emd

I feel funny asking for help on Houston, as I lived there for many years. Usually when I go back I stay near family on the west side of town. But it turns out my husband and I will have a few days alone there in August without kids to go to baseball games and maybe see the Rocket pitch. We plan to take in 3 games in 3 days, so want to be close to the ballpark, probably downtown. Four Seasons is too expensive (this is during the week- Tues.-Fri.) I am looking at the Lancaster ($166 currently on Expedia), Hotel Derek (questionable reviews on TripAdvisor; $150), Magnolia hotel ($127), or the Houstonian ($159; further away but that great sports and exercise facility soudns great for August in Houston). Any views on these or any other recommendations? Rkkwan, if you are out there, I see that you have said recently that people are getting the Hyatt for $50 on priceline- that's a definite possibility.

rkkwan

While I live in Houston, I know little about Downtown hotels. The new Hilton Americas is not too far from Minute Maid Park, so that's a possibility too. From biddingfortravel.com, you can find that the only two hotels people are getting for Houston DT 4* are the Hilton and the Hyatt, and a recent posting shows 5/4-5/8 for $40/night at the Hyatt.

emd

Thanks, rkkwan. That is helpful- I am seriously thinking about bidding for the first time if I can get Hyatt for $40-50. And thanks again for the Japan trip FF ticket info and NW seating info and everything else you helped me with this weekend. I should buy you some sushi when we are in Houston.

rkkwan

Make sure you read biddingfortravel.com and understand how Priceline works. Once you do, Houston is a very easy city to bid for 4*DT, because there are 15 areas in Houston, and only 3 (DT, Galleria and Medical Center) have 4* hotels. This means you can start with DT 4* at a very low price, and have up to 11 "free" rebids to up your bid, and doesn't require changing dates or waiting 72 hours to rebid.

Make sure you know how this "free rebidding" process works by reading the FAQ in biddingfortravel.com or search for "priceline" on this board.

bellairegirl

There's also a brand new hotel right next to the stadium you should definately check out -- it's called Inn at the Ballpark. I got some info from them on baseball packages for 2004: They have a package called Mezzanine Madness that includes 2 tickets to a game in the mezzanine section, deluxe guestroom, turndown service w/baseball amenity and overnight valet parking for $199. There are additional packages for higher prices. (There's also a package for $219 that does not include baseball tickets, but includes a pre-game tour of the stadium before gates open, a deluxe guestroom, turndown service w/baseball amenity, overnight valet parking and a full american breakfast for 2). If this is not out of your price range, you can contact them at 713-228-1520.

New boutique hotels downtown include The Magnolia, Sam Houston Hotel and Hotel Icon. The Hilton Americas is within walking distance to Minute Maid Park, but it's a huge convention-style hotel, so it depends on your taste. There are a lot of new restaurants and bars along Main Street to check out if you stay downtown.

People seem to enjoy staying at Hotel Derek, but there's a huge amount of construction on the 610 Loop by the Galleria right now, and it makes Galleria-area hotels somewhat inconvenient. I also like the facilities at the Houstonian, and it's not that far to downtown if you head down Memorial Drive. I also understand people have been getting stays at the Omni Hotel (nearby the Houstonian) on Priceline for very little.

Have fun!
Susan

emd

Susan: I owned a house in Bellaire while I lived in Houston;actually I grew up in that house and ended up owning it myself. What's even more interesting is that my niece's name is Susan and she used to live in the house also at one point (although she lives in Garden Oaks now, so you can't be her!) Thanks so much for the info on Inn at the Ballpark and the ballpark packages! They sound fun- we may very well check those out. I know the scene downtown has changed since I lived there (downtown was a wasteland at night and on weekdns then), and it will be fun to experience that.

emd

p.s. I lived on Maple Street, close to Beechnut and 610...

Statia

emd, you scared me for a minute there. I have a half sister named Susan who lived in Bellaire, as well. The exact same area, too, as far as I can remember. However, she now lives in Dallas, so they can't be one in the same. I grew up in Houston, too.

bellairegirl

That's funny. Maple's just down the street from me! Bellaire's great, isn't it?

I was also thinking that if you're interested in Inn at the Ballpark, you should call them to see if they'd give you a deal. Since they just opened (a few months ago), I don't think many people have discovered them yet, so they might be flexible. It's worth a shot.

Enjoy your return to Houston (although as you well know, August is not the best month to visit)!

Susan

emd1

Susan: They have really changed Bellaire since I lived there! They have torn down alot of the nice old wood shake homes and put up the big new houses so now they have little to no yards. I wonder if Broiler Burger is still there next to Specs Liquor at intersection of Bellaire and Bissonett? Now THAT was a good burger. I'm probably dating myself. This is making me think about driving through the old hood when I take my husband back in August. I hate going anywhere near 610/59 interection (you know why, you live there!) but I think I will brave the traffic and do a tour of Bellaire. I will definitely take your advice on checking out the Inn. Thanks very much.
Eileen

bellairegirl

Yes, Bellaire Broiler Burger is still there. Of course now there's a Starbuck's around the corner, too.

rkkwan

Construction on 59 is pretty bad, and 610 near Galleria is always a gridlock. If you want to visit your old joints from Downtown, you may want to take Main down to Braeswood, and take N. Braeswood out instead. To get to the Galleria (or if you decide to stay there), Memorial Drive is still the best way from Downtown.

And if you're driving, please please please be careful of the new light rail. Avoid taking Fannin near Medical Center and any routes parallel the tracks. DO NOT MAKE LEFT TURNS from next to the tracks unless you're 100% sure that's the correct way to do it.

wrldtrvl

I used to travel to Houston quite often on business but have not in a while. Are there still nice restuarants on the West side of town?

emd

How far west, what area?

emd

An update: Thanks to rkkwan, I tried Priceline for the first time. As he said, there are only two 4 star hotels in downtown Houston, w/about 10 different areas to use for free rebids that don't have any 4 star hotels in them. But I started at $45 and went up to 100 and couldn't get either 4 star, Hyatt or Hilton Americas, for $100 (w/parking would be $120). This was as high as I wanted to go as I knew I could get the Four Points on Kirby and 59 for $79 rate or Courtyard on Dallas downtown for $69, and both have free pakring. Note that the best rates I could find anywhere on the web for those were $218 for Hyatt and $262 for Hilton on August 3,4,5.
So I went back on the web and lo and behold, I found an incredible rate of $79 for a king room at the new INN ON THE BALLPARK- which Bellairegirl sugested. Wow- the lowest fare available for it that I saw other than on Expedia was $179 on this hotel's website.
I tried biddingfortravel but got a snide reply to my request for assistance (that I hadn't read the FAQs well enough- hey, it's my first time doing a bid- give a newbie a break? guess not). So I went over to better bidding and got nicer help there. Will use them in the future.
So bidding wasn't the best for this stay, but I am glad I know how to do it now. It does pay to keep shopping.
Thanks to you all for the help and ideas! Susan, I will have a hot dog and beer for you at one of the 3 Astros games we are going to (or maybe I'll hoist a Broiler Burger for you!)

emd

p.s. to be clear- the $79 Inn on the Ballpark rate was on Expedia (which surprised me- it did not show up anywhere else, and i really looked)

bellairegirl

Wow! What a deal! That's an amazing rate you found for a brand new hotel.

If you're looking for a place to eat lunch nearby during a weekday, try out the Treebeard's restaurant in the Cloisters church a couple blocks away on Texas Ave. (I forget the name of the church, but if you're interested, I'll look for you.) In case you're not familiar with Treebeard's, it's good, home-style Cajun cuisine -- gumbos, jambalaya, red beans & rice, etc. The location at the Cloisters has a cafeteria line and you eat at long tables. The crowd is a mixture of professionals, regular folks and whole juries w/bailiffs who walk over from the nearby court houses.

Go Astros!
-Susan

emd

We have Treebeards on our list for lunch downtown. I feel like I am going to be rediscovering the downtown area. Thanks again. Now if we an just see Clemons pitch! Our wedding night was the famous night that the ball rolled through Bill Bucker's legs. Gotta love those former Red Sox...