JW Marriott Savannah Plant Riverside District opened in July 2020 inside a 1912 power plant that had sat vacant since 2005, the centerpiece of a $375 million, Kessler Collection-led redevelopment on the Savannah riverfront. Its 419 rooms span three connected buildings — Power Plant, Three Muses and the Atlantic, the last added in spring 2021 — making it the largest hotel in Savannah's historic core.
The essentials
Group Marriott (JW Marriott), developed by The Kessler Collection
Opening July 2020
Rooms & suites 419 rooms
Segment Luxury
Designer John T. Campo Jr., Campo Architecture and Interior Design (architect of record)
Entry rate NC Learn more → The place The hotel occupies the west end of River Street in downtown Savannah, directly on the Savannah riverfront and inside the city's National Historic Landmark District. It anchors Plant Riverside District, a 4.5-acre complex of restaurants, bars, retail and a public riverfront park that Richard Kessler built around the hotel rather than beside it, extending River Street's tourist corridor westward by several blocks.
The concept The hotel occupies Riverside Station, a coal-fired power plant built in 1912 by Stone & Webster engineers for Savannah Electric and Power Company, expanded through the 1940s and '50s, and shut down in 2005. Richard Kessler, a Savannah native, bought the abandoned complex in 2012 and spent roughly eight years and $375 million turning it into a hotel, retaining the plant's turbine hall, steel gantries and twin 176-foot smokestacks as the architectural spine of the project. Campo Architecture and Interior Design served as architect of record and historic tax credit consultant, threading new construction through the landmarked shell.
Three connected buildings give the hotel a split identity: the Power Plant wing keeps exposed brick, steel trusses and industrial fixtures; the Three Muses wing, built new alongside it, is styled in softer, art-driven interiors; and the Atlantic wing, added in spring 2021, takes a maritime theme with river views and rooftop pool access. Generator Hall, the turbine room turned lobby, doubles as a private natural-science museum stocked with fossils, geodes and a large chrome dinosaur sculpture reflecting Kessler's personal collecting habit — an eccentric counterweight to the property's scale that keeps the hotel from reading as a generic riverfront resort.
Dining & wellness The hotel operates within a district of more than a dozen dining and drinking venues rather than a conventional single-property lineup: Michael Anthony's Kitchen and District Seafood/District Smokehouse for full-service dining, Graffito for Neapolitan pizza, Baobab Lounge for African-influenced small plates and cocktails, Myrtle & Rose as a jazz-age cocktail bar, and Electric Moon, a rooftop bar with a slide connecting it to the Compass Pool Lounge below. A spa and fitness center serve hotel guests separately from the public-facing entertainment venues.
Our take Kessler bet that a mothballed power plant could carry a luxury flag and an entire entertainment district on its own architectural weight, and five years on the wager reads as sound: Plant Riverside functions as much as a Savannah attraction for non-guests as it does a hotel. The open question is whether a 419-room property this reliant on spectacle can hold a luxury rate once the novelty of the smokestacks and the dinosaur wears off.
Google guest reviews 4.6/5 · 4559 reviews
From the moment I pulled up on Thursday, I knew this was going to be an exceptional stay. I was greeted by Brent in valet, and I have to say, it is not often that I specifically mention valet service in a hotel review, but Brent absolutely deserves the recognition. Throughout my entire six-day stay, he took care of every request I had with a smile, professionalism, and genuine kindness. Along with Miss Dee and the entire valet team, they provided truly top notch service and made me feel welcomed every single day.
Every time I walked through the lobby, I was warmly greeted by the outstanding concierge staff, Miss Tonia, Kyle, MiKayla, and Riyun. I especially want to recognize Kyle, who went above and beyond every single day we were there. No matter what we needed, he was always there with a warm smile, outstanding recommendations, and a genuine desire to make our stay perfect. His exceptional customer service made us feel like valued guests rather than just another room number. The entire concierge team was friendly, attentive, and truly first-class.
Mr. Kessler has gone above and beyond in creating an absolutely stunning three building hotel. His incredible collection of artwork, which he shares with the public, is truly remarkable and worth seeing even if you aren't staying at the hotel. Every corner of the property is beautiful.
I was especially impressed by The Baobab, the hotel's African-inspired bar. It is, without question, one of the most stunning bars I have ever visited. The atmosphere, design, and attention to detail are simply breathtaking.
I stayed in the first of the three buildings, and my room was impeccable. The bed was incredibly comfortable, making my extended stay even more enjoyable. The housekeeping staff was attentive and stayed on top of every need I had.
The hotel sits right on the river with beautiful views and a wonderful setting that perfectly complements the luxury experience. I honestly have zero complaints about my stay.
I highly recommend the JW Marriott Savannah Plant Riverside District to anyone visiting Savannah. I will absolutely be back. Thank you to the entire staff for making my stay so memorable, especially during a very busy Fourth of July weekend. Kudos to each and every one of you for providing outstanding hospitality. You have set the standard for what a luxury hotel experience should be.
If this review is helpful, please make sure you leave it a like 👍🏽👍🏽👍🏽. Okay, there is a very mixed review for this hotel coming your way. This, by far, it's one of the most interesting looking hotels that I've stayed at. The fact that it is an old converted power station makes it very interesting. It's situated in a great part of town with lots to walk to and do right next to the water. There's a very interesting art gallery and the lobby of the hotel is by far one of the most eclectic lobbies I have ever seen. So with all of these great things, you may be asking, why did I only give it three stars. There were some things that were bothersome at this hotel. One of the major things is in an area with so many beautiful things to see outside the view from your room. It's actually of the inside of the hotel. My view in particular, on the second floor was inside their ballroom. When I came into the room, the curtains were closed. So I opened them to see what my view would be. I was literally staring at the floor of the ballroom, where people could look inside my room and see me. Needless to say, I kept the curtains closed completely during my entire stay at this hotel. This made the room very dark because there was no natural light. You would think that if they knew this was going to happen, they would provide a great amount of lighting in the room. But this was not the case.The lighting was dim, and I ended up having to move one of the lamps closer to the desk. Just to get some work done. The room itself is very interesting and beautiful and the amenities we're really nice. But because this is an older building, and because of the proximity to the ballroom. It gets incredibly noisy !! I will give them points because they did provide ear plugs for you. When you come in the room. But this is something that is a little troublesome, because you may not be able to hear your alarm in the morning. The bed slept well at night. But during the day there was too much noise. There was great hot water pressure in the shower and wonderful amenities. All in all, I have very mixed feelings about this hotel. I think you have to make up your own mind on this one.
Octobertiger (lady tiger) · 3/5 The interior is nice, also the View is good but the Room Service is not matching the high prices at all.
First the Phone in the Hotel Room didn’t work, so it already made it harder to reach the front desk. But we were okay with that and just called with our phone.
We asked for a kettle to make ourself some tea: it took over one hour and we had to call 3 times in between to receive it.
When we were checking out and asked on the phone that they please send someone to help us with the luggage, after 15 minutes of waiting no one came.. so we had to Carry our luggage by ourselves.
Then the valet parking: when we were checking out, no one helped us with our luggage to get it into the car. While simultaneously get charged over 50 $ for valet parking & while there are 5 hotel staff members talking and laughing with each other just around the corner.
The Room Service is honestly Not existing. We just stayed 1 night and had 3 situations where we had a bad experiences.
Only one time where we were ordering food it actually arrived in a decent time.
But other than that the Customer Service was unfortunately non existent and really bad especially when looking at paying 600 $ (including taxes and Fees) for one Night.
I cannot recommend this hotel - the room and interior is nice but Not worth the price.
The location of the hotel is perfect. The inside of the hotel is stunning. The designers of this hotel did an amazing job, never seen anything like it.
What did not impress me was the service. I paid $400+ per night for a suite and I did not get that level of service. Upon checking in, I wasn't greeted. We were travelling with our 4yr old, we tried to check in at 5pm and our suite was not ready. No apology, no empathy was given, nothing was offered.. mind you, I come from hotels, I was like ok.. they said housekeeping needed to check the room, ok and.. they took my phone number and said they would text me. Our room was not ready until almost 6pm, again, nothing was offered.
Got into the room, which again, was stunning but also SO HOT. I get it that it's summer, it's hot and humid. I'm from south Florida, I speak that language, however, the AC was not cooling the room. We all slept with no blanket/sheet, even my son slept with no pjs on. We called the next morning, engineering came to the room and said it was cooling.. uh no. There was a significant difference in temp from the living room to the bedroom. We were told, it's summer it's hot. We said, yes, we understand. We know this routine, we keep all blackout curtains closed, with the lights off in this room because they also had the lightbulbs that put off heat! Like come on... you guys know it's hot, so why also have the lightbulbs that give off heat...The air vent in the hallway was also blowing hot air! We were out of the room from 8am all the way until 2pm. Got back to our room for our son to nap and it was still hot. We had to call to ask for a fan in the room, which they did deliver.
I would NOT pay for this hotel again, alone based on that. I could've been at the courtyard down the street for a lot cheaper and bet their AC would've worked.
Upon checking out, I booked with a company who did their due diligence of sending a CC auth form in advance. When I go to checkout, the agents had no idea what I was talking about and had to find where the front office manager is because they had 'walked away and would text them' and the front desk agent 'cannot access CC auth forms, only the managers' so I'm waiting and waiting and waiting, I call the company that paid to resend the CC auth so that I could leave as I wanted to drive back home to south Florida ASAP.
Overall, NOT impressed with the level of service for that amount of money per night. Would not come back on that alone.
I did use the spa, which the massage was amazing! I would highly recommend that.
It was a bummer about the issues I had because the hotel is really beautiful and has a lot to offer, but I could've paid less to sweat all night.
Our stay at the JW Marriott Savannah exceeded every expectation! From the moment we arrived, every staff member we encountered was genuinely friendly, welcoming, and eager to help. The level of hospitality truly made us feel valued throughout our entire stay.
The room was immaculate, spacious, and beautifully designed. Every detail of the hotel’s décor is stunning, blending modern luxury with Savannah’s unique charm. We found ourselves admiring the artwork, architecture, and thoughtful touches throughout the property.
The location couldn’t be better. Being in the heart of the Plant Riverside District made it easy to explore Savannah while still feeling like we were staying at a destination resort.
One of the highlights of our trip was renting a cabana at the pool. It was the perfect way to spend a relaxing day comfortable, peaceful, and a wonderful escape from the hustle and bustle. The pool atmosphere was fantastic, and the cabana experience was worth every penny.
The food was absolutely delicious as well. Every meal we had was fresh, flavorful, and beautifully presented. There are so many great dining options right on the property that we never had to venture far for an exceptional meal.
If you’re looking for luxury, comfort, outstanding service, and a prime location in Savannah, the JW Marriott Savannah is an easy five star recommendation. We can’t wait to return!
See more reviews → 
