When I was a kid, my Mom would take me and my sister, or sometimes just one of us, on small weekend vacations around the state. Sometimes we'd stay in hotels, sometimes in motels. By far, my favorites were the motels. This was late 60s/ early seventies. I'm not sure if it was just youthful naivete or reality, but it seemed that motels were cleaner and nicer than what you typically see today.
The big plus is that the motels were on the outskirts of small towns, usually by a highway or on a state route. This meant they were usually situated near fields, woods, and creeks. Exploring those places was much more fun for me than the typical in-town stuff my Mom wanted to do. Best part was, back then, nobody cared if you brought your dog with you, and my dog was my frequent companion on these explorations.
Having travelled extensively since then, I now usually stay at a Hilton or Hampton Inn as a minimum, and rarely consider other options. When I have to chose other options, I research them well, and make the best choice I can. Motels don't make the list.
Here's where I get to the point. There is this motel somewhere in Indiana, I forget where, that looks like a classic 60s/70s motel. I've passed it a few times, and it looks like the kind of place where people used to stop for a night when they weren't just barreling down the interstate at 90 miles an hour for 600 or 800 miles a day to get to their destination. It got me to thinking, as I was barreling past at 90 mph, what if they remodeled the thing, and made it a high quality venue, at least on par with a Hilton. Clean, well-furnished, with a modern bathroom. Out in the sticks a bit, but close enough to local attractions in at least a couple directions to make it a relaxing stay. Maybe some woods or a creek out back for the kids to explore for a couple hours when you get back from doing the locally touristy stuff all day. Would you stay at a place like that?
The big plus is that the motels were on the outskirts of small towns, usually by a highway or on a state route. This meant they were usually situated near fields, woods, and creeks. Exploring those places was much more fun for me than the typical in-town stuff my Mom wanted to do. Best part was, back then, nobody cared if you brought your dog with you, and my dog was my frequent companion on these explorations.
Having travelled extensively since then, I now usually stay at a Hilton or Hampton Inn as a minimum, and rarely consider other options. When I have to chose other options, I research them well, and make the best choice I can. Motels don't make the list.
Here's where I get to the point. There is this motel somewhere in Indiana, I forget where, that looks like a classic 60s/70s motel. I've passed it a few times, and it looks like the kind of place where people used to stop for a night when they weren't just barreling down the interstate at 90 miles an hour for 600 or 800 miles a day to get to their destination. It got me to thinking, as I was barreling past at 90 mph, what if they remodeled the thing, and made it a high quality venue, at least on par with a Hilton. Clean, well-furnished, with a modern bathroom. Out in the sticks a bit, but close enough to local attractions in at least a couple directions to make it a relaxing stay. Maybe some woods or a creek out back for the kids to explore for a couple hours when you get back from doing the locally touristy stuff all day. Would you stay at a place like that?
It was nice that sister's kids got pool passes, and spent most of the day in there not interacting with anyone, and nobody else wanted to go into a confined indoor water attraction. But it was nice for her kids, the only kids in the family that would enjoy such a thing.
