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It's almost as good as breakfast in bed. There's a gentle rap at the door of your hotel room, and you open it to find a uniformed butler waiting with a well-stocked serving cart. The selection includes fresh fruit, juices, yogurt, cereals, croissants, muffins, bagels, tea and coffee. You take your pick, and the butler arranges your choices on a tray table in your room, where you can relax and enjoy your complimentary breakfast at leisure.

The breakfast butler is one of the personalized services offered at The Lofts, a one-of-a-kind hotel in Columbus, Ohio. Singer Aretha Franklin experienced the hotel's personalized service during her stay there. When she couldn't find adequate space for all her footwear, The Lofts immediately installed the latest in shoe storage systems in every guest room. But you don't have to be a celebrity to get such special service at The Lofts. When one guest couldn't find his cuff links before an important business meeting, the hotel's general manager loaned the guest his own and wore paper clips on his cuffs the rest of the day.

Billed as "New York style lodging for the sophisticated traveler," The Lofts' decor is a blend of trendy artist studio and business executive chic. Carved from a former warehouse built in 1882, the 44 individually configured guest rooms and suites feature high ceilings, floor-to-ceiling windows, painted brick walls, wooden beams and exposed duct work. Contemporary furnishings exhibit both form and function, ranging from Italian leather sofas to generous work desks. The tiled bathrooms are packed with amenities, including bathsheet-sized towels and all-natural Aveda toiletries.

What more could you want? What about plump duvet sheathed beds, nightly turndown service, terrycloth bathrobes, in-room coffee makers, custom designed lighting, executive desk chairs, two-line telephones and high-speed Internet access?

In recognition of the hotel's heritage character, more than 80 historic black and white of downtown Columbus adorn the walls in guest rooms and common areas. The pictures were reproduced from original in the archives of Columbus Metropolitan Library, Ohio Historical Society and Ohio State University.

The Lofts has a convenient downtown location opposite the Greater Columbus Convention Center, on the border between the city's Short North District and Arena District. Like New York's SoHo, the Short North is an area of boutiques, art galleries and coffee houses, while restaurants and nightclubs surround the Arena District centerpiece the new Nationwide Arena, home of the NHL Blue Jackets.

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Copyright 2001 by Toni Dabbs. This work, including photographs, is protected by copyright and may be used only for personal non-commercial purposes. All other rights are reserved, and commercial use is prohibited without permission of the author.

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