South - DFW-hotels, shopping and public transport

I will be in DFW overnight in Nov. I have a friend there that I would most likely stay with, but there is a slim chance he might be called out of town on business. I need to come up with an alternate plan just in case, and I was thinking I would bid a Priceline hotel near a shopping mall. I don't want to hire a car, I would like to use public transport from DFW to the location and back. I think I can get DART from DFW to Union Square (Hyatt or Westin hotel area) but I don't know if there is any shopping in that area between 6-9pm. I know for sure there is shopping at the Galleria and Priceline does hotels there, but can I get there by public transport from DFW? Are there any other areas that are easily reached by DART from DFW with hotels and shopping nearby? Thanks!

You will not have shopping in the Union Square area after 6 pm.

I would recommend taking DART north to Mockingbird Station - several shops, good bars-restaurants, an indie movie house - easily a good way to spend a few hours.

Public transit to other shopping areas is possible as well but would require bus transfer - I think Mockingbird Station fits what you might want for a few short hours.

Thanks Techgirl! Are there hotels at Mockingbird Station? My flight gets in around 5pm, not sure how long it will take me to get downtown. I am flying in from Australia and need to force myself to stay awake until at least 9pm so I can get de-jetlagged.

Also I need to buy a prepaid cell phone, where can I get one?

Closest hotel that I would consider would either be the Hilton Park Cities or the Doubletree on 75. Neither is going to be easily accessible by public transit, however, and Mockingbird Station would require a cab (in a city where cabs are not the easiest way to get around.

I think your call to stay downtown at either the Hyatt (older but still nice property) or Westin (remodeled old Le Meridian) is a good one. Mockingbird Station is about a 15 minute ride on the light rail from downtown.

There are lots of other good hotel/shopping combos like (Westin Stonebriar/Stonebriar Mall) or (Westin Galleria/The Galleria).

One other option to consider from downtown if you are looking to do more serious shopping (vs. needing to just kill a couple of hours) would be to get up to the Uptown development on McKinney. Your hotel concierge could steer you there - cab ride less than $10. More variety and a bit more to do.

If you were going to be downtown before 6 pm, I would also suggest a stop at the original Neiman Marcus - still the flagship and a true Dallas (a la JR and Sue Ellen) experience!

As for your other question - I know nothing about prepaid cell phones. I`m tech illiterate.

Techgirl, is it possible to get to the Galleria direct from the airport DFW by public transport? I see good deals in Galleria area on Priceline, also in downtown area. The closer the hotel is to shopping the better, I don't want to be walking around too much after dark.

You dont say exactly what you are shopping for so I have two thoughts.

1. Taxi to Galleria area. Upscale shopping, plenty of places to eat and drink. Westin is by far the most convenient but there are other options.

2. Hotel Shuttle to Embassy Suites or Hilton just north of DFW for access to Grapevine Mills Mall, Bass Pro Shop. OK eating at the mall, short taxi or maybe even hotel shuttle to Grapevine for eating and more shopping.

Public transportation, except along certain routes, pretty well sucks in DFW.

I can think of absolutely no reason to go to downtown Dallas, especially at night.

I am basically a budget bargain hunter kind of traveller. Taxis are what I would consider an unnecessary luxury when there is public transport available. I would be bidding a hotel on Priceline, I can get either downtown or Galleria for $50-55 on Priceline. LOL, if I did get to a mall, I'd be shopping the discounted clearance sales!

So Grapevine is near the airport? Do they have clothing shops? What time do they close?

I am basically a budget bargain hunter kind of traveller. Taxis are what I would consider an unnecessary luxury when there is public transport available. I would be bidding a hotel on Priceline, I can get either downtown or Galleria for $50-55 on Priceline. LOL, if I did get to a mall, I'd be shopping the discounted clearance sales!

So Grapevine is near the airport? Do they have clothing shops? What time do they close?
Hello Tiki,

Not exactly an expert on shopping, but if you are a budget hunter, then the Grapevine Mills Mall (about 5 min. from Airport) might be for you. It is a outlet (discount) type of mall, and there are many hotels & restaurants right there.

If you are an outdoors person, there is a HUGE Bass Outdoor World where you can find any thing sold in the US for hunting, fishing, hiking, golf, boating, etc. It is attached to the Embassy Suites Hotel, and there is a restaurant there that is unique and pretty good, called Bucks Steak House.

For Hotels, there is a variety of choices. High end there is a Hilton, Embassy Suites with free full cooked breakfast (walk across the street to the mall) with free airport transportation, and also nearby discount chains as well, including a Fairfield Inn by Marriott, Ramada Inn, etc.

This is a suburbia location, so you will not get the full "Dallas" experience, but if you want something to keep you active for a few hours, get a decent meal and sleep at a decent price, it might be the best choice. You could take the "Super Shuttle" to the Galleria area, but hotels are much more expensive and the shuttle ride will cost you likely $30 USD each way... and the shopping, at the Galleria, high end and high $$$...

The DFW area does not have good public transport, sorry about that. Also your prepaid cell phone can be found at many kiosks in any of the area malls that you may frequent...

I hope this helps!

Cheers
dittymau

Now that I have re-read this thread and have a better understanding of what you are looking for, I'm also going to second the Grapevine Mills recommendation.

Close to the airport, reasonable transportation (many hotels actually have complimentary shuttles that will not only pick you up/drop you off at the terminal, but also will shuttle you to/from the mall), and great bargains (ranging from discounted designer bags at the Saks and Neiman-Marcus outlets all the way down to true close-out level bargains at over 150 stores). You will also find plenty of food choices.

I am not at all familiar with Priceline so have no clue what you should be looking to bid on or where. I can, however, tell you that I would look at the DFW Hilton Lakes, Embassy Suites DFW North, or Gaylord Hotel if I were booking a revenue stay so maybe that helps as a point of reference.

Thank you! Grapevine Mills sounds perfect and if I save a long trek into the city even better. My flight out the next morning would be at 11am so if I have to check in a couple hours early, plus transport I have no time to do anything else in Dallas DT the following morning anyway. I Googled Grapevine Mills and they are open 10am-9:30pm so suits me perfectly and I love discount malls! These are the hotels that come up on Priceline, if I bid 3* I would get any of the ones listed, but recent bidding history indicates I would get the Harvey Hotel for $35 a night. Is that one good enough? I am not real fussy. As long as it is walking distance to the mall, it would make no sense to bid a cheapie and blow the savings in cab rides if the hotel doesn't have a shuttle. So it is in the DFW north zone for sure? That was weird to have a DFW north and DFW south!

DFW Airport North

3 Star
Hilton DFW Lakes Executive Conference Center
Marriott
Harvey Hotel
Hyatt Regency DFW

2.5 Star
Holiday Inn Select North
Wingate Inn Irving
Harvey Suites

2 Star
Homestead Suites
Days Inn - DFW North

DFW Airport South

3 Star
Radisson Hotel DFW South
Embassy Suites DFW South

2.5 Star
Best Western Irving Inn and Suites
Amerisuites

2 Star
La Quinta
Holiday Inn Select South
Clarion Hotel DFW South

The Harvey will not be walking distance to the mall (only Embassy Suites and Hilton DFW Lakes will be). I know a lot of places run local shuttles however so it might be worth checking with the hotel.

The Harvey is not a bad choice, but certainly not within walking distance to the mall.
I've had luck with the Hilton and Embassy Suites on Priceline. The lowest I've gotten a room was $38, highest $47.
Food at the mall is not the best but there are a number of good eats around the mall area.

The Embassy Suites is booked out on the night I will be there. I checked the hotel website. The trip is still 2 months away so I guess I can try back later, maybe something will open up. Priceline now has 4* in DFW north so there is a chance I could get the Hilton. I have to watch the bidding sites and see what other people are getting. Now watch, after all this to have a Plan B, my visit to my friend will proceed as planned (he won't be called out of town) and I won't need Plan B!

Hyatt Regency DFW is located within the airport and accessed by a free shuttle and also has a $9 shuttle to the Grapevine Mall but it runs infrequently so call for times. Unfortunately, on Priceline the $35 Harvey will come up before the $50 Hyatt Regency DFW will. The brand new Grand Hyatt is actually inside the airport and VERY nice. The perfect hotel for a 6 PM arrival/11 am departure but probably out of your price range. The Hilton DFW Lakes may now be 4* on Priceline since it is 4* on their shop and compare product.

Closest hotel that I would consider would either be the Hilton Park Cities or the Doubletree on 75. Neither is going to be easily accessible by public transit, however, and Mockingbird Station would require a cab (in a city where cabs are not the easiest way to get around.

Just to add to this, there is the Radisson about 1.5 north of Mockingbird station. If you do have a ton of luggage, you could walk it. I think it is ok supposed to be ok, and it is close.

Eventually (they are saying April 2006), the Hotel Palomar (Kimpton) will open across the street from Mockingbird Station.

BillJ

Also I need to buy a prepaid cell phone, where can I get one?

You can get one in a lot of places. Do you know what carrier you want to use?

I was on Verizon, now on T-Mobile.

Depending on the carrier, you can either find a store for that carrier (e.g. there are Verizon and T-Mobile stores everywhere), or you can find the other places. (e.g. Target, a discount department store sell several varieties.)

There is a Prepaid forum on Howard Forums. http://www.howardforums.com/

Once you pick a carrier and when you know where you will end up, it would be easy enough to find out a nearby store that carries them.

BillJ

Ok, I probably should have read the the whole thread, but the above will be useful for others possibly.

Yes, stay near Grapevine. However the DFW North zone is pretty huge. Are you sure you do not want to rent a car?

Basically, you will have to book one of the above mentioned hotels near Grapevine Mills directly, which will cost more. Or you can Priceline, and then rent a car. Renting a car can be expensive, so it might depend on your dates.

Another possibility might be staying on the South side of the airport and just going to the Irving Mall. Not as nice or as big as Grapevine, but a mall nonetheless.

Actually, if you had a car, then you could do both malls, depending on how fast you shop. Personally, I do not think outlet malls are what they used to be, and sometimes you can find deals at the big department stores in a regular mall.

With a car, you could also do the Fry's in Irving, if you like electronics, which is an experience in itself.

Gee, shopping in Dallas. One of my hobbies.

BillJ