We were in Denver this past weekend for the second-ever BlogPaws, a pet bloggers conference. The conference was held at the Grand Hyatt, a hotel that normally does not welcome pets, but did for the conference attendees. While the Grand Hyatt was a pleasant venue (and a rumor circulated that it might become pet-friendly in the near future), I decided to stay instead at a hotel that welcomes dogs with open arms — and thanks to a deal from Jetsetter, which I urge you to join, we ended up at the Hotel Teatro.

Please note that while our (free) membership in Jetsetter gave us access to a darned good deal at the hotel, we paid our own way — I’ll always let you know when something I’m reviewing has been paid for by someone else.

Goodness, it was nice. We had been staying at an economical hotel in Boulder, so we were particularly susceptible to luxurious touches, but I think we would have liked it just as much if we hadn’t spent the previous night at the Boulder Creek Quality Inn.

The Hotel Teatro occupies a 1911 building that originally housed the Denver Tramway Company offices, and it has both historic charm and modern style. Our room was large and serene, and our bed was seriously comfortable. There was no charge for WiFi. My only complaint was with the shower, which featured one of those directly-overhead rain-shower heads, which I can’t love — but plenty of people do, so feel free to ignore me.

The hotel was within easy walking distance of the 16th Street Mall and of Larimer Square, home of some very fine restaurants, but one night we stayed in and ordered room service. Prima Ristorante, one of two in-house restaurants, did not disappoint — I had the veal ragu tagliatelle one evening, and Kevin Taylor’s signature homemade soft egg ravioli with black truffle butter for lunch the next day, and both were excellent.

The front desk and door staff were friendly and responsive. Although no one fawned over Chloe, dogs seem truly welcome. The room was equipped with a placemat bearing a bowl of treats and a water bowl waiting to be filled from the provided bottles of Fiji water. A staff member, collecting our dinner dishes, volunteered to get a bellman to walk Chloe for us (we declined, but I was impressed that the service was available). There are no size restrictions on visiting dogs, and there is no pet fee, unless your dog causes damage to the room.

There are a couple of small parks, suitable for bathroom breaks, within easy reach of the hotel. The nearest is a block away, at the corner of Lawrence Street and N. Speer Boulevard, just above the Cherry Creek Bike Trail.