Marriott Bonvoy hotels in Albany, NY
Sep 4, 2011, 2:11 pm
#17
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Just stayed at the Wolf Rd full service Marriott. I was really impressed with how 100% of the staff I encountered were professional and helpful. Congrats to whoever does the hiring and training. The property is a little long in the tooth. For example, they upgraded the thermostat in my room at some point but it was an old model air conditioner I think - the choices were "on = cold and loud" or "off = stuffy but quiet".
I should also point out that we arrived late but room service was still available. It was expensive but delicious. I'm okay paying more for good food, service and late hours.
On balance I'd stay there again. I also liked the location on Wolf, whichi is close to the airport and a wide variety of restaurants.Enjoy your trip!
I should also point out that we arrived late but room service was still available. It was expensive but delicious. I'm okay paying more for good food, service and late hours.
On balance I'd stay there again. I also liked the location on Wolf, whichi is close to the airport and a wide variety of restaurants.Enjoy your trip!
If you know any of that, please post & I'll update the exec lounge sticky.
Cheers.
Sep 4, 2011, 9:35 pm
#18
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Even though it's near the full service, I'd probably still stay at the Springhill. I'd rather have the bigger room and better breakfast. It's right by the beginning of Wolf Road so it probably won't take any longer to drive, since you'll lose two left turns.
Sep 24, 2011, 9:10 pm
#22
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I've got to agree that the Springhill Suites on Central Ave at the top of Fuller Ave is a nice place to stay. Newer construction, near shopping, nice rooms, good pricing. We live 1 hour away and will come up to Albany on a regular basis for events or to visit with friends and have stayed at various Marriott locations. We'll be staying here from now on.
Sep 25, 2011, 12:38 am
#23
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I've had a few more stays in the area lately, at the Springhill and the FI's in East Greenbush and Malta. All are still pretty great, when they're not sold out.
The front desk associate at the FI Malta gave me both the Plat amenity and a gift bag with assorted snacks/candy. She said the gift bag was because we were friends on facebook. (Me and the hotel, not me and the clerk.) So that's a nice little bonus. Got the studio suite upgrade again without asking, too.
The front desk associate at the FI Malta gave me both the Plat amenity and a gift bag with assorted snacks/candy. She said the gift bag was because we were friends on facebook. (Me and the hotel, not me and the clerk.) So that's a nice little bonus. Got the studio suite upgrade again without asking, too.
May 8, 2017, 6:22 am
#24
Join Date: Feb 2003
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The downtown [TownePlace Suites] is right on the edge of a relatively "gritty" neighborhood - the kind that looks worse than it really is. Delaware Ave is toward the side of the hotel. If you make a left, in about 5 blocks Delaware turns into Lark Street and there's roughly 5 blocks of local pubs and restaurants. It's a well-known nightlife area of Albany ("Center Square"). If you turn right instead, there is a local independent movie theatre with (typically) a great selection of films and a GREAT old-fashioned ice cream shop.
I have stayed at the downtown Towneplace. It's fine; kind of a strange layout, a little noisy, but a lot of the rooms are oversized compared to the average Towneplace. Definitely good enough for an overnight stop. A little far from the highway (it will be closer if you are driving up from NYC, tho).
[...]
EDIT: A friend has informed me that the reason the layout of the Towneplace Downtown is odd is because the building used to be a nursing home. This also explains the unusually large elevators. Interesting trivia to note.
I have stayed at the downtown Towneplace. It's fine; kind of a strange layout, a little noisy, but a lot of the rooms are oversized compared to the average Towneplace. Definitely good enough for an overnight stop. A little far from the highway (it will be closer if you are driving up from NYC, tho).
[...]
EDIT: A friend has informed me that the reason the layout of the Towneplace Downtown is odd is because the building used to be a nursing home. This also explains the unusually large elevators. Interesting trivia to note.
As someone else implied upthread, the free breakfast offering here is kinda meh. Apart from the usual continental fare (coffee, juice, cereal, muffins, packaged yogurt, bagels, English muffins), there's a small tray of cold hardboiled eggs & slices of processed cheddar "cheese." The hot options are oatmeal and a make-your-own waffle machine.
Re dining options, there are also numerous Chinese/Vietnamese/Indian/etc. restaurants on Central & Washington Avenues west of Lark Street. Decor tends to be on the spartan side, but OTOH the prices run a bit lower than in the tonier/hipster stretch of Lark Street. (I say "hipster" because of the young woman we spotted wearing a cloak and top hat.)
Feb 9, 2018, 9:01 pm
#26
Join Date: Sep 2016
Posts: 26
Just to update this thread in case anyone else is looking for information ...
The Reisidence Inn on Washington has decent rooms, very typical RI however staffing there was attrocious. Frequently had poorly cleaned rooms and often no service at all.
The Marriott in Colonie is decent, just make sure you're away of the construction/remodelling noise.
The Reisidence Inn on Washington has decent rooms, very typical RI however staffing there was attrocious. Frequently had poorly cleaned rooms and often no service at all.
The Marriott in Colonie is decent, just make sure you're away of the construction/remodelling noise.
Feb 12, 2018, 8:49 am
#29
Join Date: Feb 2003
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The DW & I stayed here last fall & were perfectly happy with our stay. Like any FI, it's not luxe, but it all maintains the brand standards you'd expect.
About the only caveat is that although street parking is free on the weekend, if you're driving it's worth checking the schedule at the nearby Times Union Center. We came back late one evening to find tons of drivers arriving for a concert; State St. parking was completely full & the side streets were basically gridlocked. (Tip: Broadway north of State had plenty of spaces, probably because this area feels very deserted after hours.)
[Mods, I looked for a thread on this property & did not find one. Feel free to move this post if I overlooked it.]
Nov 7, 2019, 8:28 pm
#30
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Fairfield Inn East Greenbush: Had a few more stays here. Still my favorite option, factoring in price. They have a few rooms right above the front desk that are about 20% larger than the rest. There is also a "one double bed" room that is quite nice for a business traveler: instead of the second bed, there is a living area with no table - great for setting up an ironing board. (Note: The "one double bed" can also be an accessible room - but they are nice as well. Very well designed with a huge bathroom.) Front of hotel (odd numbered rooms) quiet.
First of all, the entire hotel was renovated within the past few years. Looks great. Much more modern than the old style and clean/fresh. Also, right now they are finally working on repairs to the parking lot.
But on the bad side, the service wasn't great. As a Titanium, acknowledged at check-in, I was given the smallest possible room in the hotel. It was a standard-sized room (no upgrade) but wedged behind the elevator. They literally carved space out of the room to place the elevator, so both the bathroom and the bedroom had a few feet of space taken out. It was loud. I could hear the elevator dinging plus the ice maker across the hall was easily audible from the bed. And since the bedroom was so small, the fan from the HVAC blew directly on it.
If I hadn't been so tired, I would have requested a change.
And of course, when the clerk told me breakfast ran until 10am, what she meant to say was 9am. So no breakfast the first morning - although it was nice to have an excuse to go to the Cracker Barrel in the parking lot. Made it in time on the second morning yet the breakfast wasn't particularly fresh.
Overall, it's hard to complain about a Category 1 property. But I definitely remember this as being a much better property when I used to stay there regularly.
One other local note. There were references earlier in the thread to the Residence Inn Albany Airport. At some point recently a new RI was built on Wolf Road as the airport RI and the old RI was de-flagged to be an independent property.