Originally Posted by
MDtR-Chicago
Just had a stay for two weeknights at the Courtyard Philadelphia Devon/Villanova in Wayne, in the northwest suburbs. Very good stay.
The entire hotel was in good condition. Seemed like my room had been renovated in recent memory. They are currently renovating the lobby (due to finish this month) but it wasn't a problem. Looked like they were installing new seating on the side of the lobby away from the Bistro for a casual lounging area.
It looked like all the rooms had either a balcony or patio door. My balcony faced the interior courtyard area and it was very quiet. In fact, the hotel is set back from the road, in a quiet part of a strip mall, so the whole hotel was quiet. Tons of free parking. There's also a Whole Foods right across the highway from the entrance.
I had a salad in the Bistro the first night and it was perfectly acceptable and the service was attentive.
There was a wild thunderstorm one night, one of the heaviest rain storms I've ever seen, and I mention it because there was no apparent flooding at the hotel and it never lost power, even though there were severe weather warnings across the area.
At one point, I had to make a trip into downtown around 10am and it wasn't too bad at all. About 45 minutes of easy driving.
This is exactly what you would want a suburban Courtyard to be.
The Devon/Villanova Wayne Courtyard is peak Courtyard. In particular, the courtyard not being a "space of mind" but actually existing as a Courtyard. All rooms have patio doors or balconies. The courtyard is a real courtyard and not just a state of mind, and if staying with friends/family/coworkers, up until a few years ago they'd uncork wine or uncap beer for you and you could BYOB. Sadly the Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board told them "no fun allowed" on their liquor license if they continued doing so. I get the sense that they don't really care unless you're flaunting drinking external alcohol. Parking is ample and it locates it self well behind Lancaster Avenue where road noise doesn't factor. Whole Foods, Target, and a couple good asian restaurants (Takumi for Sushi, Dandan for Sichuan) are all an easy walk. Great restaurants in Wayne are not far via drive or Uber/Lyft/Taxi either. The property updates the important aspects where it counts and the staff are great.
I have some amount of nostalgia for this property because of the insane number of nights I've stayed, but what went from grumbling about some flaws (the room keys that demagnetized if you looked at them wrong, aggressively strong closing room doors that could tear jackets), this property has largely stood the test of time. I'd argue water pressure could be better and the Absocold fridges are... okayish. But these are minor complaints.
The location (including courtyard) can lead to conflicts during certain events. There's a horse track that isn't far that can get busy, and there's a lot of universities around. If it's a party time, college students can be loud. I generally asked to be put on the building exterior away from elevators, a preference the staff respects well.