Hello TeaLover,

I can't recommend specific hotels, but I can say that you shouldn't feel obligated to stay near the track. Last year, the traffic getting to the track was very easy. We arrived about 3 hours before the start (I wanted to see the Porsche race) of the F1 race and we zipped right into the parking lot (the lot alongside the main straight -- I can't remember which lot). You should stay in an area that has other things to offer aside from the race (such as downtow).

All the hotels I can think of downtown are upscale and expensive, and traffic will be a bear...

Have you tried the airport area? There are dozens of hotels near the airport, which is convenient to the track. Expedia lists Bestt Inn, Hampton Inn, Fairfield Inn, Amerisuites, Holiday Inn Express, and lots more.

Another possibility is to try the area known as ``The Pyramids.'' It is north-west of Indy on N. Michigan Avenue. A little bit farther from the track, but easy to get there: Drury Inn, Comfort Inn, La Quinta Inn, Holiday Inn ...

Check out smaller towns in the area. Just off of 70 near the airport is the small town of Plainfield. There are a number of Lee's Inn type hotels/motels that have sprung up in the past 10 years there. It is an easy drive to the track and will be inexpensive. On the downside, you won't be near the more interesting downtown area but you won't have to deal with crowds either. You can eat at BW3, Applebee's. Chili's, Cracker Barrel and the like in Plainfield.

Go to yahoo and look in the yellow pages for the names of Plainfield hotels. Go to mapquest and look at the location. If you can find something there, I don't think you can beat the location.

My husband grew up in the town of Speedway and we currently live about 15 miles from the track...

Thanks to all of you for the suggestions. The downtown area does look nice, but is expensive! Will check out the places everyone has suggested.

If you are interested, we often get the La Quinta near the airport for $30-35 a night on Priceline. It is the only 2.5 star in that area. Might be hard to get that rate during the race time but you might want to give it a try. It's a very nice hotel, especially for $35.

How many nights are you staying? Most of the downtown hotels have a 2-3 night minimum during race weekends. I don't know if that holds true for F-1 as it brings in smaller crowds than the 400 and the 500.

Thank you very much for the suggestion. I've never "done" Priceline before, but now is as good as any a time to begin!



<If you are interested, we often get the La Quinta near the airport for $30-35 a night on Priceline. It is the only 2.5 star in that area. Might be hard to get that rate during the race time but you might want to give it a try. It's a very nice hotel, especially for $35.>