hotel near Children's Museum

Hubby and I are planning on visiting during the Tut exhibit this summer, and we%26#39;ve never been to Indianapolis. Are there any hotels close or a short drive away that anyone would recommend? We%26#39;re thinking in the Holiday Inn price range...moderate, safe, etc. Thanks for your help!

hotel near Children's Museum

The downtown hotels will certainly be good choices. It%26#39;s a fifteen minute drive from a downtown hotel to the Children%26#39;s Museum (probably best to head north on Illinois Street to the museum - you%26#39;ll see the elevated/covered walkway from the Illinois St. parking garage over Illinois St. to the museum, and the T-Rex ';breaking out of'; the museum is likely to catch your attention as well).

Downtown hotels give you a short drive to the museum, and also (significantly) give you plenty of other entertainment %26amp; dining options. Downtown Indy is VERY compact, so any hotel within a 4 block radius of Monument Circle puts you within easy walking distance of a huge array of restaurants, shopping options, and other museums/theaters.

If you try the William Shatner pitched hotel locator/discount bidding service, you likely can get a 3+ or 4 star hotel for a great price ($100 or less).

Enjoy!

hotel near Children's Museum

I agree that downtown is the best way to go. There are not any hotels in the immediate vicinity and I would not recommend staying along the 38th street corridor. With downtown, as Dave in Indy notes, you have access to several hotels, restaurants, bars, as well as the other museums. The Eiteljorg museum of western/native American art is noteworthy and is adjacent to the Indiana state museum/IMAX (relatively new and more interesting than one might assume). Also nearby is the NCAA Hall of Champions. The canal walk is a nice outdoor activity (walk or rent paddleboat).

Although I%26#39;m more familiar with the meeting facilities than the guest rooms, I have stayed in and would recommend the Westin, Marriott, and Omni Severin. I would not recommend the Sheraton.If you would like a bed and breakfast, I would recommend the Nestle Inn along the Mass. Ave corridor (independent restaurants, galleries, etc.) which is about a 10 minute walk/2 minute drive northeast of downtown.

As you can see downtown is the choice for hotels in Indy. Wide variety to choose from. Plus shopping, dining, and entertainment. Not around the Children%26#39;s museum. Take the car or cab to visit. Check out indy.org for the Indianapolis tourism website for more information.

I used the William Shatner pitched hotel locator (priceline) for a trip to Indianapolis last spring. I was there two different nights at the ends of a trip to Cincinnati (the cheapest and most direct way to get to Cincinnati was to fly to Indianapolis).

I requested 4 star downtown both times. At one end, we ended up at the University Place hotel. I don%26#39;t think it was truly four stars, nor was it really downtown. There was a free shuttle bus but it was not very convenient. I wouldn%26#39;t stay there again unless I needed to be at the university or the hospital.

At the other end, we stayed at the downtown Mariott. I loved it there and would happily pay full price to stay there again. It was a truly deluxe hotel, yet very child friendly. It was centrally located to downtown.

Downtown Indianapolis looks like an interesting place to explore. I%26#39;ll have some time to do that as my daughter has decided to go to IU!

I believe there is a new Homewood Suites dowtown, Hampton Inn so hotels ranging the entire spectrum from the expensive Conrad to Marriott, the Westin to Holiday Inn at Union Station, to Hampton Inn so something for every budget.