooms that make you feel like you’re at home, rather than in a hotel, right down to the thoughtful decor. Most everything in the room can be purchased and simply added to your portfolio after departure.

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The bathroom was a dream and I loved that there was a window providing extra light. The glass is frosted, so no one can peep in at you but you’re still able to get yourself together in there without having to turn on the lights. I finally got the chance to try L’Occitane products, which I’ve heard so many great things about – I’m now addicted. The smells are amazing and I get out of the shower feeling and smelling fresh as a spring garden.

There’s a great sitting area where you can dine on a cliche Philly cheesesteak local eats or read some of the books available in the room. Another touch that makes you feel at home and gives you the warm and fuzzies when you realize, should you take them home with you, your monies are going to benefit the local Philly Aids Thrift at Giovanni’s Room.

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We had a pretty cool view from our room, which had 2 windows and provided great lighting. Philadelphia has a lot of really cool murals sprinkling the city and we had front row access to a great one.

We missed the evening wine and cheese reception they provide but we did make sure to fill out our breakfast card for the morning. Being a lover of picnics, the only time I’m a fan of continental breakfast is when it’s brought to me in a cute little basket. As long as you make your selections in the evening, and have your card on the doorknob by 10 pm, breakfast will be awaiting you at the door during your specified time.

I actually did have 2 early qualms with The Independent Hotel stay – after traveling the 2 hours on the bus, and walking in a bit of heat with our heavy bags, we really just wanted to get into our room, shower and lay down a bit but we waited about 30 minutes before someone came to check us in. We arrived around the cocktail hour time, so the individual who would normally be at the desk was getting everything ready for that, which meant the desk was unmanned and we were left to wait.

In conjunction with the wait, the hotel was experiencing a water temperature issue. This wasn’t mentioned at check-in, so I removed my clothes and turned on the water only to discover the water was dripping out at a depressingly slow rate. When I called the front, I was told there was an issue with the hot water but someone was in the basement fixing it at that very moment and they’d call when everything was back in order.

I can’t say if they called or not because I decided to shower as best I could and we ventured out to explore our surroundings. I will say it was working wonderfully when we returned and we didn’t experience any other issues for the duration of the stay. My request to receive my breakfast basket a bit earlier than 7 am was even accommodated and we were able to enjoy breakfast in bed before leaving to catch our flight.

Total cost of trip for Victoria and me: $312.10

• Megabus to Philadephia from New York: $12.50 (special needs companion tickets are complimentary)
• 1 night at The Independent Hotel via Hoteltonight: $145
• Money allocated for dinner: $20 (I actually spent less than that)
• Lyft to the Trenton Airport from The Independent Hotel: $38 (this was actually less than purchasing metro tickets for 2 and still having to uber from the Trenton train stop to the airport)
• Frontier Airlines flight to Charlotte from Trenton: $96.60 (this would have only been $76.60 if I could have gotten the tickets at the ticket counter but that’s still a great deal for having purchased them the day before the flight)