I had to make a trip to Dallas to pick up my kids who live in Texas and I was looking for something that was above Super 8 and Motel 6 quality but for a cheap price. I checked Holiday Inn brands and then looked out the window and seen the Court Yard across the street from my house and decided to check them in Dallas. Went online and checked prices and compared them to the Holiday Inn and seen they were pretty much the same so i booked online with this property. I decided to leave a day early and called to see if I could get the same rate if I arrived earlier and they said no, called reservations and they went ahead and gave me the same rate for both nights (Thurs and Fri $47/night with AAA).
Exiting off the LBJ I realized that this part of town does not look the best. It is the kind of area that has the corner beer/wine store and some thugs hanging out, but I did not let that bother me I felt I was well protected. I arrived at the hotel and checked in and was given room 345 on the third (top) floor.The room was clean but rather small compared to other places I have stayed. It had a 42in LCD cable TV and small bathroom, patio area you could sit on (well, mine you could stand, it was one of the only ones with not furnature) if you wanted to brave the Dallas heat. I then walked to the desk to see what dining options there was since the hotel only serves breakfast. Although the clerk was friendly upon check-in he seemed to act as if coming back was a bother.
Friday I got up and went for breakfast. They have a breakfast buffet with waffles, eggs, bacon, sausage, biscuts and gravy and a few other things. The breakfast was ok but nothing to write home about, and this is where i think the Holiday Inn has them beat. They charge $10.95 during the week and for the same food it is $11.95 on the weekend and the food in just plain, nothing special. What I like about Holiday Inn is that if I buy breakfast for me the kids eat free but not so at Court Yard.
On Friday when my kids arrived I inquired about the Sponge Bob packages they were suppose to have for kids, it included a pillow case and some entertainment packs and I think a float toy for the pool, but nobody knew anything of it even though they had it advertised around the property.
One thing I did not like was that they check out out in the middle of the night and go ahead and charge your credit card. I would prefer to see my bill and pay with the method of my choosing, but i admit I had planned on using that card, but in a lot of cases I just pay with cash. Had my bill been wrong I would have had to wait for reversals and such since they charged me as they did.
Over all the place is nice, not as nice as the photos online make it look, but what place is as good as its pics? My bigget complaint was the pillows, they were so thin that it was like not having them. The bed itself was one of the most comfortable beds I have slept on but the pillows did not provide me with a great night sleep.
One thing to note, although the area is not the best, I walked around a bit and felt safe during the day, I did not venture out at night. A little tip: There is a small donut shop down by the liquor store, they have some very good donuts and are cheap;
hotel reviews