I spent a lot of time over the last couple of months agonizing over the holidays. My wife and I both knew we wanted to go somewhere or do something different for Thanksgiving. We contemplated a trip to the northwest, (a trip that came very close to happening but didn’t due to our inability to arrange things at home quick enough to dive through the narrow window of time required to snatch up the bargain priced tickets. Do I sound bitter?) Unfortunately, we were not able to match the price we missed, so we set our sights more locally.
Instead of venturing far from home we made arrangements to spend a few days with family friends in the Dallas area. The combination of a short hotel getaway, great Thanksgiving Day food, and a Dallas Cowboys victory made up for the short- term nature of our adventure.
We chose to stay at the Courtyard Marriott in Las Colinas. The room itself was perfectly comfortable. There were no hairs on pillows or dust mites in the corners, so on that front it was great. The Hotel was equipped with an indoor- outdoor pool, (which was why we chose it) that would have made staying there ideal for this time of year. Except for the fact that there was neither a hot tub, nor was the pool itself heated, or at least heated well. To be perfectly candid this fact didn’t deter our son one bit. It didn’t bother the children of the quests we snuck in the back door either. For the adults on the other hand; the water was far too cool to enjoy.
The Hotel did not offer a complimentary breakfast. I realize that this is true of many higher end establishments, but the Marriot didn’t seem extravagant enough to pass on the service, especially since it certainly wasn’t discounted. Breakfast was available for around fifteen dollars. Starbucks coffee was for sale in the lobby which was certainly a plus but it was no longer available after ten am. The overall experience provided by the hotel was not a bad one. And it certainly didn’t subtract from our holiday escape. On the other hand, it wasn’t all it could have been had the hotel offered a few more amenities or done a better job with the ones they offered.
While I wouldn’t refuse to stay there again, even knowing what I now know, if I had it to do over I would probably cast a wider net in searching for place to stay.