Kimpton Brice Hotel

East Bay Street and What the Address Actually Delivers

Savannah's hotel geography divides fairly cleanly between the riverfront corridor along East Bay Street and the quieter residential pocket south of Forsyth Park. Kimpton Brice Hotel sits at 601 East Bay Street, which places it at one of the more useful intersections in the city: close enough to the Savannah River to access the waterfront within minutes on foot, and within an easy walk of the historic district's main squares, the concentrated restaurant strip on Broughton Street, and the Savannah College of Art and Design's gallery network. For guests who plan to move through the city rather than retreat from it, that positioning matters more than almost any amenity inside the building.

This stretch of East Bay has been one of the more active corridors in Savannah's hospitality expansion over the past decade. Properties here compete on access rather than seclusion, and Kimpton Brice sits in that subset of city hotels where walkability and proximity to the social core of the destination are the primary values. For comparison, The Bohemian Hotel Savannah Riverfront occupies similar riverfront territory, while Hotel Bardo Savannah operates further into the historic district with a different character entirely. The Brice's particular location — anchored to the eastern end of Bay Street — gives it a slightly less crowded approach to the riverfront than properties set right at the tourist-heavy western end of River Street.

Where the Michelin Selection Places It

In 2025, the Michelin Guide added Kimpton Brice Hotel to its Selected Hotels list for the United States, a designation that sits below Michelin Key status but signals that the guide's inspectors consider the property worthy of attention. Within Savannah, the Michelin hotel list is still relatively short, which means the designation carries meaningful weight as a peer signal. Perry Lane Hotel, a Luxury Collection Hotel, Savannah and Andaz Savannah represent the upper tier of full-service branded hotels in the city; Brice, operating under the Kimpton flag , part of IHG's portfolio since 2015 , competes in a distinct mid-premium bracket that sits between independent boutique properties like Bellwether House and the larger luxury chains. That Michelin recognition across a mixed competitive field is a useful calibration point: the property is being measured against a national standard, not just a regional one.

Kimpton as a brand has historically positioned its hotels around locally-inflected design and a more relaxed version of full-service hospitality , evening wine hours, pet-friendly policies, and an emphasis on neighbourhood character over corporate uniformity. In Savannah, where the design culture runs strongly through the SCAD influence and where the city's historic preservation rules already enforce a certain architectural coherence, that brand posture aligns reasonably well with the existing grain of the place.

The Competitive Set in Savannah's Current Hotel Market

Savannah's premium hotel market has grown considerably in the last several years, and the choices now available to visitors span genuinely different formats. At one end, The Drayton Hotel and The Digby represent the boutique-independent tier, each operating with limited keys and a strong design identity. Municipal Grand takes a different approach, drawing on civic heritage for its identity. Kimpton Brice sits in a middle position: large enough to offer consistent service infrastructure and loyalty program integration through IHG Rewards, but with enough local character in its programming to feel less anonymous than a standard corporate flag.

For travellers who have previously stayed at Kimpton properties in major markets , or at comparable independents like Raffles Boston, The Fifth Avenue Hotel in New York City, or The Beverly Hills Hotel in Los Angeles , the Savannah Brice offers a lower-key version of that urban-boutique sensibility at a price point that typically reflects the city's more modest hotel market compared to those destinations.

Using the Location: Savannah's Dining and Culture from East Bay

The most immediate advantage of the Brice's East Bay position is its proximity to the density of Savannah's dining scene. Broughton Street, which has the highest concentration of restaurants and bars in the city, is reachable on foot without crossing any major traffic barriers. The riverfront itself draws more casual foot traffic and tourist-oriented businesses, but the adjacent streets connect quickly into the calmer residential square network that defines Savannah's signature urban character. For a fuller picture of the restaurant scene across the city, our full Savannah restaurants guide maps the major options by neighbourhood and format.

Savannah functions well as a walkable city for guests willing to use it that way, and a hotel at this address supports that mode of travel more than properties positioned near the airport or on the city's outskirts. The squares , Chippewa, Reynolds, Warren and the others in the eastern quadrant of the historic district , are accessible from East Bay in under ten minutes on foot, giving guests access to Savannah's most characteristic public spaces without requiring a car or rideshare for everyday movement.

Planning a Stay

Savannah's peak travel periods run from late February through May (coinciding with the St. Patrick's Day period, which is one of the largest in the country by attendance, and spring travel season) and again in October, when the shoulder heat breaks and the city draws a second wave of leisure visitors. Booking well in advance for those windows is advisable across all Savannah hotels, and the Brice's Michelin recognition in 2025 is likely to increase its visibility in search results and recommendation lists, adding some pressure to peak availability. The shoulder months of January, July, and August offer more flexibility and lower rates, though summer in coastal Georgia runs hot and humid in ways that affect how much time visitors spend outdoors.

For travellers weighing Savannah against other American leisure destinations with strong hotel scenes, the city's compactness and historic character represent a genuinely different proposition from resort-style stays at properties like Amangiri in Canyon Point, Post Ranch Inn in Big Sur, Kona Village, A Rosewood Resort in Kailua Kona, or Little Palm Island Resort & Spa in Little Torch Key. Those are immersive, destination-resort formats; a stay at the Brice is an urban base for a city that rewards exploration on foot. The logic of the stay is different, and the hotel's location on East Bay is built for exactly that mode.