Do you guys think this place will last? It's pretty far flung for city visitors, and it doesn't seem like Mascoutah or Lebanon is big enough to support it. Am I wrong??
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I'm not sure how well La Quinta Inn will do at this interchange, but it does have a few things going for it:
- It's still closer to downtown than Chesterfield, and access is easier
- It's reasonably close to Scott Air Force Base
- McKendree University parents will have a closer option when they visit
- Amenities in and around St. Clair Square are less than 10 minutes away
- Metro East hotel rooms, specifically, those in Collinsville, Fairview Heights, and Shiloh, fill up quickly, especially in the summer.
It seems like natives of the Missouri side of the St. Louis metro area are the only ones that think the Metro East is on the other side of the world. In reality, it's much more convenient to downtown than many parts of St. Louis County. With that in mind, the proximity of Scott AFB and McKendree, and some people's preference to stay somewhere close to downtown yet away from congestion, this La Quinta might do just fine.
- It's still closer to downtown than Chesterfield, and access is easier
- It's reasonably close to Scott Air Force Base
- McKendree University parents will have a closer option when they visit
- Amenities in and around St. Clair Square are less than 10 minutes away
- Metro East hotel rooms, specifically, those in Collinsville, Fairview Heights, and Shiloh, fill up quickly, especially in the summer.
It seems like natives of the Missouri side of the St. Louis metro area are the only ones that think the Metro East is on the other side of the world. In reality, it's much more convenient to downtown than many parts of St. Louis County. With that in mind, the proximity of Scott AFB and McKendree, and some people's preference to stay somewhere close to downtown yet away from congestion, this La Quinta might do just fine.
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That's all true, but I think a lot of people actually like staying in suburbia, where the shopping and restaurants are all over and they don't have to worry about the "terrible traffic" of the city (even though the article is worse in suburbia than it is in the city, in my opinion). So I guess Chesterfield wins over Lebanon. You wouldn't believe the amount of people that come and visit "St. Louis" and stay in a hotel in O'Fallon because it's what they're used to and it's so close to the mall and everything. I can see people coming to stay for McKendree and if everything else was filled up, I just can't see people staying there to go to the mall and what not.
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It will do just fine there. I have been surprised how slow that interchange has developed, actually. I know the airport is not all it was cracked up to be, but still that is an attractive interchange for various reason. Mascoutah/Lebanon are probably big enough to support it on their own, but also it will serve as a hotel for other activities, such as corporate folks that are going to the powerplant. Plus, it will serve as a spotting point for people in "downstate" that are going to Cardinal Ballgames. Juice, you should know this as well as anyone. Folks that live in Benton and beyond that want to go to a ballgame often make a weekend of it, but they don't want to pay downtown hotel rates. They also don't want to deal with the mess that is Fairview and the mess that is becoming O'Fallon. So, one more stop out ... Mascoutah. Perhaps the Best Western in Nashville is a good comparison. The town supports it pretty well with out of town guests for weddings and holidays and the factories support it and it gets some business from the interstate -- and it does just fine.
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Little Egyptian wrote:It will do just fine there. I have been surprised how slow that interchange has developed, actually. I know the airport is not all it was cracked up to be, but still that is an attractive interchange for various reason. Mascoutah/Lebanon are probably big enough to support it on their own, but also it will serve as a hotel for other activities, such as corporate folks that are going to the powerplant. Plus, it will serve as a spotting point for people in "downstate" that are going to Cardinal Ballgames. Juice, you should know this as well as anyone. Folks that live in Benton and beyond that want to go to a ballgame often make a weekend of it, but they don't want to pay downtown hotel rates. They also don't want to deal with the mess that is Fairview and the mess that is becoming O'Fallon. So, one more stop out ... Mascoutah. Perhaps the Best Western in Nashville is a good comparison. The town supports it pretty well with out of town guests for weddings and holidays and the factories support it and it gets some business from the interstate -- and it does just fine.
I'm not sure about the other inhabitants of Benton, but when I went up with my parents or later in life with my wife, we usually stayed downtown.