visiting oklahoma city
 

Hi
I am gng down to OKC around May. Will be there for about 5dys and was wondering what hotels are affordable & gd? Someone told me La Quainta / Candlewoods is gd, is it true? I will be around the central OKC area and as I am into writing was wondering if there are any grps/society there i can join? Pls feedbk me on suggestions. Another thing is that i will be travelling myself and walking most of the time..

thanks.
Anya

The La Quintas in Oklahoma City are in auto-oriented areas that resemble other commercial districts around the country. They are reliable and nice places to be sure, but not noticeably more affordable than what you can get at one of the hotels downtown, which is more pedestrian-friendly. Try the Courtyard by Marriott, which opened just this January. West of the Courtyard are Bricktown and Deep Deuce, downtowns entertainment district and largest neighborhood, respectively. Between both, you'll find both destination restaurants and hangouts to kill time in.

Common Grounds coffeeshop has cops, businessmen, tourists, and the too-young-to-enter-clubs groups. TapWerks pub is a relaxing place for after-work gatherers and Deep Deuce residents. The Buzz coffeeshop in the First National Center is also a nice place to spend the daytime, with a terrific view of one OKC's busiest intersections. A cross-section of med students, attorneys, arts types, and other downtown workers come and go there.

In terms of writing groups, I am unsure. You may want to check the downtown library on Dean A. McGee and consult the librarians:
http://www.metrolibrary.org/Library/DN.htm

To find OKC's literati, hangout at Galileo's in the Paseo Arts District (http://www.okclive.com/index.asp), VZD's on North Western's Restaurant Row(http://www.okclive.com/vzd/), or Full Circle Bookstore at 50 Penn Place (http://www.fullcirclebooks.com/).

Hope this helps; if you need any further help, do not hesitate to post back!!

Anya, I recently stayed at The Courtyard by Marriott in the Bricktown area. I felt very safe and walked to dinner. You can see the information I recieved if you search Oklahoma City on Business. I got lots of great help.

thanks for the replies & suggestions. While I am there I'm also thinking of chking out the other towns like guthrie/edmond & thus was thinking of taking a hotel where public transport is convenient. Bricktown is interesting. Read the earlier postings on OKC.

Another query is that i am keen to go to tulsa to see the phillbrook museum. Is there a bus/train from OKC to tulsa & how long is it?

Anya

Metro Transit has a couple of Edmond lines (37 & 39), but none to Guthrie. To reach the latter, you could take a taxi or rental car up I-35. Here is a list of destinations:

http://www.okc.gov/query.html?transi...003/index.html

I would stay downtown and take the bus at the Transit Center (the parking lot just north of Civic Center Music Hall) on Couch and Shartel.

Also, the only line I am aware of between Oklahoma City and Tulsa is the standard Greyhound bus. Even then, you would have to find transportation around Tulsa; the Bus Station is downtown, and the Philbrook is on the southeastern side of town.

The downtown OKC Greyhound station is on Sheridan and Walker. To see a schedule on your date of visit:

http://www.greyhound.com/

Tulsa Transit can take you around Tulsa and to the Philbrook. Its station is on Denver Avenue:

http://www.tulsatransit.org/maps/frequentdest.asp

Hope this helps.

You may want to check out Norman, OK where Oklahoma University is located. It is about 20 minutes south of OKC. I'm sure they have some sort of writing group to match your interests.

thanks designmr for the inform. & links. Will go & log on to greyhound site. Is Guthrie a very small town? I read that it's unique & has victorian architecture & that's one of the reason i want to chk it out.

i tried courtyard by marriot hotel. the dates which i want is unavailable. Is holiday inn at 6200 N Robinson
a gd choice? seems it's about 2 miles to downtown.

thanks detroit i will chk out the university to see if they have writer grps.

anya, if you can make it to Guthrie, it will be worth your time. Its downtown features the largest contiguous national register preservation district in the country. Some interesting museums and restaurants/businesses are there. The star, I believe, is Granny Had One cafe. A magnificent Masonic temple also sits in town. As you may already know, it was Oklahoma's original capital.

I would stick to downtown lodging. Try the Westin or the Renaissance. Both have reasonable rates. As I mentioned to another fodorite, there is also a nice bed and breakfast (Grandison at Maney Park) in the Midtown section of downtown, but it is more of a walk.

Have fun. If you have any more questions, please post them --