Trip Report: Marriott hotel, Houston Bush Intercontinental Airport

01. Introduction: San Diego to Houston on Spirit Airlines
02. Spirit Airlines A319 Big Front Seat San Diego to Houston
03. Marriott hotel, Houston Bush Intercontinental Airport
04. Spirit Airlines A319 Big Front Seat Houston to Las Vegas
05. Spirit Airlines A319 Las Vegas to San Diego

So what’s the deal with the cheesy decor in airport Marriott hotels? I stayed at the airport Marriott at Tampa International Airport back in 2013, and one of the first things I thought was how ’70’s the whole vibe was, right down to the Orange and brown accents against the dull beige walls. It didn’t seem like that big of a deal to me back then, as I simply thought that particular hotel was just in dire need of an update. But I think my stay at the one at IAH airport in Houston has led me to believe that they are doing this on purpose. The decor was exactly the same, and I’m sorry, but everything just looked so dated.

Aesthetics aside, I enjoyed my stay here quite a bit. The location just can’t be beat if you’ve arrived on a late flight or you’re departing early in the morning. This hotel is located adjacent to the terminal buildings, and is easily accessible from any of them via an underground walkway and tram (very similar to ATL).

IAH underground train — The underground tram at IAH with a convenient stop at this hotel

The view of the main lobby from the front desk looking the other way

dark main lobby — The main lobby seemed overly dark, dreary, and…orange!

Every singe staff member I encountered was very welcoming and friendly – everyone seemed to put on a pretty good act that Led me to believe that they truly loved their jobs. Even the staff of the restaurant on the top floor was on thier best behavior – it was a very cheerful environment.

So let’s continue with the pics, shall we? For reference, my room was in the south tower – not the north (where the registration desk is located).

main hallway — More orange accents in the hallway leading to my room

hotel room door — The door to room 5160 (my room)

bright hotel room — The decor of the room wasn’t as bad as the rest of the hotel – it was big, bright, and open.

orange chair in my hotel room — Well, I guess things wouldn’t be complete without an orange chair, right?

work desk in hotel room — The desk was nice and big – looked like a good place to get some work done.

bed in hotel room — The bed. Standard issue Marriott.

night stand — Night stand next to the bed

boob light — I like the “boob” light. Nice touch.

Unfortunately, there wasn’t anything special about the bathroom. Not much better than what you’d find at many lower quality hotels.

This vanity is in dire need of an update. It was clean, but very dated.

Complimentary Thann amenities in the bathroom

One of the best things about this hotel was how close it is to the terminals. For aviation geeks like me, it doesn’t get much better. This is a very good spotting and photography hotel, provided you get a top floor room in the south tower. I guess I just got lucky, because I didn’t even ask for a room with a view.

Awesome view of the terminals from my room. Here’s a nice close up pic of a United Airlines 737-800 (N12218)

And no worries if you aren’t interested in airplanes – the windows are very well soundproofed, and aircraft noise was not an issue for this light sleeper.