Staybridge Suites in Naples or Bonita Springs

Old Sep 26th, 2003, 03:34 PM
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Staybridge Suites in Naples or Bonita Springs

Has anyone stayed in either of these Staybridge Suites? From the website, it appears the beds at the Naples location only go to queen size, while Bonita offers king. The prices in Bonita appear to be a tiny bit higher so my guess is that it is the nicer of the two. If anyone can give advice as to what might be the "better" (newer, more convenient location, closer to nice beaches & restaurants, activities)place to base ourselves for a first time stay to the area in December, I would appreciate it!
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Old Sep 27th, 2003, 01:31 PM
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Was hoping someone with first hand knowledge would answer, but this post is sinking fast.
All I can say is that neither are exactly in a "tourist" friendly area --both on busy traffic streets not really walking distance to much of anything. There are a few other decent restaurants near the Bonita one, but of course, the Naples one will be much closer to a lot more activity. Beachwise, from the Bonita one, you'll pretty much end up at the big and busy public beach at the end of Bonita Beach Road. But in Naples, you can head to any of the little beach access points along GulfShore and have the beach much more to yourself. I'd certainly choose Naples and can't believe it isn't more expensive than the Bonita one.
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Old Sep 27th, 2003, 07:05 PM
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Hey Patrick - you are too right - no sizzle to a post about Staybridge Suites, I am afraid. You are a big sweetheart to respond however. Looks like the Bonita site won out over Naples tho... hubby prefers the king size bed. This is only a back up plan in any case. I wanted to make sure that neither place was right next to the meat-packing plant or some similarly appealing industry. My intention is to find a very good deal for three nights at the Coconut Point Hyatt and three nights at the Escalante. We are traveling with my mom and her husband who have a bit more limited budget. I am hoping that as time gets closer I will find a good deal at each spot. Thanks for all your Naples posts, I think I have read each one!
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Old Sep 28th, 2003, 04:30 AM
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Have you tried bidding Coconut Point on Priceline (or is that your plan)? That's my favorite Hyatt in FL, both for what it has to offer and its proximity to my favorite shopping in the state...Naples.

Unfortunately for those looking for deals,(but fortunate for the hotel as it means they run close to capacity most of the time) it rarely comes up anymore as a winning bid as seen through biddingfortravel and when it has, it has become more expensive. There have been two hits recently for the fall, both at $120/night whereas the Hyatt.com rate is $210, I believe. By December though, you are getting into their season, decreasing the likelihood of successful bidding, and personally I don't believe I'd want to stay in Bonita Springs unless it was at that resort. King beds are much better than queens, no doubt, but Naples is so far and away heads and shoulders over Bonita Springs that there's no comparison!!

Occupancy at Coconut Point is further complicated by the Hyatt Vacation Club time share development going in next to the resort. Potential time share owners coming in to view that property stay at Coconut Point via an agreement between the hotel and Vacation Club at a pre-agreed rate, so they fill any occupancy slack.

In truth, I wouldn't hold out much hope for getting Coconut Point in December through Priceline. You might be able to find a deal that's acceptable price-wise through Hyatt.com. They guarantee that aside from PCLN, that will be the lowest internet rate available for their hotel and is lower than you can get by calling the hotel direct for a reservation. If that rate is more than you'd like, then I'd definitely stay in Naples and put up with the queen bed for all else that town has to offer.
 
Old Sep 28th, 2003, 05:12 AM
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By the way, December is a slow month in Naples, at least up until Christmas week. You may also want to check with Inn on Fifth in the heart of Fifth Avenue South or Trianon, a more business oriented, but nice small hotel in Old Naples for special rates during that time.

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Old Sep 28th, 2003, 12:07 PM
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Wow - OliveOyl, you read my mind. I was indeed biding my time and regularly bidding Priceline. I saw the 120/night rates for Coconut Point on BFT - I check that and Hotwire daily for pricing trends. I had not gotten to point where I was bidding 120/night, I was still hoping for a throw back to the high 90's/low 100's seen in prior times. I really appreciate your information regarding the occupancy rates, makes sense. The internet rate from Hyatt.com was 161 a few days ago, and back up to 188 today. It bounces rapidly. It's fun (in a certain crazy way) to watch the way these prices change. I do love the bargain hunt! Worse case scenario is the Holiday Inn property, hubby has a half million points there right now. Based on what both you and Patrick say, I am at least going to switch over to the Naples Staybridge while I keep my eyes open for a deal. Many thanks to you and Patrick for the time you take to assist others!
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Old Sep 29th, 2003, 10:58 AM
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I got a much better price bidding on hotels.com than on Priceline.
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Old Sep 29th, 2003, 12:24 PM
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Not really a mind reader HappyCheesehead...Staybridge appears as a back up on the bft boards for that area, so I figured that was what you were planning. I'm really glad you are switching to the Naples hotel though!

I just saw winning bid for Coconut Point for the week between Xmas and New Years and that is a slow time here (Tampa area) as well. Is that when you are going? Seems to me Staybridge is 128 and if you can get Coconut Point for 120 through BFT, I'd pounce on it and not hope for more and possibly miss out on their cutting off availability to PCLN. They cut it off well before they are full, knowing the rest of the rooms will fill between now and then naturally. There is a very sophisticated system in place for managing revenue, especially in the larger chains. Ours projects way out, even taking into consideration citywide conventions downtown, which will impact us on the bay with spillover. There is some correlation between the Hyatt.com rate and what the hotel would accept as a minimum bid on PCLN too, so if you are seeing an upward trend on hyatt.com, I sure wouldn't wait much longer! JMHO, but if Staybridge at that rate is your back up, you should really go for it. There's just no comparison.

Good luck...I'll be curious to hear how it all plays out!
 
Old Sep 30th, 2003, 10:11 AM
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Hi OliveOyl:

You are a wealth of information - I appreciate the way you share the methodology behind the availability, it certainly seems at times that there is no rhyme nor reason! I think I had better take action ASAP. The Staybridge we have reserved is a two bedroom suite for 113 plus tax($60/night per couple)but it certainly isn't the hotel we would be telling all our friends about when we get home! We can also some of our points to pay for individual rooms, too. Sad thing about having all those Holiday Inn Points - I can never find one that I really want to stay at!
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Old Oct 23rd, 2003, 09:46 AM
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Decided to have the best of both worlds -- Happy to report I did get Coconut Point for 116 per night through Priceline for 2 nights, and have also chosen to stay at the Escalante for 4 night ($119). I LOVE to travel during slow times! My friend looked into the Coconut Point for the week before Easter, cheapest prepaid non cancellable rate is $356!
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Old Oct 24th, 2003, 02:33 PM
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Happy,
I am going to let you in on a lil secret place down here. The lemon Tree Inn, on Hwy 41. It is a small quaint little place, privatly owned, and a little doll house. Rooms are about $79 per night. The owners run the place and are VERY friendly. You are walking distance to all the 5th ave. activities. By the way, I give nature tours of the Everglades to hotel guests here. Let me know if your group would enjoy a private tour with me,..airboat ride, gators, nature etc.
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Old Oct 24th, 2003, 03:25 PM
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Beware of this illegal advertiser. This is the third post from him I've seen tonight -- all illegal advertising. The Lemon Tree Inn is a cut redone 1950's motel. A long shot from even the places you mention.
If Coconut Resort is a 95 on a scale of 1 to 100, then Lemon Tree is a 45. I've recommended it myself for very low budget oriented people, but hardly in the same class as the Hyatt!!!
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