Fodor's Expert Review The Tremont House Hotel, a Tribute Portfolio Hotel

Now part of Marriott's Tribute Portfolio, this upscale historic hotel is right downtown, the closest full-service lodging to the port. The hotel's four-story atrium lobby, with ironwork balconies and full-size palm trees, showcases an 1872 hand-carved rosewood bar in what was once a busy dry-goods warehouse. This actually is a historic place: Republic of Texas president Sam Houston presented his last speech at this hotel, both Confederate and Union soldiers bunked here, and Great Storm victims took refuge under this roof. Rooms have high ceilings and 11-foot windows. Rooms have been modernized but still have wood floors, and some have exposed brick. It's the closest full-service lodging to the port, great for meetings and events, and just a short walk from shopping on the Strand.