Membership at a private club comes with privileges. The Athletic Club of Columbus comes with its share, not the least of which is what amounts to a sort of temporary membership in reciprocal clubs around the world. Especially when staying in a place away from home, a few connections can go a long way.

The Queen City Club is conveniently located for doing business in the downtown Cincinnati area—or seeing a baseball game, should you find yourself so moved. As has been my experience with other city clubs around the country, the operative word is elegance. I find that I prefer this infinitely to the sort of thing that many hotels offer as an alternative: ostentatiousness. The rule of thumb that I'd offer is that if you can handle yourself comfortably at a cocktail party, a stay at a city club just might be the ticket.

I arrived unexpectedly early due to a mix-up at my previous engagement in Dayton but found that my room was nevertheless ready and waiting for me. My room had fruit and a note welcoming me to the club. After spending a few hours finishing some work, I headed downstairs for dinner and a cocktail. I opted for the less formal of the two options and sat at the bar. Everyone was as pleasant as could be, and I found that dinner was much better than the solitary dining experience that one often gets in a hotel while traveling.

The following morning, I arose at 3:15 in the morning and found that a copy of the Cincinnati Enquirer was waiting for me at the door. I read it over while sipping tea that I made in my room before heading to the exercise facility. I found it to be adequate, but only just; it was the only bit that detracted from the stay overall. Breakfast later was excellent. I splurged and went for the Eggs Benedict; I was given a copy of The Wall Street Journal to read, for which I was very grateful. An hour later and I was on my way.

Cincinnati calls me from time to time for both business and pleasure. I shall be happy to make the Queen City Club my base of operations again.