The Westin Edina Galleria Review: An unforgettable upgrade
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As Marriott loyalists, we had a reward night to use up. We have a year to use these reward nights, but since we were within a month of the expiration date, we chose something close to home: The Westin Edina Galleria.
After booking, we requested to use a Marriott Bonvoy Suite Night Award. They granted it, which meant a room upgrade. Spoiler alert… we were thrilled with the upgrade.
If you’re considering a Twin Cities getaway, shopping weekend, special occasion, trip to the Mall of America, Vikings or Twins game, or just simply want to treat yourself to a more elevated hotel experience, here’s our Westin Edina Galleria review.
Why The Westin Edina Galleria is a Good Choice
The Westin Edina Galleria is a AAA Four-Diamond hotel with a heated indoor pool, fitness center, and on-site dining, and is directly connected to the Galleria in Edina, Minnesota.
It’s near Southdale Center, restaurants, shopping, and Twin Cities attractions like the Mall of America and Minneapolis-St.Paul International Airport (MSP). It’s a great spot on the edge of the Twin Cities.
The location is especially convenient if you want to combine a hotel stay with shopping and dining without spending the entire weekend driving from place to place. It’s minutes away from lots of things to see and do on the edge of the Twin Cities.
The hotel is minutes from Minneapolis, making it a good option for a Twin Cities stay without staying right downtown in Minneapolis or St. Paul.
Why We Chose The Westin Edina Galleria
For this particular stay, choosing The Westin Edina gave us an elevated hotel experience. No parking fees unless you want valet parking; we’re close enough to the Twin Cities without being in the middle of everything, and most importantly… We could use the Marriott Bonvoy Suite Night Award.
We were thrilled when the upgrade came through. We’ve stayed at this location before in a standard hotel room and had a hunch this upgrade would be amazing. Indeed it was!
Related: read about our amazing upgrade at The Westin Kansas City at Crown Center. You won’t believe the views and amenities this hotel provides.
Room 320- Our Suite Night Award Upgrade
If you’re a Marriott Bonvoy member and have earned Suite Night Awards, you already know that submitting the award doesn’t guarantee a room upgrade.
We have come to love hotels with kitchens, not because we plan to cook when we travel (though it’s very handy if we do), but for the space. We’ve become quite spoiled with roomier hotels where we don’t just have to sit on the edge of the bed when we’re in and out of the hotel. It’s really nice to have a couch and seating area situation to relax and plan our adventures.
Let’s just say our room didn’t have a kitchen but was the size of an apartment. This upgrade gave us plenty of space!
The Room and Suite
One of the biggest draws of the suites at The Westin Edina Galleria is the additional living space.
Our room had a living area with a large couch and chair, a large wet bar area, a Studio Lululemon workout area, a table for 4, two bathrooms, and a separate king bedroom.
Now this is an upgrade!
If we had four people staying in this room, we’d still have had enough comfortable space for all of us. Of course, it only has one bedroom, but for hanging-out space, it was huge!
The Westin Heavenly Bed in King Bedroom
One thing about a Westin is its signature Westin Heavenly Bed, designed around Westin’s focus on sleep and wellness. So comfortable. Heavenly, indeed. White bedding is always a good sign of cleanliness, and this bed felt like home, or what we wished our beds at home were like.
Speaking of comfortable bedding, we found the Marriott storefront on Amazon. We’re particularly interested in making our home smell like a Westin. If you’ve been, you know how good they always smell. Did you know you can purchase White Tea Fragrance for your home, as well as the White Tea Body Wash and White Tea Body Lotion?
Speaking of room amenities, we also love the little lavender balm the hotel staff leaves on the bedside table.
An additional wet bar with drinks and snacks sits under the television.
Suite Bathroom
What an excellent soaking tub with a separate shower. Toilet accommodations are opposite the bathtub.
Guest Bathroom
We loved the size of our hotel room: one bedroom and two bathrooms. The second bathroom came in handy when our niece and her boyfriend visited.
Hotel Amenities at The Westin Edina Galleria
The Westin Edina Galleria offers plenty of other amenities for your stay.
Concierge Lounge
As platinum members, we do have access to the concierge lounge. We didn’t take photos because there were always members in the lounge. It was very nice and clean.
Located on the 7th floor, the lounge was stocked with bottled water, sodas, and juices in the cooler. Guests could also grab granola bars or small bags of chips.
Breakfast is available in the concierge lounge. Nothing outstanding here: the standard hotel potatoes (bacon, scrambled eggs, yogurt), but they did have a nice bowl of fresh fruit to go along with the oatmeal.
They had an evening happy hour until 10 pm where you could enjoy complimentary bottled beer or wine. They also had warm appetizers, which were cleaned up before we arrived. This was a nice treat.
Fitness Center
We didn’t use the fitness center, but it was very clean and well-appointed. Lots of equipment, including Peloton bikes, treadmills, and weight machines.
Indoor Pool & Whirlpool
The swimming pool and whirlpool area was very nice. The temperature of the room was nice, and it didn’t have the overpowering chlorine smell of some hotel pools we’ve visited.
The Galleria
One of the biggest amenities is its connection to a high-end shopping center called Galleria Edina. You’ll find stores like Madewell, Eileen Fisher, Rothy’s, Free People, Vineyard Vines, and more.
Pro Tip: Galleria Edina actually has six restaurants with vegan options! We’ve eaten at Big Bowl, Crave, and Good Earth Restaurant, all with excellent plant-based dining options.
Dining at The Westin Edina Galleria
Because this is Dining Duster, we’re obviously going to talk about the food!
The hotel is connected to McCormick & Schmick’s Seafood & Steaks. They do have a cauliflower steak option, but as the name suggests, it’s meat and seafood. We didn’t eat there because we had other dinner plans. Honestly, as vegans, we probably wouldn’t plan to eat there anyway with just one vegan option, and Edina has lots of great vegan options.
Prelude
Prelude is the hotel’s lounge and bar, offering cocktails, wine, and small bites. They had a live DJ the night we stayed.
Things to Do Near The Westin Edina Galleria
If you even want to leave the luxurious hotel, Edina has so much to offer and is the perfect home base for a Twin Cities getaway.
Go to the Normandale Japanese Garden
A few miles south of The Westin Edina Galleria is the fantastic and unexpected Normandale Japanese Garden. It’s open year-round and is a beautiful, peaceful escape right in the city. This is a free attraction!
Spend a Day at the Minnesota Landscape Arboretum
The Westin offers complimentary tickets to the Minnesota Landscape Arboretum, which is an incredible gift of $20-$25 per person. It was pouring rain the day we left, so it wasn’t a good day for the Arboretum.
If you plan to go, and you should, read our guide to the Minnesota Landscape Arboretum.
Southdale Center
If you want more shopping than The Galleria, Southdale Center is just a block away. Our room actually overlooked the east side of the shopping center.
Visit 50th & France
This popular neighborhood destination is nearby. It has lots of unique restaurants, bars, and more shopping, near Lake Harriet.
Explore Minneapolis
Because the hotel is just minutes from Minneapolis, you can also use Edina as a home base for exploring museums, restaurants, parks, and other Twin Cities attractions.
Here are some fantastic Twin Cities museums and food options to visit nearby
- The Bakken Museum
- Minneapolis Institute of Art
- The Museum of Russian Art
- Check out our guide for vegan brunch in the Twin Cities
What We Liked About The Westin Edina Galleria
This is a very nice hotel. We received friendly, attentive service during our stay. We did not use valet parking, but it was available.
- The suite upgrade was easily the highlight of our stay
- The huge amount of space- separate bedroom, living area, and two bathrooms
- Location. Location. Location! It’s close to nearby attractions and a quick drive to Minneapolis or St. Paul.
- Free parking (valet option available). This saves $20- $40 per night compared to staying in downtown Minneapolis or St. Paul.
- Plant-based options nearby.
- The Galleria connection. It’s fun to shop without really leaving the hotel. You can go back to drop off packages, take a break, and head back for a delicious dinner at any of the restaurants.
- Friendly, attentive service. They go out of their way to provide excellent service. From bringing us an umbrella to offering bottled water while we waited for check-in, you really are well-cared for here.
Things to Know Before You Book
If you’re looking for a downtown Minneapolis hotel where you can walk to downtown attractions, this isn’t that.
But if you’d rather have convenient parking, shopping, restaurants, and easy access to both Edina and Minneapolis, this location can work very well.
Suite Upgrades aren’t Guaranteed
Our suite came through a Marriott Bonvoy Suite Night Award, but an SNA request is never guaranteed. We’ve been denied many times but got really lucky this time!
Would We Stay at The Westin Edina Galleria Again?
Absolutely! It was beautiful, clean, and elegant and we look forward to returning.
Check current rates at The Westin Edina
Is The Westin Edina Galleria Worth Considering for a Twin Cities Getaway?
Absolutely! For travelers looking for an Edina hotel with convenient shopping, dining, and easy access to Minneapolis, Mall of America, and MSP Airport, The Westin Edina Galleria offers a lot in one location.
For us, the unexpected highlight was staying in a suite through our Marriott Suite Night Award.
That room made this hotel stay a whole lot more fun!
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