There’s no doubt we enjoyed Hyatt Place during several stays over the past years when we came to Minnesota to visit. The drawbacks were the lack of laundry facilities, the tiny bathroom, and a limited kitchen area with only a small refrigerator but no microwave. This resulted in us dining out most nights since few ready-made options suited us, adding to the cost of staying there. Management, maid service, and staff were excellent.
Also, the included breakfast at Hyatt was marginal, at best, with only processed eggs and no other options for me other than to eat a few hard-boiled eggs. Tom liked the donut holes. Plus, we liked the easy access to our streaming services with the smart TV with casting for all streaming services
Now, here at Residence Inn by Marriott, after only 48 hours, we’ve been pleased with several features that appeal to us, including:
- Easy-to-use laundry facility close to our room.
- We’ve seen an excellent breakfast with new offerings daily, which we’ve enjoyed over the past two mornings.
- Massive bathroom with walk-in shower.
- A coffee table is in front of the sofa, which is ideal for keeping our feet up, which is vital for me right now when my feet swell by the end of the day.
- Full kitchen with all amenities.
Drawbacks to Residence Inn: (None of which is a big issue)
- A queen-sized bed as opposed to a king at the Hyatt. Only king beds are located in units on the second floor, accessible only by stairs, which is unsuitable for me.
- There are no drawers or storage space other than a tiny closet. We’ve left our belongings in the shared large suitcase on a luggage rack for easy access.
- Smart TV only has Prime and Netflix, not Hulu or Paramount+. Instead, we have to hook up the other streaming services to our laptops using our HDMI cord.
- We must walk outdoors to the reception desk, breakfast kitchen, and laundry facilities. It’s been raining a lot lately.
Otherwise, we are happy with this facility, and only moments ago, we booked it for another 28 nights for when we return from Milwaukee after Sister Beth’s Jubilee celebrating her 70 years as a nun. The booking dates will be June 16 to July 14. While we’re here during the newly booked period, we’ll decide if we’ll stay for the final month before we head to Cleveland Clinic in August and book it accordingly.
When we booked Residence Inn months ago, we got a special rate of $84 a night. With summer here and hotel rates soaring, we had to commit to $134 a night for 28 nights, plus tax, for a total of $4092, which translates to $146 a night, with taxes. We used a credit we had an Expedia/Hotels/VRBO of $135 to get the price down a little.
This is more than we usually pay for long-term hotel stays, but there weren’t any affordable vacation homes or other hotels as nice as this in this convenient location. Also, we could book the next period for fully refundable rates if we have to leave up to three days before the commencement of the booking. That’s particularly important to us right now.
Last night, we had a good time at Billy’s Bar and Grill in Anoka and returned to the hotel in time to watch the basketball game with the Texas Mavericks and Minnesota Timberwolves. Sadly, Minnesota lost, but it was fun to watch the game. We had a good night’s sleep and awoke refreshed and ready for a new day.
Soon, we’ll head to Cub Supermarket for groceries for the upcoming week. We’ll make our first dinner tonight since we left Apache Junction on May 1.
We’ll be back with you soon.
Be well.
Photo from ten years ago today, May 25, 2014:
