senatorgirth

There's a shopping mall fairly close (10 minutes or so) to the airport (Greenspoint Mall). It's a typical suburban mall. Six hours is quite a long time to sit in an airport, especially w/ kids. It might be worth a cab ride (assuming you're not toting a bunch of luggage)

flyboy_421

Surely with all of the PC members here we can link up someone to get them into the Terminal E club when they arrive. Another good idea is to rent a video player from inmotion, even if you only rent it for the day. This will give the child something to do, bring a favorite DVD or two, it helps a lot.

The Marriott's a good suggestion, but overall is rather lacking in food quality, however it does have the benefit of killing an hour or two.

If you call the general manager at the Marriott I'm sure they will accomidate her having a check in during the day. It's win win for them, then everyone can take a nap, take a bath/shower then head over for the flight. You can probably do this for a reasonably small number of Marriott points as well.

In fact in looking at the options the Marriott would be the one that I would arrange for my wife when traveling with my Daughter.

Feel free to PM me if there is anything I can be of assistance with, as I'm based at IAH.

Scott

ssullivan

Ewww Greenspoint... If a mall is in the plans, then avoid that one. Deerbrook Mall in Humble is equally close and MUCH nicer, not to mention safer. It's at US 59 and FM 1960, just northeast of IAH. Exit the airport on Will Clayton to US 59, head north to the first exit, and the mall will be on the left across the freeway when you get to the second traffic light after exiting.

ravi

Thanks for your suggestion, I will call Marriott and see if they can offer a day rate. Any help with the terminal E PC will be appreciated too. Thanks.

Duhey2

I'm glad you caught this one. That mall is a dump...the Dillard's is a clearance center and the former Monkey Ward is the Halliburton depot for contractor's going off to Iraq (not that that has anything to do with the mall being a dump).

Funny (and true) story - A friend of a friend lives in the Woodlands and couldn't get a useless lawnmower taken off on bulk trash day. So he puts it in the back of his pickup, goes to Greenspoint Mall, and heads into the food court. He comes out 30 minutes later and the mower is gone. Mission accomplished, he heads home.

mywifeisincoach

Although Deerbrook is much nicer than Greenspoint (AKA Ghetto Galleria) is is chalk full of East Texas Hillbilly culture which may scar your young child for Life. Your wife may leave you as well for subjecting her to a mall that houses a Lubys cafeteria.

oopsz

Gunspoint mall. 'Nuff said.

The woodlands mall is about 20 minutes north of there (12 minutes and $2.00 if you take hardy toll road), and much, much nicer. Market street is a pleasant, if expensive, stroll, with excellent restaurants and shopping.

hoyateach

Bump.

I'm coming in for a 5 hour layover on March 10. Any decent restaurants in the airport? I'm an Asia-based NW gold so I'll have access to the PC but I don'think I'll want to spend all 5 hours there. (What's the wireless internet situation there?)

Also, what's the chance of getting moved to an earlier flight to my destination if I talk to the gate agent? There was a $150+ price difference between what I bought and what I really wanted. It's an ERJ flight that as of a minute ago still had loads of empty seats.

Thanks.

familyflier

Whilst waiting for the "Do" to start, Family Flier and friend had a great meal at PappaDeux in Terminal E and spent about 3 hours sampling the purported upgraded wine list in the Term. E PC. Hope this helps...

ssullivan

I second the vote for Pappadeaux.

If you're there around lunchtime they have a great lunch buffet in addition to the regular menu items.

puddy

Shouldn't have any trouble going standby for the earlier flight if there is space.

wingwalkin

Steer clear of Greenspoint for safety reasons. While Deerbrook is not the most upscale of malls, it is safer. It has a food court, movie theaters, and a small play area. With a 2 year old, the Marriott and the DVD players sound like great ideas also.

Cerberus

Pappadeaux is great, just one tip... the lunch buffet is only Mon-Fri... but good selection. If you go for the normal menu, try to get a seat in the bar area. You'll get faster service... the normal dining room is okay but tends to be understaffed from my experiences.

Other things to do at IAH:
- Get a good shoe shine (best guys are at Terminal C en route to Terminal E)
- Hide out in North or South Terminal C's Presidents Lounge (Not as fancy as Terminal E's new one but much much less crowded in my opinion)
- Grab a couple hours rental from a car rental place and go visit Fry's Electronics (about 5-10 minutes from the airport) Lots of stuff to see... much like Toys R Us for adults
- Attempt to get into the CO store :-P

Trust me I've done something of everything since my current assignment routes through IAH and I usually have anywhere between 2 to 4 hours stopover.

Cheers!

coplatsat

The Marriot has a restaurant bar on the top of a tower that goes around. You get good views of the airport and planes taking off and landing. Even if it is not open, I have had no problem going up there to take a look. It is a good place to chill out and read. Your child could watch DVDs

BigPoppaCO

If one spends any time at all at IAH, you can see why the lunch buffet is so popular. I can't decide which place is actually fatter: IAH or Disney World

Do you think the planes that fly IAH-MCO are stocked with extra seat belt extenders? Seriously.