An affordable hotel in Indianapolis, Indiana that offers a decent club lounge for those with access. While it isn’t as impressive as the JW Marriott next door, the Marriott isn’t a bad option for your stay.

Booking

This stay was required as part of my volunteering experience related to the healthcare industry. While I did not pay for this stay out of my own pocket, the commentary mentioned below remains my own opinion.

The room rate for this stay was $209/night before taxes. I’d say it was a decent rate for this hotel. When I check rates online, generally speaking rates tend to be higher during weekdays and a bit cheaper on weekends. If you’re looking to book on points, expect a rate between 35,000 and 45,000 Marriott points per night. I’d say it’s a decent option if you’re looking to use your 35k free night certificates from Marriott. That being said, it’s worth checking out the rates at the JW Marriott next door as I find that a much nicer hotel in general.

Earning Marriott Bonvoy points

If you’re looking to earn Marriott points quickly, you could look into picking up a Marriott credit card. Both Chase and American Express offer Marriott credit cards.

Full disclosure: in this section are refer-a-friend links where I may earn some points for referring. There is no requirement to use the below referral links to apply but note your offer may differ when going directly to the card issuer.

Chase offers the Marriott Bonvoy Boundless credit card that gives a sign up bonus of three 50k free night certificates for spending $3,000 in the first three months for a $95 annual fee.

Or you can turn your eyes to American Express:

• The Marriott Bonvoy Bevy (not an affiliate link) offers 85,000 Marriott points for $5,000 spend in the first six months for a $250 annual fee.
• The Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant (not an affiliate link) offers 100,000 Marriott points for $6,000 spend in the first six months. It also comes with instant Platinum status but with a higher annual fee ($650).

Since Amex credit cards are generally one-in-a-lifetime, it might be worth waiting for a better deal to come by.

Arrival and First Impressions

We arrived at the hotel a bit late at night given when our flight got in. For this trip to Indianapolis, I did bring four-year-old Char and my dad along, so my initial hope was to check in quickly and get upstairs to get settled in. Thankfully, there wasn’t much of a line when checking in around midnight. The front desk did efficiently check us in, Char got a small kids toy at check-in, and we were mostly on our way. I did have to ask the front desk what the benefits I get for my Titanium status (including where breakfast was located in the next-door lounge), as for some reason the front desk didn’t recognize my status initially.

The lobby itself felt fairly open and spacious, and it felt like it would get quite busy during conferences. As with many hotels near the Indianapolis Convention Center, each tends to have conference rooms of its own and I can imagine it getting quite packed in the lobby during those conventions. Indianapolis really just feels like the convention capital of the Midwest.

The Room

Making our way up to the 17th floor, we easily found our room for this stay (1721).

Inside, Char decided to release some of that midnight energy by posing on the bed as I tried to take pictures. The two queen beds here were comfortable enough and there were enough pillows to go around. The walls also didn’t feel bare with the mural behind the headboards.

Directly across from the beds were the TV, desk, and an interesting chair/storage unit. Personally I quite like the storage unit as I like having things in a room that can serve multiple purposes in a functional way.

To the right of the desk is a small table, chair, and a mini fridge. The chair isn’t particularly comfortable for extended lounging but it does work if you need to eat a meal in your room. Given that sometimes Char was on a different hunger cycle than I was, this did get some use on our trip.

Complimentary waters are provided for elite members. If you have access to the M Lounge in the lobby (Platinum and above), you’ll have access to all the water you’ll ever need.

The bathroom felt modern and clean, with a backlit mirror being quite easy on the eyes. There was enough space to hang up a couple of towels but it might get crowded if you were trying to hang up four towels in here.

The shower was functional, though I wished for more water coverage in the shower. I thought the pressure was fine, but I just want more water coming out at once.

The view from the room was mostly of the next door Westin.

The M Club Lounge

If your room rate includes lounge access or you are a Marriott Platinum, Titanium, or Ambassador elite member on a qualifying rate, you’ll get access to the M Club Lounge located just to the right of the front desk in the lobby. If you end up in the quick service restaurant, you’ve gone too far. Access is granted just by scanning your keycard. There was no one policing access during our stay there, though aside from taking pictures of the place, I didn’t use it too much (my dad and daughter on the other hand used it much more than I did).

I find it a little humorous that they consider this the equivalent of first class on a flight. Maybe in the sense that you could get access to an extra space that others might not be able to get to experience, but, no, alcohol is not free here as you would typically find in first class.

The one thing that is nice to see on the sign is the appearance of the words “grab & go”. I know there is some ambiguity on whether hotels are ok with you taking food out of the lounge, but it seems pretty explicit here that it’s OK to do so.

Once inside, you’ll find plenty of seating. During our stay, it never seemed to get overly crowded, but I could see it getting crowded if the hotel is full of elite members.

Right by the entrance is a quick coffee station.

Off to the right is where your breakfast can be found in the morning. I thought the breakfast here was fairly decent with a little bit more variety than the average lounge in the USA. Yes, some of that opinion is just based on the fruits available here, but I do think fruits offer a pretty good choice for breakfast.

If you come here throughout the day, you’ll generally find a small selection of fruits and some chips available.

Special Shout Out

On the way home, we stopped by the Delta Sky Club at IND airport and they did an awesome job making us feel at home. Perhaps driven by Char’s choice of clothes for the flight home, staff here loved chatting with the little girl they called a princess. There were employees who came over and offered her a special selection of treats or other food. One even stopped by to drop off a Delta coloring book for some extra fun on the flight home. While the lounge facility itself isn’t all that impressive, the staff here truly seemed to rise well above the average. They do an excellent job with customer service here.

Recommendation: It’s Not Bad

I thought the Indianapolis Marriott Downtown is on its own a pretty good hotel for what you might end up paying. This is especially true if you’re able to use a 35k free night certificate here. The M Club Lounge is fairly decent here for a hotel in the USA. The hotel is clean, in walking distance of most things in Indianapolis, and we had a good sleep here.

That all being said, I’d still suggest taking a look at prices at the JW Marriott Indianapolis. The hotel facilities there are nicer and you might not end up paying too much more to stay there, so it’s at least worth a check before committing yourself. But at the very least it’s comforting to know that there is another decent Marriott option for you in this city if the JW Marriott isn’t available.

Where do you like to stay in Indianapolis?