Doubletree By Hilton Newark Airport

The Doubletree By Hilton Newark Airport is fine if you are just stopping over from the airport. The shuttle runs every 20 minutes, the staff is courteous and helpful and the hotel is in great shape; very nice to look at. The rooms are comfortable and utilitarian. However, that's about it. If you plan on flying in and flying out, this is a great hotel. If you don't plan on leaving the premises, or cruising the internet, great. 

If you are planning on sightseeing, getting around, spending time on the internet or cleaning your cloths, avoid.

The location is terrible and is subject to Newark, New Jersey traffic. We drove here and though we were the only car traveling to the hotel, we had to endure a long wait to get to the exit. Terrible traffic pattern. 

Once at the Doubletree, there are no restaurants to walk to (other than the excellent in house restaurant) so you need to  drive or a catch a ride to get to one (great food in nearby Newark if you can get there). The hotel is located in an industrial area near the airport, cargo staging, etc. 

The rooms have a TV, bed, coffee maker and bathroom. However, there are no microwaves or refrigerators; just the basics.

The internet connections are sloooow. I was looking forward to renting a movie on YouTube and settling in to enjoy it. However, I couldn't play the movie. It was so frustrating that  I logged in to my blog to write this post, but alas, took a while to get here. 

There is no laundry facility to wash clothes, but they do have dry cleaning for those who stay long enough to turn in by 6 am and pick up after 5 pm.

The food is great in the hotel restaurant. I had the Salmon with broccoli and mashed potatoes. Very delicious.

So, just stopping over for the night; stay here. Want to get around and see things or export more comforts? Find another hotel.

Want to start your own blog or write a book? 

DoubleTree Annapolis

The Doubletree Annapolis hotel is just 3 short miles from Naval Academy, state capital, and historic waterfront. The drive from Ronald Reagan National Airport (DCA) is not very long unless you arrive during high traffic times. It's centrally located in Annapolis, MD, between Washington DC and Baltimore and very close to major corporations and a shopping mall.

I chose to eat at nearby at Union Jack's British Pub. Monday nights feature the popular trivia game where the whole crew can get involved. The questions are tough and the fun is easy. If you go there, be sure to have the 1/2 price burgers during happy hour. The One Eye Jack on an english muffin or the regular hamburger on Challah bread are both filling and AWESOME.

The hotel has a large swimming pool for lap swimming and spacious rooms for relaxing. Since the area is well developed there are sidewalks for those fitness walks or jogs. The area is safe and easy to get around in. Again, most places are within walking distance, or you can take the courtesy shuttle operated by friendly drivers. A tip of a couple of bucks should cover a night out.