Embassy Suites Outdoor World/DFW - Great Hotel W/O
Written: Apr 17 '03 (Updated Apr 17 '03)
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Pros: Nice rooms. 5 minutes from DFW. Outdoor store fun for kids and adults. Free breakfast.
Cons: Can be more expensive. Busy pool.
The Bottom Line: Super family location, especially if flying out of DFW. Try the Hilton next door for a quieter experience.
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| pilotpat's Full Review: Es-Outdoor World/DFW International Airport |
As mentioned in prior reviews, I often travel to the DFW metroplex with my family to enjoy its attractions or to
pick up/drop off people (or myself) at the airports. Usually, we stay in one of the many Embassy Suites in the
area.
I enjoy Embassy Suites properties for several reasons:
- 2-room suites with a door in-between!...absolutely imperative if traveling with small kids.
- Full hot breakfast: For a family of 4, figure on this being worth $30 a day.
- Standardization: The hotels vary with their decor, number of rooms, and extra features, but are very good about offering a standardized product once you get into the room. You can count on a clean, spacious, and well-appointed suite in good condition, and a well-performed hot breakfast buffet/short order menu.
OTHER OPTIONS IN DFW AREA
I have reviewed, or will review, the following other hotels that offer similar ammenities in the Dallas-Fort Worth Area
- Embassy Suites DFW Galleria - Boasts swans in the courtyard that the kids enjoy.
- Hilton Suites Dallas North - More for the business traveler, but new and very nice.
- Embassy Suites DFW South - OK, but highway noise on North Side of hotel.
LOCATION
If you're planning to catch an early-morning/late-night flight out of DFW, this or the ES DFW South locations are the best bets. This one is just across SR-114 from the DFW North Entrance. A free shuttle runs between the airport and the gate (By the way, you can catch this also if all you want to do is hit the Bass Pro shops during a long layover), and the total trip door-to-door is about 5 minutes.
The hotel is attached to the huge Bass Pro Outdoor World shop (more on that later), and is also within walking distance to the immense Grapevine Mills mall. It's about 20 minutes from the hotel to the Fort Worth cultural center, and a good half-hour from Dallas Love Field.
ARRIVAL
Valet parking is available, but self-parking is ample, well-lit, and close by the doors. Valets/Doormen are quite courteous, and grumbled not a bit when I had them fetch the vehicle and repark only 5 minutes after I checked in (I had forgotten my camera bag).
The entryway is covered, and going through the doors brings you to the front desk... I mean front desks - several round stations with computers recessed inside and staffed by courteous attendants. Check-in took less than 30 seconds.
Walking past the desks, we were treated to the huge inner atrium with waterfall displays and lots of greenery. We took the glass elevators to our floor and walked to our room.
ROOM
Again, this is a reason I stay at Embassy Suites. The room was a "standard" 2-room, 2 queen bed suite. Forgive me if I cut/paste and modify a big block of text from a previous ES review.
The living room area is furnished with dark wood furniture, a small refrigerator, bar sink (not a stocked minibar, though), serving bar, microwave, small dining/card table with upholstered chairs, Sofa-bed, and a relatively large TV with cable, pay-per-view, and games (at a charge). Movies are about $10 and include relatively new (pre-video release) and other selections. The 2-line telephone has a dataport, and I believe local calls were free. An ice bucket and glasses is on the bar. A nice touch for those in the higher echelons of the HHonors program is that they leave a personally addressed welcome letter with the manager's card on the desk.
The bathroom sits between the two rooms, and is reasonably appointed. The standard free toiletries are on the sink - lotion, shampoo, conditioner, and soap. Towels are clean, in fresh condition, and plush. Water pressure and heat is strong. A hairdryer and large mirror are furnished as well.
The bedroom is beyond a door, and features either a King or two Queen beds with nightstands and bedside reading lamps. Another TV with the same features as the living room sits in a console. Ample hangars and closet space are provided, and a counter/dresser on the side of the room provides more space for luggage and clothing. Part of that counter serves as a writing desk, with access to the phone and dataport.
The only noise was from the waterfalls outside, which did a nice job of keeping the sound down from the restaurant, bar, and pool.
POOL/FITNESS
Speaking of the pool, it was nice, moderately large, clean, and quite crowded this weekend, with many anklebiters (mine included) scurrying around. Parental supervision was noticably lacking, and I figure that if we took ourselves and our two kids out of the equation, each of the other 4 adults must have had approximately 6 kids (Of course, I have heard that larger families are more in vogue these days). The hot tub/jaccuzzi is adequately sized, if not huge. Glass doors keep some, but by no means all, of the noise out of the lobby.
BAR
Before tucking the kids into bed, I made two trips to the bar to visit the manager's reception. Each trip netted me two complimetary and generously-sized glasses of a reasonable if not fancy California cabernet (the "rules" state only 2 glasses per customer per visit to the bar, but the bartender had no problem with my multiple trips). I set them on the bar to breathe while we got along with the kid's bedtime rituals. My wife and I then enjoyed the glasses over quiet conversation, a bit of the tube, and books before turning in ourselves.
RESTAURANTS
There is an "Uncle Buck's" (I think that's the name) restaurant that serves with an outdoor theme in-between the hotel and store. We did not eat there, but the menu looked intriguing (and relatively pricey).
In the store itself is a pretty nice snack bar that has deli sandwiches and some game and fish selections, with casual seating next to immense aquariums for a moderate price, as well as an ice cream/coffee bar next to a trout pond and water wheel. Very fun for the kids.
Of course, the main lobby features a hot breakfast buffet/short-order section every morning that is complimentary for guests. The buffet line offered an OK selection of fruit, yogurt, cereal, donuts, bagels, and danishes on the cold section, and scrambled eggs, sausage, bacon, french toast, hashbrowns and a few other offerings on the hot side. Short-order omelettes and french toast were nicely done (although you'll want to be an earlybird if you want to avoid lines at this counter). Coffee was hot and strong, with tea available as well. Juice included grapefruit, orange, and apple. 2%, Skim, and Chocolate milk rounded out the drink offerings. The breakfast staff was quite friendly.
Also available just a short walk away are many restaurants in and around the huge Grapevine Mills Mall, including my kid's favorite, the Rainforest Cafe.
BASS PRO SHOPS OUTDOOR WORLD
Of course, what draws a lot of people to this place is the local Outdoorsman's Mecca. Outdoor World is probably a square mile's worth of store. Surrounding and interspersed among the shelves are museum-quality displays of taxidermy (although I must say that the Cabela's Outlet south of MSP - Minnetonka? - has a better selection of these). The center of the store has a huge mountain with waterfall, and an immense fresh-water aquarium at the base with 8' glass walls. In it are oversized trophy-sized fish, including catfish, gar, paddlefish, Crappie, and Bass, including "Flo," running in the 20 lb range, I believe. All about the mountain are wonderful taxidermic displays. Another fun taxidermic display during the Christmas season is Santa's sleigh, complete with 8 deer (the front one with a red nose, of course).
The store itself has just about everything you could want for outdoor adventures, from camping, backpacking, and canoeing to hunting, fishing, and power-boating. One sad note is that I heard rumors (unconfirmed) that the handgun section is on its way out due to liability problems - say it ain't so, Joe! Prices are reasonable, though you can find better deals elsewhere if you look.
Gift shops and an outdoor-themed arcade are near the checkout stands, and next to the gun counter is a huge grizzly with backdrop so that you can pose for pictures as if you just dropped the bruin with your .338 Win Mag.
The upstairs even features an indoor archery range (50 yds, I believe - not bad)!
OVERALL
A great location and super hotel, especially if you're flying out of DFW. If you stay with them before or after your trip, you can arrange to leave your car in their lot, which for a long trip could be a deal (on-site parking at DFW runs $6/day in long-term, I believe).
The ES Outdoor World does tend to run more expensive than the other ES properties, but if you keep your eyes out, you can find good deals - we managed a $69/night rate on our first stay.
PARTICIPATE IN THE GREAT HOTEL WRITE-OFF!
http://www.angelfire.com/moon/lyagushka/index.html
Recommended:
Yes
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pilotpat
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Member: Pat
Location: World Traveler
Reviews written: 96
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"Never tell your neighbors to wait until tomorrow if you can help them now."
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