Dallas TX Arboretum Visit, Need Lodging Recommendation
 

Hi, My wife and I are flying to Dallas March 30, 2015 for three nights to visit the Arboretum and Botanical Gardens. We are not too familiar with Dallas. Would like to stay in a nice moderate + hotel in a good area with a choice of restaurants or other attraction with easy access. I don't see anything too close to the Arboretum in my quick search. Price is flexible but we usually look for a nice Hampton Inn or an interesting hotel. Any touristy recommendations would be appreciated. Thanks, Ross

The Arboretum is in a residential district (Lakewood) so it's not going to have hotels. For hotels and restaurants, look at the SMU neighborhood or along Highway 75 (Central Freeway). There are hotels along I30 south of the Arboretum but it's pretty industrial.

This is well located for shopping and restaurants near North Park Mall. http://www.marriott.com/hotels/trave...al-expressway/ We had a wedding party stay there several years ago and it was very nice, but no free breakfast.

Lots of interesting restaurants in the Lower Greenville area not too far from Lakewood. Search for Trader Joe's on Greenville and it will take you to the right area. Visit The Truck Yard for lunch.
http://texastruckyard.com/

Hampton Inn or Best Western Plus in Rockwall

<<Would like to stay in a nice moderate + hotel in a good area with a choice of restaurants or other attraction with easy access.>>

Um, what?

Look: you obviously don't understand Dallas. The city itself is physically larger than New York (so is FW) and its downtown is smaller than Boston's. In four words: you need a car. If you had any notion of NOT driving, give that up now. The location you'll want will be in short driving distance to ____ (museum, shop, dining options, Arboretum).

Happytourist gave you the right general direction: look for someplace on Central Expressway (U.S. 75) that is SOUTH of Interstate 635 (LBJ Freeway - everyone here refers to it as LBJ). If you're between Mockingbird Lane and Lovers Lane on Central, you'll be fairly close to Southern Methodist University (SMU). My progenitors used to stay at a La Quinta or Homewood or similar just north of Northpark Mall, which had breakfast and was thisclose to the DART rail (won't do you a da-n bit of good for the Arboretum). Rockwall is out of town to the east, which will suck for access to Dallas generally (riding I-30 is not fun) and will be even worse for getting back to DFW (which is between Dallas and Fort Worth, hence the name, and is on the other side of Dallas from Rockwall).

The Arboretum is not near any other attraction other than White Rock Lake, which is an urban lake bordered by various residential areas of varying average net worth. There are bicycle rentals and some boat rentals available, it has walking/jogging paths, and birds and turtles, but other than that it is a lake. Museums are essentially downtown in the Arts District (Nasher, DMA, Crowe Asian Art Museum) or the West End (Book Depository, World Aquarium, Perot Center), except the Flight Museum, which is near Love Field Airport.

Food is everywhere - Dallas has more restaurants per capita than NYC. Don't fret that.

Bottom line: Stay inside I-635 (LBJ Freeway), east of the Dallas Tollway, north of I-30 and anywhere around Highway 75/Central Freeway.

Rockwall is a good 20 miles east of Dallas and across a lake.

I'm not sure if this is permitted on here, but I have a friend who lists his condo on AirBnB and the condo is located in the Uptown area of Dallas. Many restaurants within walking distance, movies, shopping. You will definitely need a car to get to the Arboretum, or could perhaps hire a cab. The arboretum is beautiful! We've had quite a bit of rain here lately, so everything should be blooming bright and cheery.

Here's the link:

https://www.airbnb.com/rooms/4112286...uests=2&s=SxCX

Anywhere downtown would be convenient to the Arboretum. The Adolphus is a neat hotel with a lot of history. Definitely plan on renting a car.