Cleveland Hotel..feedback please

[njmomboys2]

Hi there...we will be spending a week out in Ohio doing Cedar Point, Football HOF, Rock/Roll HOF and an Indians Game.

For the Cleveland portion, the rates for hotels in the Independence OH area are much better than staying in downtown Cleveland. My question..how easy is it to get back and forth from there to downtown Cleveland.

What kind of parking near the Rock/Roll and Baseball game is available?

How long would we need for Rock/Roll (our boys are 16 & 11)......

Any other things to do in the Cleveland area..we will be there Thurs. afternono through Sat. afternoon.

What about restaurants?

And for Independence area...any reviews or thoughts on Embassy Suites or Hyatt Place?

Thanks!!!!

 

[RachaelA]

Definitely check out the Great Lakes Science Center. There are tons of parking lots around Progressive Field. The Zoo is also nice if you have time (they just got a new Elephant exhibit).

Are you staying at one hotel when you go to downtown Cleveland and then south to the Football Hall of Fame?

ETA: If you stay in Independence, eat at the Winking Lizard or Quaker Steak and Lube. Both have great wings (especially Quaker Steak!).

 

[njmomboys2]

We arrive on Mon. 7/18 late afternoon and will stay near Cedar Point through Thurs AM (doing the park Tues & Wed) .Thurs AM we are driving to Canton for the HOF and seeing a college friend & family for dinner.

Thurs PM drive to Cleveland area and stay there through Saturday. We fly out at 3:30pm on Saturday.

So really only planning Friday in Cleveland for sights and game is that night.

 

[emo6565]

Look into staying in Westlake. There are a few nice hotels over there. There is a hugh upscale mall (Crocker Park) with many places to eat within 2 minutes. Westlake is on the west side of Cleveland. You would be right near the highway and it would be a bit more centrally located. You would be about 10 to 15 minutes from downtown and about 45 from Cedar Point. Westlake is a very nice suburb.

 

[cjnix29]

Honestly, I think staying in Independence would be a pain. It would be more convenient for Canton, but the rest would really not be convenient. Whenever we go in to see our in laws (they live on the west side of Cleveland), I always priceline by the airport. We have gotten the Radisson in North Olmsted for about $40 a night. Just last weekend, had the sheraton at the airport for $40. You could even park and ride the train into downtown. I have actually even used priceline to get the downtown Renaissance for about $90 a night. (but you have to pay to park). Priceline works really well for us in Cleveland.

 

[CTdiznymom]

We stayed at the Best Western in Mentor and it was very nice. Lovely lobby and they served breakfast.

 

[Shelly F - Ohio]

Have you checked the rates at the Wyndham in downtown Cleveland? They offer a room and tickets to the Rock Hall package package is $150 and you get two adult tickets to the rock hall. They are within walk distance to the ballpark and have several restaraunts near by. Parking at the Wyndham is $5.00 I work close to the hotel so ask me any questions.

The Crown Plaza has the same package deal but includes breakfast. The hotel is about 5-8 minute walk to the Rock Hall and to the Rapid Station that will take you to the ball park.
Here is the Crown Plaza info.
ROCK HALL PACKAGEPackage Includes: 2 Tickets to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, Breakfast for two people, Self Parking. A free appetizer with purchase of a beverage atPimentos Bar Lounge. Free Visitor Value Pass a 19.95 value providing up to to 300.00 in Savings to NE Ohio most popular attractions.
Experience our Sleep Advantage Program and enjoy the 7 layers of comfort atthe Crowne Plaza Cleveland City Centre. We are just a 5 minute walk away from the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Enjoy your complimentary breakfast for tow in our on site Restaurant. The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame is located within walking distance from the hotel. Special pricing for Wednesdays stay when the Rock and Roll Museum is open until 8 PM
All reservations must be made in advance. Cancellation is 6pm day of arrival. Parking and Transportation is based on availabilty
View More


1 KNG BD WITH SINGLE SOFA BED NONSMOKING
View Description
$159.00 USD





2 DOUBLE BEDS NONSMOKING
View Description
$159.00 USD

**** Here is a map with all the restaraunts listed
http://www.positivelycleveland.com/includes/media/docs/downtown_cleveland_dining_map.pdf


**** Here is a map with the hotel listed

http://www.positivelycleveland.com/includes/media/docs/downtown_cleveland_hotel_map.pdf


*** If you stay at the crowne plaza there is a free trolley that is 1 1/2 blocks away that will drop you off very close to the ball park. If you stay at that hotel and walk to the Rock hall the trollley stop is on the north side of the big federal building which is on your left as you walk north on 9th st. Cross Lakeside Ave and the trolley stop is 500 feet from the intersection. Just look for the green trolley sign on the pool and there should be a bus shelter there as well. Ask the trolley driver how to get to the ballpark they are friendly and helpful.


Mentor is a bit of a hike to downtown Cleveland.

 

[vsimeone]

Hi there...we will be spending a week out in Ohio doing Cedar Point, Football HOF, Rock/Roll HOF and an Indians Game.

For the Cleveland portion, the rates for hotels in the Independence OH area are much better than staying in downtown Cleveland. My question..how easy is it to get back and forth from there to downtown Cleveland.

It's super easy. 10 minutes tops. We stayed at a hotel there once - up on the hill - but I think it is a new name now. I'm not sure of it. My daughter played soccer at the dome in Valley View/Independence for years. It's super easy.

What kind of parking near the Rock/Roll and Baseball game is available?

As a previous poster mentioned - tons of parking but be prepared to pay.

How long would we need for Rock/Roll (our boys are 16 & 11)......

I'm going to guess only a couple hours. The exhibits are cool but...

As someone else mentioned, they would like the Great Lakes Science Center a LOT!

Any other things to do in the Cleveland area..we will be there Thurs. afternono through Sat. afternoon.

I second the idea of the zoo. Check to see if there are any festivals going on. They are always a ton of fun!

What about restaurants?

At the Independence exit is my favorite restaurant - we have one down the street from our house - Winking Lizard Tavern. It would be close to your hotel.

Depending on the budget, check out one of Michael Symon's (Iron Chef) restaurants. Lola is a block away from Progressive Field, Lolita is in Tremont and there are several B Spots all over the city.

Depending on time, you could go a little East to Little Italy. Anywhere you eat there is fabulous!

And for Independence area...any reviews or thoughts on Embassy Suites or Hyatt Place?

I'm not familiar with these names but as I mentioned, we stayed at a hotel years ago (it's the one with the Shula's Steakhouse in it) which was very nice.

Thanks!!!!

Have a fantastic trip and be sure to wave at the Portage Rd. exit when you're traveling between the Football HOF and Cleveland!

 

[Massillon Dad]

Cleveland is a business city. Businesspeople leave on Friday, leaving tons of vacant hotel rooms available to get on the cheap. Check kayak.com or better yet skyauction.com: get a 4-star Sheraton or Crown Plaza downtown Cleveland for like $40 on weekends: Free parking & 2 block walk to Rock hall. Canton ( football HOF is an hour away, easy drive. Cedar point is a different story. Exhausting park, very long day of fun fun fun, but best bet is to just suck it up and get a hotel room in Sandusky for $150/nite instead of 1.5 hour drive bac to Cleveland in exhaustion.

 

[Massillon Dad]

P.S. economy depressed in Cleveland. One out of 4 homes is vacant: therefore many empty seats @ indians game...you can get tickets from scalpers for $10 each easy.

 

[mafibisha]

P.S. economy depressed in Cleveland. One out of 4 homes is vacant: therefore many empty seats @ indians game...you can get tickets from scalpers for $10 each easy.

Not true.

The Indians have the best record in BOTH the AL and NL leagues right now.

My boys are huge baseball fans so we're trying to get tickets there on our way to visit family in Indiana. The games we want are close to sold out, with mostly only single tickets available.

 

[dex08]

We went to Cleveland last summer and stayed at the Embassy Suites downtown and walked to the Rock & Roll HOF and to an Indians game. The city was dead on the weekend. We spent about 4 hours in the R&R HOF because they had a special Bruce Springsteen exhibit last year and DH is a crazed Springsteen fan. Depending upon what time of year you plan to go there, be aware that a lot of schools have field trips there and there may be huge crowds of kids. We ran into this during our visit. We actually arrived at the HOF before their doors opened and still there were several bus loads of kids. It almost made it an unpleasant experience with all the kids running around unchaperoned inside the HOF.

We pre-purchased our tickets to the Indians game. It was an afternoon game on a weekday and there was hardly anyone there. They have some special section/tickets that includes all you can eat hot dogs -- we didn't get these tickets but our seats were near that area. On the way out of the ballpark after the game, they were giving away free hot dogs. DH grabbed 4 of them!

Someone mentioned going to the Winking Lizard if you stay in Independence... well there's one downtown also and we LOVED it!! My DH liked it so much he bought a tshirt there! Fun place, great pub food!

We also went to the Pro Football HOF and it we were in and out in less than 2.5 hours.

 

[RNMOM]

I live just over the tracks from Westlake and wouldn't recomment coming here for hotel. Yes, Crocker Park is nice but not close enough to downtown IMHO. Neither is Mentor. Both are about 10-15 miles from downtown. Both require freeway changes and confusion is possible. Independence is right on I 77 and very easy for you to get to Canton and downtown.

Don't forget the Art Museum. There is also a Natural History Museum in the same area. Little Italy is just a couple blocks down Euclid and a right on Mayfield. If you don't mind eating on the patio the best pizza in our opinion is Valentios. We drive 45 min. to get it, honestly.

The zoo is really nice. We went last month and the new elephant area is terrific.

As for food, there is a wide variety and everyone has their own opinion. I like Li Wa for Chinese. At lunch they serve dim sum and we love it. We have all the chain restaurants as expected and we tend to be chain rest. people.

 

[Shelly F - Ohio]

I have a few places for you to eat at.

There is a great place right across the street from the ball park called Local Hero's and they serve a variety of foods from burgers to pasta to chicken.
Here is their website http://www.localheroesgrill.com/


Since you will be in town on a weekday a great place to go for lunch is the cafateria inside the PNC bank building. I love going here for lunch especially if you aren't sure what you want. They have made to order sandwiches, pizza, two different hot entrees such as BBQ pork sandwich, fish and chips. They have premade sandwiches/wraps, salads. They have a nice out door seating area as well and large indoor area. The bank is located on E. 9 st which is the same street the Crown Plaza is on. In fact it is 3 to 4 blocks south of the hotel. You can enter the cafateria from the outside seating area.

Other thing to do is to take a cruise on the GoodTime boat is it located right next to the Rock Hall
http://goodtimeiii.com/cms/public-cruises/public-cruise-schedule.html

The science center is located on the other side of the rock hall. http://www.greatscience.com/

 

[NeedaVacation03]

We are from Columbus and love to go to Cleveland. We always use priceline in Cleveland and stay right downtown. We usually get the Crowne Plaza and love it. The staff is great and the location perfect. We have gotten the Hyatt also and like it too. They are within walking distance to most everywhere. Even when the Indians or the Browns are in town we have never had a problem.
We have also stayed in Independence and enjoyed it. The Hyatt Place and several others are nice hotels that also show up on priceline.
We just like the feel of staying downtown. We like to go to the Hard Rock Cafe when we get the chance.
Have fun planning.