Calgary lodging
 

Hi!
We have a wedding to attend in early Oct.--blocks of rooms have been booked for the Sandman ($119/nt) and 4 Pts Sheraton ($129/nt) ....Money is really tight for us at the moment, and we were hoping to use points and stay at the Marriott but don't have enough :(

Any feedback on the two hotels mentioned above? Any tips to finding clean, safe lodging cheaper than those rates?
Thanks!
OWJ

I forgot to add the hotels are located across from Canada Olympic Park and we are fine not staying where the rest of the family will be--in fact we prefer it :o

We plan to rent a car :)

OWJ,
I don't know Calgary at all but I can ask a friend who lives there. I'll do that tomorrow. But have you considered trying Priceline?

I take it the wedding is close to those hotels. You could probably get cheaper rates at Motel Village which would not be too far away from COP.

GTG--
Hello! How are YOU?!

Thanks for asking your friend for us! I have no problem using PL, in fact we've used it tons for hotels in other cities with good results. The problem is when I went on biddingfortravel there was almost no info, and what I found was several months old. I knew I could count on fodorsville for the up to date scoop so here I am.

Cruiser--
Yes, the wedding appears to be quite close to those hotels. It will be at the Valley Ridge Golf Club.

Thanks!
OWJ

Sorry, owj -- no response from my friend yet. If I don't get one tonight, it'll have to wait a week since we're (finally) getting to go on a week's holiday. And I'm really doing fine, thanks. Even my taste buds are coming back!

No worries, GTG and have a great trip (where ever you're off too!) Glad those tastebuds are coming back and you're back to being a travelin' fool :D

Hiya owj -- here's what my friend says:

"Cheap Lodging and Calgary = oxymoron.
Those two hotels are far from downtown - a car will be needed if one plans to do anything in terms of getting around. No transit at those locations that I can think of off the bat.
There are hotels closer in which may be cheaper - Holiday Inn Express and Comfort Inn & Suites, Hampton Inn, all located at Crowchild Trail and 16th Ave.. Once again, not downtown, but might be less expensive in October now that Stampede is done. There are the usual Super 8's etc - but I can't vouch for them.
Does she only have points for a Marriott? There are Ramada and Best Westerns here too...If she has a Motor League membership, she can get discounts at hotels here.
Hope this helps. Otherwise, tell her to check Hotels.com, or Expedia.com.. also sometimes phoning the hotels directly can get a better rack rate."

We're off to Florida for a week of nice hot weather and generally lazing around. Golf for him, cheesy novels for me. Yay!!!

Goddess--
Enjoy the cheesy reads, the beach and the steamy weather, and please tell your friend thank you from us. I'll check out her suggestions tomorrow.

OWJ

The ones across from COP are OK, and there are a couple of fast food places there (McD's and Wendy's). It's very easy access to Valley Ridge (I worked there eons ago when I was in University!) but they are right on the edge of the western part of the city and right on the Trans Canada. They are clean and typical of those chains. That little area is kind of the last stop for people heading out of town to Banff.

As GTG mentioned, Motel Village has a couple more options. It's still only about a 20 minute drive to Valley Ridge (16th Ave is in fact the Trans Canada), so not bad, and there are a few more restaurant options if you're into Red Lobster and Boston Pizza. That area is closer to the University and McMahon Stadium. A bit leafier but a busy area.

I think the prices mentioned for the two hotels are extremely reasonable and I doubt you'll find a decent hotel in Calgary for less. Both those hotels are clean, mid-market hotels with good coffee shops. Plus, as mentioned previously, they are just a few minutes away from the wedding. The only other thing I might suggest is trying to find a B&B in northwest Calgary.

JRanger--I agree those hotels aren't expensive and before my husband's income went down drastically, it would have been well within our budget. We probably shouldn't even be traveling to this wedding but it's my 1st cousin's (of which I only have 2) and I feel I need to be there. That being said, thanks for the B&B idea.

Taggie--I'll look into Motel Village as well.