Hampton Inn & Suites by Hilton stands by their 100% Guest Satisfaction Guarantee - or your room is free! Conveniently located close to Waterloo, Cambridge and several area reception venues, this hotel is the perfect place for you and your wedding guests to relax and spend the night in after the wedding day.

Cathy Burke, Sales and Events Manager, says Hampton takes pride in their brand, their hotel, and their service. "We will go above and beyond to make sure your stay and special day are great. With discounted rates for group bookings (no minimum amount required) rooms come with a complimentary full hot breakfast with a waffle station, late checkout times for the bride and groom, twenty-four hour service, and much more.

We visited the Hampton and had a tour of their modern and comfy building with gorgeous décor and newly updated rooms of all sizes, including the Whirlpool Suite for you and your fiancé to have a pre-honeymoon night in. Here's what else we discovered...

Personally speaking...

When the owners of Hampton Inn & Suites decided to open this hotel in April of 2006, Kitchener-Waterloo was booming and they thought, what a perfect time to add a fresh new hotel to the mix. "Our owners understood that in this area there were few hotels and going with Hampton was the perfect choice to offer 100% guaranteed satisfied service," we were told. Of course, an area that required accommodations with so many banquet halls close by that don't have overnight accommodations also helped.

Hampton is recommended by several reception venues, including Ring favourites The Pines, Galt Country Club and Wings of Paradise, among others. All of the staff are trained in 'Hampton 100% Satisfaction Customer Service'.

Within the ever-changing wedding market, Cathy loves that she can be a special part of providing success to the bride and groom's needs. "After all, there are so many things to do for a wedding and we provide an easy, friendly, clean and comfortable place."

While Cathy is the primary contact for groups who book with Hampton, she does have help from a team of trained professionals. There are Guest Service Agents available at the front desk of Hampton twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week to make sure that all guests' needs are filled at all times.

Accommodating accommodations...

This Inn is not only conveniently located to many of the area's best reception spaces, but it is also within minutes of both Waterloo and Cambridge and just kilometers from malls, farmer's markets and golf courses for your guests' amusement. It also happens to be very close to Highways 401 and 8, as well as many restaurants.

Pantelis & Brittany Rosa liked the fact that the Hampton was a fairly new building and it was central to everything they did when they booked it for themselves, their wedding party and some of their family for their July 2009 wedding. "There was plenty to do in and around the hotel and all kinds of restaurants for us to eat at or order from," they told The Ring. "It worked out perfectly. It was far enough from our home where we could feel like we were away, but close enough so we didn't have to rush in the morning."

All of the Inn's surrounding attractions don't compare to Hampton's 100% Guest Satisfaction Guarantee®, something that Cathy says they are best known for in the industry. "Our Hampton’s 100% Guest Satisfaction Guarantee® is something you will only find at Hamptons. That’s how much we believe in our brand of hotels."

A honeymoon suite...

The most popular package offered by Hampton is the Romance Package for Newlyweds to enjoy on the night of their wedding. When your wedding guests stay at Hampton, the bride and groom receive a discount on one of their luxurious Whirlpool Suites. That means that after the celebration is over, the bride and groom can relax and enjoy a romantic scene of rose petals, a bouquet of fresh roses by the side of the whirlpool, a bottle of sparkling champagne, chocolates, sensual bath salts, a free pay-per-view movie, and to top it all off a late checkout of 2 pm so they can sleep in after the late night – or enjoy the whirlpool once more.

Krista Hotson booked guest accommodations and the honeymoon suite for her July 2009 wedding at the Hampton and she says that they had everything she and her then fiancé wanted. They especially loved the wedding night package with the late checkout. "After a long day the day before, we enjoyed being able to sleep in!" Krista adds that the staff at the Hampton went to the extra effort for them and placed several rose petals, chocolates and bubble baths in the room. "A nice touch was that the package came with Champagne, which neither myself nor my husband overly enjoy, and we happened to mention this when we were there looking at the rooms. They remembered and placed a different alcoholic option in the room for us that we really enjoyed! We did not expect it, they just did that on their own and it helped to make the room ours."

Room options and Cloud Nine comfort...

At Hampton Inn & Suites, the staff is willing to work with any budget in order to customize something that works for you and your guests. "When the price is right and all of the staff can offer you the great service you need, why go anywhere else?" asks the Hampton staff. And with so many amenities included in hotel rooms, we were thinking the same thing.

While most people block off about ten rooms out of the eighty-two available for their wedding guests, there is no minimum amount required to be booked to receive the discount – even if only five rooms are booked, guests still receive the discounted rate! For $119, plus tax (discounted from the regular $139), guests enjoy what Hampton terms Cloud Nine: The Hampton Bed Experience, free high speed internet and a complimentary hot breakfast for up to four people per room, including their delicious waffle station. There are several room options from one king sized bed to two queens and family suites to luxurious Jacuzzi suites – something for each of your guests. Plus, guest rooms were recently updated and now also include microwaves and flat screen TVs, among other amenities. They've also got more renos planned for the future, including in the lobby and the fitness centre.

Pantelis described the Hampton Inn as clean, tidy, well maintained, new and inviting. He adds that the price for value received was where he and Brittany thought they got a great bargain. "Not too many hotels offer a hot buffet breakfast... it was nice for someone that's in a rush, such as us on the morning of...."

"The building is very modern, nice and comfortable," Krista told us. "The rooms are all new, modern and have very neutral decorating tones. The beds are so comfortable as they all have pillow-top mattresses and big comfortable duvets."

Hotel amenities include...

If guests are planning on staying the whole weekend, Hampton has an extended lobby area for entertaining or an intimate get together with comfy furniture, a flat screen TV and a DVD player. Weather permitting, you can use their outdoor patio, which is just outside the door of their indoor salt water pool, hot tub and fitness area. Again, great for hosting a patio party, for family and friends of the wedding couple.

Hampton also offers free on-site parking, ice and vending machines on every floor, a small meeting room, US currency exchange, a twenty-four hour convenience shop, and much more.

Walking you through it...

Call or email Hampton Inn & Suites for information on their availability. They recommend booking three to six months in advance so you can send the information on the hotel with your wedding invitations. If you email you'll most likely get a call back to work out the details. Hilton standards require that their emails or calls be acknowledged and responded to within four business hours. Now that's what we call quick response time!

One of the reasons that Pantelis and Brittany chose the Hampton for themselves and guests was because of their immediate responses when they had questions. "It also helped that they offer a personal website that we can design to help our guests check out the hotel and reserve a room, as well as see our personal message on the website."

Cathy is the primary contact for Hampton and the person with whom you negotiate rates and arrange a proposal. She is also there to help you execute your needs and follow up with any day to day changes. She's available to speak or meet with you Monday to Friday from 9 am to 5:30 pm. There are also twenty-four hour Guest Service Agents at the front desk who can make reservations for rooms any time of day. Plus, there is always a Manager on duty to help you with anything you require.

"Working with the team (mainly Cathy Burke) was great," says Pantelis and Brittany. "They were able to take care of us so we knew that we didn't have anything to worry about when it came to where we would stay... They allowed for easy check in for us because we arrived at 3 am." Pantelis adds that all he had to do was go to the front desk and pick up the key for their honeymoon suite, everything else was already done for them. "The Hampton would be the only hotel I recommend to another couple... I wouldn't even think twice about staying there again."

When you get a hold of someone at Hampton, you'll discuss your needs with them, including the number of and types of rooms you require. While there is no minimum number of rooms required, they suggest blocking off at least five to ten to start with the option to add more later, if needed. Cathy says she will help you figure out how many rooms you need based on how many out of town guests you will have. They will reserve your block of rooms and set-up your personal wedding reservation webpage that you can direct your guests to so they can easily book their rooms online. Your credit card number is needed to reserve the block of rooms but it won't be charged as each guest is responsible for paying for their own room. Rooms that aren't reserved by one month before your wedding will be released, but even then your credit card won't be charged. In fact, it's only charged if there is a full group cancellation with less than four week's notice.

"The team at the Hampton was great!" says Krista. "Cathy Burke... was very hands-on, very friendly and took an interest in making sure the room was just what we wanted. All of the staff at check-in and check-out were very welcoming and friendly." She adds that the Inn even allowed her and her husband to drop off their luggage the day before their wedding and the staff moved it to their room for them so it was ready and waiting. "They made the experience stress and worry free."

Hampton knows (and respects) how busy you are during the wedding planning process so they won't bother you unnecessarily; but they are available to help you if needed. Four weeks before your wedding they will be releasing whatever rooms haven't been reserved. But don't worry, your guests can still book and receive the discount right up until the wedding day as long as rooms are still available; this way, brides and grooms aren't responsible for unreserved rooms.

Before your big day, you can drop off welcome baskets, maps, treats, etc. any time to be left in your guests' rooms. "We love to do whatever we can to make you happy and to make your guests comfortable," says Cathy.

"The Hampton Inn & Suites is a great hotel and the staff of the hotel are friendly and will do all they can to make sure your stay is as enjoyable as it can be," says Pantelis and Brittany. In fact, they were so impressed that every time they travel now, they always look to a Hilton family hotel as their first choice.

Details, details, details

• A discounted guest room rate (plus tax) is available for group bookings and includes a discounted Whirlpool Suite for the bride and groom or a free standard room if 20 or more guest rooms are guaranteed.
• 100% Guest Satisfaction is guaranteed, or your room is free!
• Wedding Packages include: a personalized webpage for online booking, invitation slips and gift bag delivery service.
• Hotel amenities include: free hot breakfast with waffle station for up to 4 people per room, free high speed internet, free parking, a fridge and microwave in every room, a salt water pool, hot tub, outdoor patio, fitness room, and more.