What The Marriott Courtyards Of The 80's and Early-To-Mid 90's Looked Like
Mar 11, 2018, 10:00 pm
#46
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The first-generation Fairfield Inn design (1987) -- a very basic hotel/motel building with two floors of outside entrance rooms and a third floor interior hallway rooms -- did not last long. Fairfield Inn quickly switched to three floors with interior hallways (and then to a broader range of heights and designs).
[...]
As far as I know, Marriott has never "sold off" or forced out first-generation Fairfield Inns with outside entrances, as long as they maintain standards.
Here's one (and there are undoubtedly others):
Fairfield Inn Ontario (California):
Extended Stay Hotel in Ontario, CA Fairfield Inn & Suites
Meanwhile, a lot of owners have reflagged to other brands, which is not surprising for limited service hotels that are now around 30 years old. Here are some examples:
Baymont Inn & Suites Flagstaff:
https://www.wyndhamhotels.com/baymon...staff/overview
Quality Inn Placentia Anaheim:
https://www.choicehotels.com/califor...n-hotels/cae09
Motel 6 Columbus West:
https://www.motel6.com/en/motels.oh.columbus.4618.html
I also see plenty of hotels recognizable as former Fairfield Inns that don't have outside entrances on any floors.
A very large Fairfield Inn with outside hallways is the Fairfield Inn by Marriott Anaheim Resort (walking distance to Disneyland). It was built in 1987 as a Ramada Hotel. I don't know when it converted to a Fairfield Inn.
[...]
As far as I know, Marriott has never "sold off" or forced out first-generation Fairfield Inns with outside entrances, as long as they maintain standards.
Here's one (and there are undoubtedly others):
Fairfield Inn Ontario (California):
Extended Stay Hotel in Ontario, CA Fairfield Inn & Suites
Meanwhile, a lot of owners have reflagged to other brands, which is not surprising for limited service hotels that are now around 30 years old. Here are some examples:
Baymont Inn & Suites Flagstaff:
https://www.wyndhamhotels.com/baymon...staff/overview
Quality Inn Placentia Anaheim:
https://www.choicehotels.com/califor...n-hotels/cae09
Motel 6 Columbus West:
https://www.motel6.com/en/motels.oh.columbus.4618.html
I also see plenty of hotels recognizable as former Fairfield Inns that don't have outside entrances on any floors.
A very large Fairfield Inn with outside hallways is the Fairfield Inn by Marriott Anaheim Resort (walking distance to Disneyland). It was built in 1987 as a Ramada Hotel. I don't know when it converted to a Fairfield Inn.
Exterior corridor hotels in general (regardless of brand or program) are way more common in the [low elevation] Southwest than in many other parts of the country. It helps when the hotel is an area which pretty much never sees freezing temperatures. (Though it'd be nice if they could cover the path from your room to the lobby and to the breakfast room, given that in Southern California "it never rains, but man it pours"
).It's quite another thing to find exterior corridor hotels in places that get significant snowfall each year, yet I've seen them there too
.
Mar 11, 2018, 10:11 pm
#47
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Years ago I stayed at a FFI in Warren, MI built with exterior corridors on the lower floors and interior on the top. The pictures online showed only the enclosed parts when I selected the hotel for a trip with a few colleagues. Well, I happened to get one of the interior-access rooms so I didn't even notice the difference while my colleagues both were assigned lower floors. They gave me a lot of grief for choosing that property. BTW, the property is no longer with the brand.
Last edited by darthbimmer; Sep 10, 2018 at 5:29 pm Reason: correct typo
Mar 11, 2018, 10:45 pm
#48
Join Date: May 2002
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Years ago I stayed at a FFI in Warren, MI built with exterior corridors on the lower floors and interior on the top. The pictures online showed only the enclosed parts when I selected itself for myself and my colleagues. Well, I happened to get one of the interior-access rooms so I didn't even notice the difference while my colleagues both were assigned lower floors. They gave me a lot of grief for choosing that property. BTW, the property is no longer with the brand.
That Fairfield Inn is now Days Inn & Suites Warren. It still has the first-generation Fairfield Inn configuration, with an interior hallway only on the third floor, as the photo on the official Wyndham website shows:
https://www.wyndhamhotels.com/days-i...arren/overview
Mar 12, 2018, 12:28 am
#49
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What is that based on? Obviously you have never been to Breezewood, PA, which is in the western middle of the PA turnpike. It is one of two places in the US where the interstate is not a limited access highway and has traffic lights. The town reportedly has more hotel rooms per capita than any other, most of which are exterior access motel rooms. These are in an area where temps are well below freezing much of the winter. In fact, there are many motels throughout rural PA.
Mar 13, 2018, 5:03 pm
#50
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What is that based on? Obviously you have never been to Breezewood, PA, which is in the western middle of the PA turnpike. It is one of two places in the US where the interstate is not a limited access highway and has traffic lights. The town reportedly has more hotel rooms per capita than any other, most of which are exterior access motel rooms. These are in an area where temps are well below freezing much of the winter. In fact, there are many motels throughout rural PA.
And, btw, there's a gap between "exterior corridor" hotels and "totally enclosed hotels". As in, if the hotel has internal corridors, but you have to go outside to get to the breakfast room or to the front desk, can that really be considered totally "interior" corridors?
Btw, I looked up Breezewood, and apparently it's one of only two places in the country where a two-digit interstate has intersections. But that implies that some three-digit (shorter-range) interstates might have at-grade intersections too. And indeed, when I looked further, I found this list:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_o...state_Highways
which shows several 3-digit interstates with traffic lights, plus more with at-grade intersections without traffic lights. One even has a traffic circle!
Last edited by sdsearch; Mar 13, 2018 at 5:21 pm
Mar 15, 2018, 11:17 am
#51
formerly Will Stonehocker
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Join Date: Nov 2017
Posts: 587
Yep, "reflagged" is probably a better word choice than "sold off." Marriott hasn't actually owned most of its portfolio since the Steve Bollenbach spin-off-the-real-estate effort in about 1992.
Original Fairfield Inns didn't offer breakfast at all. That had to be retrofitted into properties when the "free breakfast" wave swept through all budget and midprice hotels in the 90s.
Original Fairfield Inns didn't offer breakfast at all. That had to be retrofitted into properties when the "free breakfast" wave swept through all budget and midprice hotels in the 90s.
Aug 19, 2018, 10:51 am
#52
formerly Will Stonehocker
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Join Date: Nov 2017
Posts: 587
it amazes me how tight of standards marriott has for their hotels. exterior-corridor courtyards never existed, and interior corridor is what makes them better. it's why a lot of the debut-era fairfield and residence inn hotels are leaving marriott. a little sad, because my dad remembers them all. but that's what you get when properties no longer meet requirements.
Aug 20, 2018, 9:46 am
#53
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What is the benefit/purpose of exterior corridors on the bottom two floors and interior corridors on the top? Is it merely an aesthetic thing? Are those interior rooms sold for a premium? Don't think I have ever seen a hotel like that, so a bit curious.
Aug 20, 2018, 11:46 am
#54
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It didn't take long for Fairfield Inn standards to change.
Fairfield Inn Ontario (Calif.) still has this odd arrangement: Ontario CA Hotel - Fairfield Inn Ontario Hotel near Ontario Airport, Mall and Speedway
I doubt anyone could build such a hotel today and get a Fairfield Inn franchise. I also doubt that such a hotel that was reflagged to another brand could rejoin Fairfield Inns. But, apparently, if an older property is properly maintained and pays what is contractually due, Marriott allows it to remain a Fairfield Inn.
Aug 20, 2018, 7:16 pm
#55
formerly Will Stonehocker
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Join Date: Nov 2017
Posts: 587
Somebody at Marriott must have thought it was good idea 31 years ago. We can only guess why.
It didn't take long for Fairfield Inn standards to change.
Fairfield Inn Ontario (Calif.) still has this odd arrangement: Ontario CA Hotel - Fairfield Inn Ontario Hotel near Ontario Airport, Mall and Speedway
I doubt anyone could build such a hotel today and get a Fairfield Inn franchise. I also doubt that such a hotel that was reflagged to another brand could rejoin Fairfield Inns. But, apparently, if an older property is properly maintained and pays what is contractually due, Marriott allows it to remain a Fairfield Inn.
It didn't take long for Fairfield Inn standards to change.
Fairfield Inn Ontario (Calif.) still has this odd arrangement: Ontario CA Hotel - Fairfield Inn Ontario Hotel near Ontario Airport, Mall and Speedway
I doubt anyone could build such a hotel today and get a Fairfield Inn franchise. I also doubt that such a hotel that was reflagged to another brand could rejoin Fairfield Inns. But, apparently, if an older property is properly maintained and pays what is contractually due, Marriott allows it to remain a Fairfield Inn.
Aug 20, 2018, 9:10 pm
#56
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Residence Inn is a different animal - at the time, it was the only Marriott brand purchased from outside rather than developed from inside. The RI purchase predates even Ritz-Carlton. Virtually all of the remaining outside-entrance RIs are builds from the original developer of RI. At the time, the idea was to evoke more of a sense of an apartment home than a hotel.
Very quickly, labor studies and efficiencies led to abandoning exterior entrance rooms forever. It's a lot cheaper to move housekeeping carts via an elevator system to interior corridors, and any kind of weather is going to inhibit the ability of a housekeeper to clean a room in 21 minutes or whatever the Marriott standard is these days.
Sep 10, 2018, 11:46 am
#57
formerly Will Stonehocker
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Join Date: Nov 2017
Posts: 587
No need to guess; marketing research 30+ years ago indicated that there was demand (still) for motorists who could drive up to their room (or reasonably close to it); while business travelers arriving by - wait for it - taxi or shuttle, not Uber or Lyft (!), might choose the perceived security of an interior corridor.
Residence Inn is a different animal - at the time, it was the only Marriott brand purchased from outside rather than developed from inside. The RI purchase predates even Ritz-Carlton. Virtually all of the remaining outside-entrance RIs are builds from the original developer of RI. At the time, the idea was to evoke more of a sense of an apartment home than a hotel.
Very quickly, labor studies and efficiencies led to abandoning exterior entrance rooms forever. It's a lot cheaper to move housekeeping carts via an elevator system to interior corridors, and any kind of weather is going to inhibit the ability of a housekeeper to clean a room in 21 minutes or whatever the Marriott standard is these days.
Residence Inn is a different animal - at the time, it was the only Marriott brand purchased from outside rather than developed from inside. The RI purchase predates even Ritz-Carlton. Virtually all of the remaining outside-entrance RIs are builds from the original developer of RI. At the time, the idea was to evoke more of a sense of an apartment home than a hotel.
Very quickly, labor studies and efficiencies led to abandoning exterior entrance rooms forever. It's a lot cheaper to move housekeeping carts via an elevator system to interior corridors, and any kind of weather is going to inhibit the ability of a housekeeper to clean a room in 21 minutes or whatever the Marriott standard is these days.
Sep 10, 2018, 5:42 pm
#58
Join Date: Mar 2007
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No need to guess; marketing research 30+ years ago indicated that there was demand (still) for motorists who could drive up to their room (or reasonably close to it); while business travelers arriving by - wait for it - taxi or shuttle, not Uber or Lyft (!), might choose the perceived security of an interior corridor.
Very quickly, labor studies and efficiencies led to abandoning exterior entrance rooms forever. It's a lot cheaper to move housekeeping carts via an elevator system to interior corridors, and any kind of weather is going to inhibit the ability of a housekeeper to clean a room in 21 minutes or whatever the Marriott standard is these days.
Sep 10, 2018, 6:21 pm
#59
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I still remember early/mid 80's a co-worker staying at a Residence Inn (in Boulder) which had external entrances. I believe it still exists, perhaps: https://www.marriott.com/hotels/trav...e-inn-boulder/
She was staying there for a couple/few weeks and we were all amazed at the free breakfast, beer/wine at dinner time, and the fireplace in the room.
She was staying there for a couple/few weeks and we were all amazed at the free breakfast, beer/wine at dinner time, and the fireplace in the room.
Sep 11, 2018, 4:31 pm
#60
formerly Will Stonehocker
Original Poster
Join Date: Nov 2017
Posts: 587
I still remember early/mid 80's a co-worker staying at a Residence Inn (in Boulder) which had external entrances. I believe it still exists, perhaps: https://www.marriott.com/hotels/trav...e-inn-boulder/
She was staying there for a couple/few weeks and we were all amazed at the free breakfast, beer/wine at dinner time, and the fireplace in the room.
She was staying there for a couple/few weeks and we were all amazed at the free breakfast, beer/wine at dinner time, and the fireplace in the room.
