My companion and I will be spending four nights in Austin this November for Thanksgiving. Last year we stayed at the Four Seasons in an Executive Suite. It was nice, but at $450 per night it was a bit much. This year, our adult children will be joining us and we'll need two additional rooms.

Any suggestions for a very nice hotel downtown? I checked the Driskill (almost as expensive as the Four Seasons) and the Omni (seems like a good rate of $399 for the one bedroom suite).

I appreciate the input!

The new Hilton downtown is nice and might be worth checking out. I believe it is a AAA 4 Star property.

There's also a very nice Marriott downtown. I believe it's near 6th Street where all the action is.

Thanks for the suggestions. I will check out the Marriott and the Hilton.

Any thoughts on the Stephen Austin InterContinental Hotel?

With the Villa Capri and the Terrace are gone and the food at Scholz's not up to "Meals, Ready to Eat" rations, life will never be the same, with Austin a hollow shell of its one laid-back grandeur.

Year in and year out the Renaissance at the Arboretum remains as comfortable as lodgings get in Austin (where rates range from the exhorbitant to the pretentious), with the advantage of a location removed from downtown's 6th St. and political hurly-burly. If it weren't for the traffic back into town, the Marriott Horseshoe Bay would be worth a look.

Meanwhile, I'd just as soon have the top floor suite at the tiny Havana Riverwalk 79 miles down IH35 and commute back to Austin as needed.

The Stephen F. is nice. Its a great location and the rooms are pretty nice, but on the small side (at least the standard room is). Of course, there is always the Driskill:

http://www.driskillhotel.com/


I used to stay at the Stephen F., but have now decided its worth paying extra for the Four Seasons. However, a friend is encouraging me to check out the Hotel San Jose. He says it is quite nice... Its located in the S. Congress area which is a great part of town.

http://www.sanjosehotel.com/

I'm not sure if this is what you had in mind, but the Mansion at Judge's Hill might be worth looking into. (http://www.mansionatjudgeshill.com/) It's on 19th Street, maybe a mile from the Capitol. It's been turned into a nice B&B, but it has a very good restaurant. Look at the website and see what you think-- my friends who have stayed there loved it.

i've stayed at the omni several times, always on a priceline stay. it's a lovely lobby and a fine hotel, although the last time we were there we had to sign a form stating we weren't renting the room for a party. we weren't, of course, but if they're making folks sign that form, perhaps they've been having some issues...

if finances (rather than points) are the issue, it might be worth pursuing from that angle.

Thanks again for the input. I've booked rooms on the Executive Floor of the Hilton. The rooms seem decent and the price was reasonable.

For future scanners of this thread...

There is an Extended Stay America Suite hotel downtown that is new, and very nice.

There is a very "cool" hotel at the San Jose off of Congress. Highly recommended and a local joint, and not corporate. The courtyard suites are unique, cool and fun. Although the sound of people drinking in the courtyard to about midnight is a possibility. Mostly for those returning back from the bars.

If you don't plan on going out too late, this might not be as attractive. They try to keep the pool bar volume down.

The Intercontinental was very unimpressive. The hotel was noisy. When people took a shower in the morning it sounded like an alarm going off across the street. The standard bed is small and not very comfortable. The room itself was large enough but there was nothing in it. I also had to pay for internet access. Is it 2002 again? Last time I checked, even Days Inns gave that away. I paid the rate and don't expect to be nickle and dimed. Going down to use your laptop in the lobby was yet another internet charge and not a cheap one. Once I saw I'd have to pay $10, I decided that it would be the last penny that the IC got from me. I spent all week drinking and spending money at the ICON and Elden in Houston. They didn't charge me for internet access and I had no problem giving them my money for breakfast, drinks, etc.

The valet didn't explain my parking options very well. I'll go with valet parking no problem, but not mentioning that parking in any of the metered spots around the hotel was free really made me mad. Guess who will end up getting his valet parking back and guess which hotel's valets didn't get a penny in tip.

The front desk experience was alright. They didn't really ask or case how my experience was when checking out. I wasn't at all overwhealmed by the property at all. I didn't sleep well and was treated in a Holiday Inn type fashion. Of course, I imagine that I paid a lot more than one would at a Holiday Inn.

Personally, I would try one of the funky niche Austin type motels around like the Austin Motel. It's not a $400 a night kind of place, but if you want the pure essence of Austin then that's it.

There are many nice hotels in the Austin area. You best consult a hotel guide or you go to the homepage of the texas hotel and lodging association. unfortunately I have forgotten the name but I sure it pops up if you google it.

I will echo your friend's sentiments, Hotel San Jose is a fantastic choice for accommodation in AUS. You are within walking distance of a great coffee shop, numerous restaurants, and Maggie Mae's ice cream.

You are a stone's throw away from downtown AUS and the hotel itself has wonderful rooms and ^ ^ service.