Will be attending a concert in December at the Murat. Have been advised that nothing is within walking distance of the Murat, but that we should stay "downtown". Can anyone recommend a few really nice hotels and resturant for dinner? Thank you.

Nicest hotel is the Canterbury. The Westin, Hyatt and Marriott are all very nice. Non-chain restaurants are scarce. One of the best ones is Malibu on Maryland. St. Elmo's is a hunk-o-beef classic expensive steak house. Not my style but lots of people like it. Palomino is a small, upscale chain that is very good too.

Agree with those hotel recos, plus the Adams Mark is pretty nice, as is the Radisson (and it's right on the "circle" - a round-a-bout at the direct center of the city). It was rennovated a few years ago so the interior is still fairly new.

Restaurants - would highly recommend Scholar's Inn which is about 3-4 short blocks from the Murat - a very easy walk. Food is excellent, reservations strongly suggested, especially if there's a show at the Murat that night. Also would recommend Rathskeller, but the atmosphere isn't as upscale.

I stayed at the Adams Mark on Saturday night. The room was nice, but kids who were in town for a band competition we're running down the hallways and playing on the elevators all night. I went with some guys for the Colts/Jets game on Sunday. Since we had more than a few beers we didn't care about the noise, but if I was with my wife on a vacation I would have been furious.

We stayed at Adams Mark this summer and were disappointed. They were really messed up in reservations- we couldn't get a room until 5:30 and we had a dinner reservation at 6! Also had a few other problems there. Last month, we stayed at the Marriott and were pleased.My husband went to priceline and requested a 3 star downtown hotel and got it for $80.

I've stayed at the Hyatt, it was good, much like other city Hyatts. Probably cater more to business traveler than others, but you know what to expect with a Hyatt.
As for dinner, not many really nice restaurants in downtown Indy. I've been to St. Elmo's, an Indy institution. It's good, not great, maybe a bit overrated. They're famous for the shrimp cocktail--it is very good, very powerful cocktail sauce.

The Westin was my home away from home last Spring. Very nice property with great beds. Walking distance to the canalwalk, borders, and PF Chang's.