choptliva

Hi,
Have to travel through South Bend, IN later this month. Looks like a choice of Courtyard South Bend Mishawaka, Residence Inn Southbend, and Springhill Suites South Bend Mishawaka. Rates are comparable. Any recent experience/advice on these three properties?
Many thanks!
chop

Triple7

Not sure where your appointment is in the South Bend Area, but there is a Marriott property downtown. Unfortunately, I don't have experience with the 3 properties you list - just thought I'd mention the other option.

patrick finnigan

I stay at the SB Marriott 3 or 4 times a year. Nice hotel. Parking right at/under/along side of hotel very convenient. Pool and workout room in hotel.. Bar is just a bar. Restaurant is OK. Request room overlooking river. A few eating places around mostly bar type joints. typical small/med size downtown that gets very quiet in the evening.

pf

bowdenj

I have stayed at this hotel and had a good overnight (1 night only): Springhill Suites South Bend Mishawaka

choptliva

Thank you all for your input! ^

NDDomer86

Going back this weekend to visit friends at the good ol' Alma Mater and was wondering if anyone has had any experience at the South Bend Marriott. Downtown South Bend isn't particularly my favorite location, and I generally prefer the SHS or RI in Mishawaka but thought I might give it a try since it will only end up costing me around $130 for the two nights.

As an interesting side note. A few years back Notre Dame was going to build a Marriott conference center on campus (a much needed facility as the Morris Inn on campus is quite dated and the Inn at Saint Mary's is, well on Saint Mary's campus) but supposedly investments went South and funding fell through. Forty-five grand per year and the school is poor? I think not...

Copilot23

Can't answer your first question as I've only visited the downtown Marriott for meetings, never overnight. But the second question. A new FS Marriott and an SHS are targeted for the new development adjacent to the campus called "Eddy Street Commons." Its going in the wooded area just north of the ACC parking on the north side of Angela. I've posted a couple of links. They have broke ground on this project. The second link identifies the hotels as Marriott brands.

http://eddycommons.com/highlights.cfm

http://newsinfo.nd.edu/content.cfm?topicid=23726

NDDomer86

Thanks for the links. I knew they had proposed this development (did not know Marriott properties were part of it though) but I did not know they had approved it. They first announced proposal a few years ago when I was still a student there, as the big question at the time was whether or not FLEX points (the student spending account) would be valid at the shops and restaurants. While I definitely think that there is a need for the new development, it seems a bit upscale for the immediate neighborhoods, and I don't see this as forthcoming in bettering the relationship between the University and the South Bend community.

dhilpert

I was there last week, nothing special. Older decor, small lounge, strange smell to the whole place, paid parking. As it is downtown all the "attractions" of SB are walking distance.

TN_traveler

I was there in January, and was very impressed. The room was nice, the lounge was fine, but what stood out was the friendliness & efficiency of the front desk staff.

DENtravels

I was there a few weeks ago. The CL was being renovated so no access for the first few days of my stay. It had reopened before I checked out. Very small lounge.
Room was OK, the hot water in the bathroom unleashed a funky smell from the drain. Not what you want when shaving in the morning.
Fitness room was nicely equiped. Clean, with plenty of towels and water on hand.

All said, next time I will skip this hotel and go for a stay in the suburbs.

NDDomer86

Thanks for the feedback. I think I'll save the dough and just crash on my friend's couch since it's bound to be a weekend full of debauchery anyways...

hginPHL

Any updates to this thread? I'm traveling to South Bend in a few weeks. I've heard a few things about some unknown "smells" at the Marriott downtown, so was curious about the properties in Mishawaka. Thanks!

River in Sight

I've stayed at several of the Marriott hotels in this area.

• The South Bend Marriott is a nice, typical Marriott located right in downtown. Many of the rooms face into the atrium (I got one once when I made a reservation at about 11:45 at night for that night), but many face outwards as well. As a Platinum, I was almost always upgraded to a corner room which looked out over the river. The gym is more than adequate. Staff is nice.
• The only other FS property nearby is the Marriott Fort Wayne. That came to be my favorite Marriott in the area; the low-rise part is old, but as a Platinum I always got the high-rise part which was nice and new. What made it my favorite was that the staff was exceptional and did me many favors over the time that I stayed there. The concierge lounge staff was also very nice. Depending on exactly where you're trying to go, Fort Wayne may be a viable option - it was for me.
• Not far from the South Bend Marriott is the Courtyard Goshen. That property is one of the few Marriott properties that I would rate an *avoid* .. it's very old and tired.

Hope that helps, if I can think of any other information I'll let you know. I've also stayed at most of the Hilton properties in this area if you'd like any information on those!

cyberdad

CY and SHS are near each other in Mishawaka. I used to use the CY quite a bit, but it's been a few years. My recall is that they are both good properties, with a number of restaurants either within walking distance or a few minutes drive. Also a mall nearby.

Note that access to the toll road is a bit awkward. Not exactly complicated, but you have to sort of "double back" when you get off the highway to go back where the hotel is on the south side of the road. (true for both the CY and SHS). Takes about five minutes or so. Blame the state of Indiana....not Marriott.

There's also a FI on the north side of the toll road in the same general area. Another fairly good property.

I'm also personally not a fan of the Goshen CY.