We are arriving Denver, 8/28 and leaving 8/30. Need a hotel room for the 2 night and unfortunately this is during the last day of the Democratic Convention. I can't find a hotel to stay in. We are going to check out the Univ. of Denver, so any lodging suggestions or cities to try and find a place to stay for this would be very helpful. I am willing to drive long distances, the airline tickets are non refundable, I prefer not to spend $300 for a hotel room.
Thanks!
Elaine

Wow - you do have a problem. I tried Priceline and it did come up with some under $300 in the Denver area. You might give that a try

I checked Expedia and Hotels.com and there is a Sheraton in the Denver Tech Center available both nights for a king room. The rate on 8/28 is $254 and then is much lower on 8/29. The location is close to a light rail station that will take you right to DU in about 20 minutes. You can also check for lodging in Centennial, Littleton, Highlands Ranch and the DTC which are all within a 15 - 20 minute drive of DU. Castle Rock may be another option but your drive will be about 40 minutes. Beyond that is Colorado Springs.

I am recommending cities south of the University of Denver, since I-25 will be shut down for a significant portion of time during Obama's speech at Invesco Field (north of DU) on 8/28. The closure is between 6th Avenue on the south and I-70 on the north starting at 5:30 pm until the event ends. This may cause a huge traffic nightmare that you will probably want to avoid.

Good luck finding a room on the 28th! Your options look much better on the 29th.

Elaine - On Priceline, there was a Drurys Inn for $97 in the Tech Center. I don't know anything about the chain, but it is in a good location off of I-25. Ten - 15 minutes to DU. There are many other like places in the Tech Center. Castle Rock would not be that far - 25 minutes. There are a couple of places off of 470 at Parker Rd that would be okay too. Or off of I-225. Agree with staying south of town. Downtown may be a zoo. But traffic to DU from the south may not be that bad as some people may be taking off the week or working at home.
My daughter will be a sophomore at DU if you have any specific questions. She seems to really like it. We live in the area, too

BetsyG - You said There are a couple of places off of 470 at Parker Rd that would be okay too. Or off of I-225.
Can you tell me any to look up?
I am still searching for a hotel under $250.

thanks!
Elaine

I'm not BetsyG, but there is a Holiday Inn at E470 & Parker. I'll second the location of the Drury Inn at I-25 and Dry Creek. It is across the street from a light rail station, so you can hop on a train that will take you directly to DU. Just a heads up - one of the news stations is reporting that Ralph Nader is holding a rally at DU on 8/29.

Take something in the Tech Center. You can take University for a straight shot to DU, and often do better than I25 even at rush hour. It is about 20 minutes from the Tech Center area.

Correction and good news...the rally is on August 27, so there won't be several thousand people getting in the way of your visit.

Not sure what Gretchen means by Univ being a straight shot from the Tech Center. University Ave. is a north/south neighborhood street that runs on the east side of campus. The Denver Tech Center is about five, six miles east of University Blvd. So you need to go west on one of the major east/west streets to Univ and then north. The Denver Technological Center is south of I-225 and east of I-25. It is primarily a area of office buildings, some residential, and hotels/motels at the exits off of I-25. It is a reasonable alternative area for DU since you probably cannot get closer. Parker Road and C470 is long ways away. You will want to be closer. Use Goggle Maps to plot the locations.

You arrive on the last day of DNC which will probably still be tight for rooms. Again today the Denver Post reported nearly everything within 50 miles is taken but I am guessing there would be a lot of block rooms that could be released over the weekend.

Elaine - at 470 & Parker RD besides the Holiday Inn (maybe Select Hotel) there is a Super 8 further south in Parker. It looks very basic. 470 & Parker is not that much further for you, maybe 10 minutes from the Tech Center, so 25? from DU. There is never much if any traffic on 470 although there is a toll. Was the Drury's Booked? Did you look at Castle Rock? Did you try searching by Park Meadows?

If your tour/appts are off peak, it would be much better for traffic.

I was able to secure a room on Priceline at the Drury Inn for only $98/night. I am shocked and so happy!
Reviews look ok for this hotel, keeping my fingers crossed.

Elaine

p.s. BetsyG - can I email you about questions of Univ of Denver privately?

Elaine - I hope the Drury's is ok, at least the price is right & the location will be good. My email is [email protected]. I will have to let your email come through, accept you so to speak.

I was thinking I wouldn't be surprised if there aren't other DNC events on campus that week because they do have some beautiful facilities.

The Drury is fine. About three/four years old. Decent BarBQ next door and the Dry Creek Light rail station is about a hundred yards south across Dry Creek. You will be about 45 mins via Light Rail from downtown Denver. About 20 mins (normal traffic) from the campus via I-25 and 30 mins via west on Dry Creek to Univ and north. The DNC is done Thursday night so doubt if there will be any campus activities on Friday. Assuming you are arriving late PM or early evening from the airport take the toll road E-470 south to I-25 north and almost immediately get off at Dry Creek and head west under I-25 to the hotel. I-25 will be closed from late PM through the evening hours on Thursday. A lot of through traffic will be diverted to I-225 south so would expect a lot of traffic in that area. Stick to the toll road and you avoid most of the problems.

If you want any directions for dinner in that area, let me know what you like and the price.

I am also a retired Dean from DU.

Yes, once again fmpden points out that I get ahead of myself, but University is an excellent alternative to I25 for getting downtown. I call the Tech Center at Belleview about 2 miles east of University. And it is a great way to get to DU from that area.

We just got back from Denver for our visit to the U of Denver. The Drury's Inn worked out GREAT. What a great price, clean and perfect for our needs. I would definitely recommend it. The light rail is right across the street, so we used that to go downtown for the convention stuff. Much better then driving, loved it. I used both directons given here for getting to DU. We wanted to see the area so we ended up driving down University to Dry Creek. Going we took I225.
Everyone Thank you for all the help. Made our trip very smooth and enjoyable.

Elaine

Elaine - glad the Drury's worked out, we drove by that last night on the way home & I was thinking of you, wondering how it was. What did you think of DU?
Betsy