Fodor's Travel Talk Forums - Albuquerque Areas to Stay

Hi, Magari. Stay away from Comfort Suites by the airport. I was there in January, and it was awful. The closest grocery store to stock my fridge was 3 miles away, and it was dirty, and I got panhandled in the parking lot. The hotel itself was definitely a rip-off, and lots of things wrong with the room.

Not in the greatest area on Central, but close enough to Old Town where I had no problems, is the Monterey Non-smokers Hotel. It's a tiny little drive-up-to-your-door motel with maybe 15 small rooms, but (for the money) one of the nicest rooms I've ever stayed in. The owner at the time was a rather crabby old gentleman, but the room was clean, comfortable and decorated wonderfully. It felt like home, not a hotel.

The northwest area of town (Coors ave area off 40) is pretty generic suburban, but pretty safe. Just north of Old Town off 25 are a dozen or more exits with hotels in sight of the highway.

The nicest all-around hotel that I've stayed at in the latter area is the Clubhouse Inn and Suites at 1315 Menaul Blvd NE. It's RIGHT next to I-25, but don't let that dissuade you. It's an ideal location for visiting the best of Albuquerque. It's a decent sized hotel, the staff was very friendly, and really went out of their way to assist a disabled solo traveller. They made sure that I had a room close to a main entry point, the ice machines, etc., but not right next to them so that I would be disturbed by noise. The room they gave me was not supposed to have a fridge and microwave (as I had requested), but because they arranged this room for me as a disabled traveller, they went and got me a fridge and microwave from another room. There was a loveseat, a coffee table, a big business desk, a dresser, a king bed, a closet near the sink...LOTS of room for me to spread out. The lobby was small, but clean, with guest meet-and-greets in the evenings, a beautiful courtyard...it was just a great place, and I'd recommend it to anybody. They raised their prices a bit, and were a bit out of my budget my last trip down there (which I regret, because I stayed at the awful Comfort Suites that I mentioned above), but VERY reasonable considering all the amenities. I'll stay there again whenever I can afford it. 3 stars from AAA, and the best 3-star facility I've personally patronized.

I hope this post gets to you in enough time to be of use, and happy travels. You'll LOVE Albuquerque if you've never been there. I've been there 3 times in the last 4 years, and there are very few cities of that size in the US that I enjoy as much.