New England Hotel?
 

Here's our quest: need a resort style hotel off of I-95 for second and third weekend of June for one night (of each weekend) that is kid friendly and has an outdoor pool (that is clean!). Would like to stay under $200 per night if possible but be close to the heart of town(i.e. Boston, Newport, Mystic, etc.). We temporarily have a reservation on hold at the Sheraton in Portsmouth,NH. However, I ran the gammet of searches and everything else I'm looking at is ridiculous for one night or will not accomodate us for one night. Super 8's, Days Inn and the like are NOT options for us. Did we miss something....can anybody help??????

I am a little confused. "close to the heart of town" and "off of I-95" for Boston are not really possible together, unless you mean quite far off I-95. First I-95 does not go thru Boston, I-93 does, but I-95 is locally called Rte 128 and is a circular route around the city of Boston - perhaps 10-15 miles out.

Do you not care which city you are close to the heart of? Because obviously Boston, Mystic and Newport are quite far apart.

Does it have to be the same city for the 2 weekend days?

Speaking only about Boston, prices are in fact crazy, especially in peak summer months. I can not think of, off hand, a resort style hotel in the heart of Boston with an outdoor pool - and certainly not at the price - but I will continue to give it some thought. Meanwhile, if you end my confusion about above questions, it might spark my brain a little more.

Closest I can come, doing a little more research, in Boston is Royal Sonesta in Cambridge @ $250 - they have a rooftop pool but no idea of its cleanliness. An OK location - but again, not off I95. Walkable to MBTA to things in Boston.

What have you looked at and rejected in Boston area?

You are probably best off looking somewhere in CT. As has been said, I-95 near Boston isn't really near Boston. Also very few places have outdoor pools because they are unusable for most of the year. Even during the second week of June, I would be reluctant to hop in an outdoor pool around here unless it was heated. Perhaps you could try around Stamford.

I'm confused to your requested locations. The cities you name are along the coast I-95 freeway runs north/south inland at most points.

In New England, Route 95 follow the coast. Both Newport and Boston are within 15 miles of Route 95.

Getting a "resort style" hotel in June in new england on the weekend with your wish list is not going to be easy. Hotels to look at in CT that have what you're looking for: Water's Edge, Saybrook Point Inn-- but i don't think you'll get them for under $200. In Newport, most places will require a 2 night minimum.

You are right about the 15 miles to Boston Anon, but I can't think of a resort hotel with a pool under $200.

I take that back. How about someplace in Westford MA. They have indoor pools but are right off of Route 495, which mirrors I-95 by about 15 miles as they both circle Boston.

I thought I-95 was the freeway I drove to get up into western Massachusetts and southern Vermont, no?

That's I-91

Thanks to the hierarchy developed by the national highway builders, New Englanders' major highways are Route 90, 91, 93 and 95, plus 495, 395, and 195. And, somehow, 84.

OK here is the clarification for all regarding my first post: we are a family of three, husband, wife and 4 1/2 yr old daughter who loves to swim. We are driving (via nyc) to Maine on June 13th and returning on the 22nd so we need a hotel for the night of June 14th for the way up and June 21st for the way down. And yes, for the most part we're driving the I-95 route which is why we prefer places closest to the highway. We also have stayed at many places along the eastern seaboard from Maine to Florida. We have done stamford, greenwich, mystic, westport, norwich, groton, saybrook (old saybrook and water's edge), providence, mewpoert, naragansett, boston, cape cod, hyannis, west dennis, kennebunkport, kittery, portland and probably some others I'm forgetting, however, not all with our daughter. So we thought portsmouth, nh on the way up and then possibly boston on the way back so she can do the duck tour and science museum with us among the other typical attractions in the city.

TO GAIL: I was also thinking of the Royal sonesta as a choice since they are the only ones who come close to what we're looking for. And yes, pricing is a problem that time of year. All of the typical hotel chains within 5 miles of the city limits seem off limits and I maybe faced by going 10 to 15 miles out and using MT instead.

But thanks to all who replied. Keep em coming...I haven't given up hope!

What about that Sheraton that has a water park attached to it? What's it called, The Ferncroft?

In Portsmouth area there is Water Country (I know not a hotel) that might appeal to your family as a place to play for at least part of a day. Outdoor water parks in New England are few, because of limits to months of use, and consequently smaller than in some other parts of the country. This place has a kid section, wave pool plus quite a few slides that, with a parent, your child could use. Might be nice for your dtr after such a long car trip. Close to Rte 95 and then might make hotel choice easier since you could skip the pool.

Thanks to Joesource & Gail - we've already sampled water park type hotels closest to us northwest of here and I was not pleased on many levels. Although the rooms were roomy, the park lacked sufficent lifeguard staff, they did not represent their play areas properly for the toddlers, it was extremely slippery and they did not appear to have enough locker space for guests to use which became a huge inconveinance for us with a toddler and stroller. And let's not even talk about cleanliness! Big fat zero! So even though my daughter would go ape for a place like that, we definitely WILL NOT! I'll stick to the Portsmouth Sheraton on the way up and hope for a miracle deal in the boston area on the way back! I really prefer Boston on the return since I believe my daughter will have more fun in that city as opposed to Newport, Providence or any CT shore city for that matter.

Water Country is not a water park hotel - it is a water park. We have been there with our kids since they were little and found it well supervised, clean, age-appropriate areas. No idea about lockers - I doubt anyplace is going to have lockers big enough for stroller. Not trying to talk you into it - I have no investment in whether you go or not - but just want to make sure you have current and accurate info on the place.

Consider in the Portsmouth area the Wentworth by the Sea. Has both an indoor and outdoor pool. Close to Portsmouth center (about a 5 minute drive), there is a lovely waterfront park with a newer playground just down the street. The hotel is lovely. We've stayed there 5 times now and have never had a bad experience.

thanks beeenie - I tried wentworth and they were booked for the night of 6/21. We would have loved it! Have any connections?

just to potentially complicate things...
if I were driving NYC to Maine, I wouldn't be driving on 95 until I got to NH. I'd be taking the Hutch to 684 to 84 to 90 to 495. It would be shorter, and have less traffic. you could still have your stopover in Portsmouth. Unless you have some particular reason to stick to I-95.

But I can't tell, when you say you want to be close to town if you actually want to do some sightseeing during your stopover, or if you have something in particular you want to do? Because you could try looking for someplace to stay around Sturbridge, perhaps.

Sorry - no connections.

There are Westins in Waltham (right off 95/128 and Providence. Both of those have indoor pools according to the website. No mention of outdoor pools.

thanks chinacat - my husband and I did venture to old sturbridge village before DH was born and I don't think she is of the age now to appreciate it just yet. It did cross my mind in the planning stage.
We don't necessarily have to follow the I-95 route, it would just be easier. I had thought about some sightseeing only if it were worth while (i.e. Boston) but it is not necessary during the stopover at all. I know after 4 or so hours in the car (on the ride back) the DH will need some exercise as well as some fun. Hence the necessity for an outdoor pool! But many thanks and keep it coming!

When making your reservations, it would be a good idea to check on whether the hotel's outdoor pool will actually be open already in mid-June. So many places have indoor pools; are you sure that's no OK too?

To Anon - YES.