The Millennium - From growing up in St. Louis to coming back · Millennium Hotel Stories

Title

The Millennium - From growing up in St. Louis to coming back

Description

My family would frequently pass through downtown (on then Interstate 70) on our way to South St. Louis. Long before I stepped inside, I would see the green lines that supported the windows of the lobby facing the arch. At night, the lights of the lobby and dining would have a certain glow to it, one I had never seen before, and haven't since. I was drawn to the millennium (then Regal Riverfront). Many trips down interstate 70 past the structure, I'd see those green lines and lights, and long to get inside.
Flash forward to 2010, my then girlfriend - now wife decided it was time to stay at the Millennium for two nights. We arrived on a beautiful fall afternoon. We ascended to the 21st floor and took in the views. We had a south facing window with views of the river. Even though it was after Labor Day, we still headed to the pool - which was still open. It was cold, but worth it. Later, we ascended to floor R - (as it was marked on the elevator.) We still joke if R stood for Restaurant, Roof or Rotate!
We sat down to dinner just as the St. Louis sun was going down, about 6:30 PM. From there, we got to see the highlights of St. Louis all from above. This was the first time I'd ever been in a high floor in downtown St. Louis, so it was quite the treat. The full trip around took about an hour or so. We watched the moonrise to the east, as we enjoyed a lovely dinner.
The next day, we enjoyed breakfast in the very area I had driven by many times in the lobby. We then explored the lower level. It was seemingly un-ending, and I enjoyed exploring how it connected to its other building as well as the parking garage across the street. On our 2nd night there - the fire alarm went off! So, down we went 21 floors of stairs to the street. We never found out why it went off, but it is something we still talk about to this day.

A view of the arch on a blue skied day from the main lobby of the Millennium Hotel with a view of the Old Cathedral and Highway.

Date

September 2010

Contributor

Shaun Speers

Format

Photo