Need a search wod wrt motels

I call it the Satellite Motel :

If they show fancy amenities it is probably a multi-floor walk in place. Couple of times a year I make a trip and I'm looking to stop and grab some sleep, maybe 6 hours total so I go for cheap. Motel 6, Super 8 work for that.

If traveling at a slower pace I'd be more inclined to sped a few bucks more for Holiday Inn or equal.

A motel, also known as a motor hotel, motor inn or motor lodge, is a hotel designed for motorists, usually having each room entered directly from the parking area for motor vehicles rather than through a central lobby.

They may be cheap, but I saw one or more of both of those and neither were drive-up. Plus there are ones in or near Baltimore and iirc they all the style I don't like.

I think it has more to do with when they were built. The style I like was standard in the 30's - 60's or 70's but now they want more rooms on the same piece of real estate.

Mighty Wannabe's cite for Wikip was accurate at one time but the part about how one enters is no longer accurate for most places that call themselves motel, that have signs facing the highway that say Motel, or that show up when you use google maps to show the nearest motels.

I also went to Virginia for 5 days about a month ago and faced the same problem then.

Partly because of style and partly because my shoulders don't work right, I like to wear sport shirts instead of pull-overs but they are no longer called sport shirts. Now they are called when googling "front button shirts" or something like that. But in the case of motels, I have neither an old name or a new name!

I googled drive-up motels near me and got a lot of motels, but most were what I don't like and even the ones I liked didn't use the term "drive-up" in their urls or google summaries. IOW, it was the same assortment I'd have gotten without "drive-up". I can't think of another term

I ended up at 2-star motels, but I couldn't figure out what a 3,4, or 5 star motel would have that mine didn't. They had tv, cable, remote, microwave, fridge, desk or table, hair dryer, soap, shampoo, towels. coffee maker, coffee, sugar, creamora, and a pool that didn't open until

I prefer the vintage motels to the modern chains but you have to have a sense of humor. Some of them ain't what they used to be, others are okay.

My favorite was one near Pearblossom CA. After explaining the amenities he politely informed me I couldn't park my motorcycle in the room. I guess he had had a bad experience.

It's been a few years but at my last run in with Motel 6 in Idaho Falls they wanted $110 for a single. I continued on to Dillon. The only thing I could think of was they were milking the Yellowstone tourons for all they were worth.

Nice definition but for once I know what micky is talking about. Even Motel 6s are usually two story structures where you park and have a hike down endless halls to get to your room. Assuming the keycard reader isn't broken you may not have to pass through the lobby.

I usually pay about $75. I also remember when Motel 6 was $6.

I don't remember $6 but $19.99 sticks in my mind.

I guess the one in Idaho Halls was a real bargain. While I prefer the older motels it seems the price spread is compressed. Nothing is really cheap.

Back in the '70s I had to go in from Madison GA to pick up some parts in Atlanta and picked a hotel at random, the Hyatt Regency. I didn't realize it was one of the architectural wonders of the world but I got a hint when I pulled up. There were those black lawn jockeys that would get you lynched today, except these were flesh and blood valets to take your car.

One of the booking sites says I can get a room there for $100 a night. Being Atlanta, that might not be a bargain. I'd been to Underground Atlanta at the time and it was an enjoyable experience. Lester Maddox had a shop and I got an autographed photo for some liberal friends. It was supposed to become as big a tourist attraction as Faneuil Hall in Boston.

The next time I was in Atlanta was in the '80s and i was advised in was a no-go zone.

I remember renting by the hour lol.

On Sunday or thereabouts, micky declared ...

They are called antiques. Your best chance of finding one seems to be small towns on unpopular routes, but even those are likely to be replaced or shutdown.

In Ventura, California, which is not a small town on an unpopular route, I found a Rodeway which had two wings of 1960s construction, and a relatively modern 2-story wing between the two. (Between isn't quite apt ... it was like the bottom of the 'U' with the single-stories the arms of the 'U'. None of the three buildings were connected except by the arch over the driveway.)

In a sense, though, this was an unpopular route ... it was on the street that was the old main road and highway ... before the interstate. Still an important street, but not often used by tourists.

/dps "Ventura IS tiny compared with LA, but everything is tiny compared to LA"

on 9/17/2023, rbowman supposed :

Many Motel 6's don't have halls. The 2nd story rooms are accessed by an external walkway. This design is not unique to Motel 6.

/dps

On 9/17/23 22:51, Ed P wrote:[snip]

I seem to remember $6.66 (and with a black & white TV).

In alt.usage.english, on Mon, 18 Sep 2023 02:35:40 -0700, Snidely snipped-for-privacy@gmail.com wrote:

I normally take unpopular routes. That is, I avoid interstates and like medium to small roads. They are not as "pretty" but they are more intersting.

Here are the "traditional" motels I stayed at 4.3 stars on 110 reviews. One was "This hotel has been here since I was a little girl, and im 65 years old now I learned to swim here when my parents came here I would hang out with the owners daughter. I still hVe the 8mm movies of this place." So that would be about 1963. The owner's little girl was now the owner!! Swimming pool too but it didn't open until 10. On Rte 301 in Bel Alton, Md. shortly before getting to Virginia.

I was driving by and saw the motel, not the sign, on my right, so I stayed there. $77.70

Crown Inn motel $88.31 2-star motel. So desirious of a drive-up motel was I that I went to theis one, 3.2 stars on 110 ratings, with a lot of terrible reviews. From a month before: "Minus: everything else. Rooms are musty and outdated. Wifi is an extra charge. Appeared that another tenant was selling stolen goods openly in the parking lot. I wouldn't stay there again. There are other options." From a few days before I was there: "Terrible place, the room had roaches coming in the bathroom every night and they did nothing about it. And the lady owner is rude and racist. The sheets are never changed and we never got any towels." From 10 months earlier "Scary and gross. Pictures that are posted on booking sites do not tell the truth. It's run-down, dirty, and scary. Towels are falling apart or pulled from a rag pile. They must anticipate this because a sign is posted saying NO REFUNDS UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCES. So much for customer service. Stay at your own risk." Another review from same person, "Scary and gross. DO NOT BELIEVE THE PICTURES ON RESERVATION SITES!! It doesn't look this way at all. The sign posted at the check in desk should speak volumes. Got a phone call on the room phone at 3:45 am from a heavy breather. Never slept after that and checked out at soon as daylight broke" A strange one "Room decor could use some updates, judging from the pictures. Have never stayed there. So not sure about the service. Conveniently located about 6 or 7 miles from Ft. Eustis/Langley military bases." A year ago "I booked my employees thru Expedia for 2 weeks. After 10 days, they had to check out because of bed bug bites all over their legs. I was told a refund was forthcoming. After they lied to me about that and did not refund, Expedia contacted them and was assured that I would receive a refund. They lied to Expedia as well. No refund. Now Expedia is throwing up their hands. Stay at this dump at your own risk"

I had only read the first two of these when I stayed there. It did have that sign about no refunds under any circumstances, but none of the bad stuff they had happened to me. I didn't see any of it, and the one guy I asked in advance said the place was fine. https://www.google.com/maps/place/Crown+Inn+Motel/@37.1888651,-76.4810024,15z/data=!4m10!3m9!1s0x89b07fc46853944d:0x6d68b5c03aa1e6ca!5m3!1s2023-09-25!4m1!1i2!8m2!3d37.1868755!4d-76.4868116!16s%2Fg%2F1ttdnw0n?hl=en&entry=ttu

This list of 3 seems to be entirely 2-star.

Yeah, that's the kind of place I go. I took Business-I-83 trhough the center of York Pa. instead of the bypass. Pretty amazing that they have I-83 running on city streets with stoplights and shops. I never heard of a Business Interstate befoe.

Maybe, if there's a way to do so ????***, I can just look for 2-star motels. Who assigns these stars anyhow? Maybe they do it on the age of the motel?

Or cheap ones. If they're cheap, that's even better.

But Google doesn't search on 2-star. afaict -- I does display the number of stars and the ratings if you zoom in to about 6 miles by 8 miles. But surely some hallway motels get downgraded to 2-stars somehow.

Google will also search by brand (lists 10 chains but not all of them, lists Motel 6 but not Super-8. ) , guest rating (2 to 4.5 by 0.5's. Who would look for low ratings? ),

Did you ever read "Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance"? That was Robert Pirsig's thing: Taking the back roads.

My favorite "back roads" book is "Blue Highways"

A suitably laidback followup:

A friend told me to read it 40 years ago. It's on my list of things to do.

If I'd taken the interstate, I wouldn't have seen the Flight 93 Memorial or paid my respects there.

My wife and I used to take off on the back roads all the time. Mostly day trips but I knew the surrounding 50-100 miles very well. We did in in PA, we did it in CT. Wish we could have done more in FL.

If we stopped for lunch, first choice would be a local place, not the chain stores.