Upcoming trip to St. Louis - I need help!
 

I just booked our plane tickets to St. Louis. Will arrive Fri morning and depart Sun afternoon.

There are several things I can't decide:
Where to stay?
Should we rent a car?

I know for sure we want to visit:
St. Louis Art Museum
Pulitzer Foundation
St. Louis Zoo
Anheuser-Busch Brewery
Gateway Arch
And possibly, Scott Joplin House

Ideally, I don't want to rent a car, and just take the MetroLink. Is that possible? Seems like staying in downtown is the easiest?

But, I want to stay in an area with good restaurants within walking distance, and I get the sense that downtown is quite dead at night? What about the area near Forest Park?

I also prefer bidding a hotel on Priceline, but looking at the zones on PL, I either can bid for downtown or for Forest Park/Clayton. The FP/Clayton area is huge, and looking at biddingfortravel, the hotels in FP/Clayton are in downtown Clayton, which is not near the Metrolink. How difficult it is to stay in downtown Clayton and go sightseeing without a car?

Any thoughts/suggestions are welcome!

BTW, we're cheap. We're looking for cheap hotels (<$100/n), that's why I want to try Priceline.

I think you'll need a car in St. Louis. And I'd choose Clayton over downtown, but that's just my personal preference.

Take a look at the recent thread titled "Whirlwind trip to St. Louis"

Someone who recently visited St. Louis and took metrolink. I personally would find using only public transportation a complete waste of only a three day weekend.

When is your weekend? Downtown is dead at night. I would certainly suggest staying in Clayton and renting a car.
I've never looked at how priceline assigns St. Louis Hotels. I'll take a look and see if I can come up with any suggestions.

Thanks. I did read the recent trip report thread. That person stayed in downtown and used only public transportation, that's why I am wondering if I can get around without renting a car.

According to BFT, the recent PL wins in Clayton/Forest Park are the Sheraton (7730 Bonhomme Avenue) and the Crwone Plaza (7750 CARONDELET AVE). I believe they're across the street from one another, and located a few blocks East of Shaw Park.

Are there plenty of restaurants within walking distance in that area?

If we stay in Clayton, how is the parking situation in downtown St. Louis area on Sat & Sun?

I don't think parking in downtown St. Louis on the weekend is much different from Dallas, Houston, or say Indianapolis. That is, you can probably park wherever you want for free or nearly-free.

Get a car.

I just realized that the Saturday we'll be there (March 11), is the day of the St. Patrick's Day Parade.

It starts at noon and here's the parade route:
http://www.irishparade.org/parade/route.html

I assume that'll make downtown quite a mess to visit (and difficult to find parking)?

Maybe we'll stay west of the city on Saturday, visit the Art Museum & the zoo, and then drive into downtown on Sunday to visit the Arch.

The public transportation in St. Louis, the MetroLink, is currently not passing through the Clayton area; it is under construction and will be completed by summer, but not by April.
Unfortunately, you will need a car to travel from Clayton to Downtown.
However, it is easy to MetroLink from Downtown to Forest Park, where the Art Museum and Science Center are located.
Anheuser-busch Brewery is a few miles south of the Downtown area, and therefore a car is required; no MetroLink connection.
The parade will make the Downtown area crazy and full of people; could be fun, or not, depending upon what you prefer.
Clayton area has many restaurants, but is primarily a business district (no shopping) so night-life is very quiet, apart from the restaurants--no real bars either.
The Soulard area, near the brewery, is a very fun and active night-life area: many restaurants and bars filled with jazz, rock and blues music.
I suggest staying downtown, and then just grabbing a short cab ride to Soulard if you want night time activities.
YOu may need reservations at the Pulitzer Foundation.

I would probably rent a car. Metrolink is not very extensive and things downtown are spread out. A car would give you easier access to neighborhoods such as the Hill and the Central West End. You can't get from Clayton to downtown without a car.

I would probably stay in the Central West End or Clayton if you are looking for somewhere close to restaurants.

If you stay downtown, try to stay closer to the arch. Many people stay in hotels near Union Station, but there isn't really that much here (I work right behind it) and its about 20 blocks away from the riverfront.

Tracy

I spent 60 a night on priceline staying downtown, and that was June when the Cardianls were playing. Downtown is dull. The art museum is actually very good, wonderful mid-size collection.
You probably do need a car.

Hi,

Writing this from St. Louis... so I hope I can be of some help. St. Louis has wonderful neighborhoods but unfortunately they do not all connect by walking or the Metro. St. Louis is really trying to revitalize the downtown area and it is catching on a little but it's going to take awhile for it to be established. Downtown is most active during the day unless there is an event like the St. Pat's Parade or Strassenfest, which is a big German festival in fall.

Saying that, I would rent a car. If you are sans kids, the downtown area has three areas that have a bit of night life... Washington Avenue is a street where all the trendy clubs are and the Soulard area, just south of downtown, has all the great blues and jazz bands playing. The third is Laclede's landing, which has bars and restaurants.

Looking at your itinerary I'd say that those are pretty fun things you have planned. One thing I would look in to is the City Museum (www.citymuseum.org.) It is a blast for kids and adults alike.

If you have any questions, I'll be happy to help.

Amy

If you do decide to get a car while in the St Louis area here are several places just across the river in IL you may enjoy.

Lewis and Clark Center in Hartford
http://www.campdubois.com/

Cahokia Mounds
http://www.cahokiamounds.com/cahokia.html

I'm glad you read that "Whirlwind to St. Louis' thread, only because that although the OP did do St. Louis without a rental car, I think she states that she wouldn't do that in the future.

I checked on Betterbidding.com and Biddingfortravel.com they seem to have different hotels listed as what is available in the clayton/forest park area on Priceline. However, I think this option would be much better than staying downtown, especially because of St. Pat's Day parade and traffic.

I'm confused about your question:


"If we stay in Clayton, how is the parking situation in downtown St. Louis area on Sat & Sun?"

Are you asking that IF you stay in Clayton, and IF you rent a car, and IF you want to go downtown, will there be any parking issues?
Only because it is St. Patricks day celebration, I think downtown bars and clubs (Laclede's Landing, Washington Ave. and Soulard) will all be quite busy. Friday night parking downtown should not be a problem.

Pulitzer Foundation for the Art is only open on Wed. 12-5 and Saturday 10-4. Next door is the Contempory Museum of Art, also worth a look.

Amy (sunshine_daydream), hello to another St. Louisan! Where about in St. Louis do you live? I actually live in Glen Carbon, IL, near SIUE, but I work downtown behind Union Station. I don't see many people from St. Louis on this board...its nice to know there are more of us out there! :)

Tracy

Thank you all for your input. You've convinced me to stay in Clayton and rent a car to get around.

I think there's a Frank Lloyd Wright's house somewhere outside of St. Louis. We might check it out if we have the time.

The Frank Lloyd Wright house is in Kirkwood at Ebswoth Park 120 North Ballas Road Kirkwood, MO 63122 . see http://www.ebsworthpark.org/

Not very far from Clayton hotels, about 11 miles.

Hi Liz-

I was just checking out the FLW's house on the web. Have you been? Is it worth it? I'll have to call to make a reservation 2 weeks in advance. I'm not sure how to fit everything in right now.

Anyone else been to the FLW's house in Ebsworth Park?

Are there any good restaurants around Pulitzer Foundation for dinner?

I bought tickets for a chamber concert by the St Louis Orchestra at the Pulitzer Foundation for Saturday night. The concert starts at 7:30pm. I hope it ends by 9:30pm? Are there places still open for dinner around there?

Also, can anyone comment on the Puck's Restaurant inside the St Louis Art Museum? The Art Museum is open until 9pm on Friday night, so we may just eat there if the food is good.

No, I have not yet been to the FLW house, although I hear it was a good restoration job. Maybe somebody else can comment.

My favorite site to look up restaurant is saucecafe.com. There are not too many restaurants around the Pulitzer (Grand Center area).

Look at restaurants in the Central West End (CWE). A bit west of Pulitzer and should have many restaurants open at that time. After you look, come back and ask any specific questions about which restaurants appeal to you.

Also, those CWE spots are close enough to SLAM, also search Clayton restaurants if you are staying there. I hear mixed things about Puck, but I've never been.

How about Tony's? Is it really as good as the reviews? The last seating on Sat is 11:30pm.

If you go to Kirkwood to see the FLW house, you could find a nice neighborhood restaurant in Kirkwood for lunch or dinner. It's a nice older 'suburb' of St. Louis with some history, and a nice 'downtown' area of its own.
And if you go by Forest Park, you could get a bite to eat in the Central West End, then take a pretty drive down Lindell Blvd. all the way to Washington University. It's a beautiful campus, and there's a fun area called The Loop right nextdoor to it. I didn't catch your ages, or if you have young adults with you, but you might like this neighborhood for its young lifestyle. (Hint, get a burger at Blueberry Hill and see if anyone special is playing there...)

We really need a better idea of who you are and what things you enjoy eating. And, I thought you didn't want to go downtown on Saturday night, but maybe you were thinking Tony's for Friday.

IMHO, Tony's is over-hyped. But it certainly is the most well respected restaurant in town. I could list 20 other places I would go before I would go to Tony's. But, again, what are you looking for? Funky? Trendy? Upscale? Ethnic? County-Clubby? We've got it all, just depends on what you want to eat and in what kind of atmosphere.

DH & I are in our early 30s. It's actually a b-day trip for DH. (Last year, we went to Paris & London for his b-day. We got married a few months ago, and I told DH that things go downhill after marriage, and that's why we're going to St Louis this year.)

Anyway, we love good food. I'm more willing to pay $$$ (up to $100pp) for a good meal than a nice hotel room. We like most cuisine, except Tex-Mex. We also prefer a place more modern/contemporary than the stuffy old style.

I don't want to go to downtown on Saturday during the parade, but I'm thinking that Sat night would be OK? No?

Hm... Why don't you two go for a ski trip? That'd be going downhill FAST!

((6))

yk, if you are looking for a good, memorable meal check out Kemoll's. Its a wonderful Italian restaurant with really good service. We just had dinner there for Valentines day....our bill came to about $110 for two but it was worth it. Its in the lobby of the Metropolitan Square Building, but don't be put off by that. Once you step foot in the restaurant you will forget all about that aspect. Check out www.kemolls.com for more info.

Tracy

Tracy's suggestion of Kemolls as an alternative to Tony's in downtown is a good one.

Other restaurants I would suggest for a birthday dinner, in a reasonable radius around Clayton, and in no particular order are:

Savor
An American Place
Arthur Clay's
Chez Leon (will remind you of every great bistro you went to in Paris)
Harvest
Cardwells at the Plaza (yes, it's in a mall, no that doesn't affect the atmosphere)
The Crossing (In Clayton, not to be confused with Crossings)
King Louie's
Sidney Street Cafe
I Fratellini
Pomme
Trattoria Marcella
Monarch
Atlas

Info about them all can be found at the saucecafe website I listed earlier in the thread. Take a look and come back to ask questions. I would make a reservation at any of them as soon as a decision has been made.

Just wanted to add my two cents:

I love Soulard, probably because I live there. On Saturday, if you want to do something downtown, I highly suggest the Soulard area. You can guarantee that everywhere else is going to be super busy. Compared to the Landing and Washington Ave, which are closer to where the parade takes place, Soulard probably won't be as bad. And there are a ton of bars you can visit, all within walking distance to each other. If you park at Russell and 9th, you can get to Hammerstone's, Molly's, the Shanti, and 1860's just walking.

As far as dinner, I would like to suggest Sidney Street Cafe as well. It is hard to get a reservation there because they are booked almost 2 weeks in advance. The restaurant is located in Soulard, just on the outskirts of the major bar area. Also good in the area are Lynch Street Bistro and Lagniappe's (sp?) and Soulard's.

You have a ton of choices for good dining in the St. Louis area. Just about any restaurant that has been suggested will be great.

Wow! If you can do all this in a weekend, let me know!

I wanted to chip in some info about the Frank Lloyd Wright house. We live in Kirkwood and my husband and 2 teen girls went on the tour. ( I had seen it previously on a house tour when the guy still lived there.) Even my TEENS LOVED the tour. Said it was very interesting. So even St. Louisans should go see it. They take small groups because of parking and tickets are $10. The tours last only about an hour I think. My family went over Thanksgiving and they were doing tours about every hour and a half.
It's a very small house and very minimalist. But very interesting.

Lots of great restaurants in Kirkwood, too. Cafe Provencal is a wonderful authentic French restaurant. Dewey's has great pizza. And for dessert, try the first gelato store in St. Louis, Cafe di Riso for some very authentic gelato. (In Warson Woods, next to Dierbergs grocery.)
r

Thanks again for everyone's advice.

After some more research and planning, I have come up with a decent plan.

I won a bid on Priceline for the Crowne Plaza in Clayton for $65/night. I've reserved a rental car at the airport.

For dinners, we'll eat at Puck's (inside SLAM) on Friday, and at Trattoria Marcella on Saturday. I also made a afternoon tea reservation at Ritz-Carlton on Saturday.

Unfortunately, when I called the FLW house, the message says it's closed until March 15th (because the road is closed). We'll be visiting before March 15th.

I think I'm quite well-prepared at this point. I'll write a trip report after we return!

Check http://www.trip-information.com for some info regarding St Louis Airport

I can personally verify that Kemolls has a terrific early bird special for $20. You get an excellent meal worth $50. It has to be ordered by 6:30PM and is good every day they are open. You need to ASK for the early bird special menu. Go to Kemolls.com for info.

I didn't even remember it was I who started this thread last year until I clicked on it!

Anyway, <b>thndrstm</b>, our trip took place a year ago. We had a great time, though it's gonna be quite a long time before we return to St Louis.

I think thndrstm was recently looking for early downtown dining when attending a bridge tournament. I guess this post means the trip has happened and Kemoll's was a good choice.

thndrstm...why don't you write up a brief trip report?