Our hotel in St. Louis was at the foot of The Gateway Arch, a national symbol and one of the many masterpieces of Finnish-American architect Eero Saarinen.
A Visit To The St. Louis Gateway Arch
After arriving at the Hyatt St. Louis at 2:00 am (where we were upgraded to a nice suite), we slept in and then had breakfast at 10:00 am.
This Hyatt Regency had no Regency Club and the breakfast was not great (the kids did not like their choices), though it was nice to have an omelet.
After loading up the car, we walked outside the hotel, where The Gateway Arch was right across the street.
I love the travel connection here. Eero Saarinen was the mastermind of the beautiful passenger terminal at Washington Dulles International Airport and the TWA Flight Center (now the TWA Hotel) at New York JFK Airport.
There’s a museum under the arch as well as elevators that will take you up to the top (which we skipped because it was a very cloudy day).
We happened to visit “The Gateway to the West” on a special day: the 12th day of Christmas celebration or Twelfth Night, the night before Epiphany, which is celebrated by feasts, games, and dancing. It was an important day in French Louisiana and is still celebrated in France (among other nations) today.
I loved the cultural connection and Heidi and I both looked at the volunteers in period garb with a bit of envy: how complicated our lives are right now and how nice it would be just to spend a Saturday volunteering for the National Park Service…
I spent time last autumn in Saint-Louis, France, which is just over the German border (my father-in-law likes to do all his grocery shopping in France). It was great to refresh my mind about the deep French connections to Missouri and the fur trapping that was pivotal to the economy for decades here.
Before departing on our final leg to Chicago, I stopped at a coffee place called Catalyst.
The barista named Todd was such a gentleman…we had a wonderful conversation while he made my (perfect) cortado.
We had a fairly uneventful daytime drive to Chicago, stopping for Starbucks for Heidi and for gasoline, but otherwise driving all the way to the north suburbs of Chicagoland without drama. If we had more time, I would have loved to stop in Springfield, Illinois to visit the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum.
This was the night before a big storm came in, so we were happy to avoid any unsafe road conditions.
When we finally arrived in Chicago, we were famished. I found a little Mexican restaurant in the village of Bannockburn called Nativo and it was delicious…we all loved it and I loved the scrumptious mole sauce on my beef short ribs. Mole sauce is made with chiles, rich chocolate, spices, and tomatillos and when it is done well, it is one of my favorite sauces. Great guacamole too.
After dinner, we retired to the Hyatt Regency Deerfield. It was close to 0ºF outside…not the kind of weather I am used to!
I know the purists are unhappy that my “Route 66” road trip did not closely follow Route 66, but we had a lovely time and hope to take future road trips. What a beautiful country the United States is, with so much diversity in terms of landscape, climate, topography, food, and of course people. It was a lovely trip.
Thanks for reading!
This trip report covers my road trip partially retracing old Route 66 from Los Angeles to Chicago.
Matt,
We’re going to be at St Louis in three months time as part of road trip.
Is there good parking at the arch?
I did not see any. Parking at Hyatt is $40 which strikes me as very high for St. Louis.
If you go a little bit further, you can proably find street parking.
Thanks.
I stay at this hotel all the time. There is street parking everywhere. I generally park on Chestnut St just one block up from the hotel. The reality is that downtown STL is so dead, and basically abandoned that parking isn’t enforced at all. You’ll see plenty of cars parked across from the entrance in what is technically a no parking zone. No need to spend $40 at all.
I was just looking at my bill and they didn’t take breakfast off (which was more than the room itself, which was only $85…). how often do you have to fight them for Globalist breakfast?
I’ve never had to fight them for Globalist breakfast, but I’m also only ever there solo. Hotel condition aside, the staff are generally very helpful, and if you check the bill at checkout and remind them, I can’t imagine a universe where they’d challenge you. In general, they seem very aware of the benefits, so your experience with the bill strikes me as very out of the ordinary.
I stayed there a couple of days before you did, 22-Dec, I believe. My room wasn’t ready until after 5:00 PM, so they wound up comping me three rounds of drinks at the bar and deposited 20,000 (yes 20K) WOH points in my account. They also did manage to take breakfast off, so all-in-all, it was a pretty good stay for $90. My preferred hotel in STL is the Le Méridien in Clayton, but I stay here occasionally because they seem to actually value my business.
May I ask, why? Why were in STL?
My partner is from STL. We have to go check on her mother a few times a year and prefer staying in hotels as opposed to her house.
Makes sense! Any coffee or restaurant recommendations for next time?
I low-key love St. Louis. For coffee I’d recommend Kaldi’s. There are a few locations around town and they do it right. Sugo’s Spaghetteria has what is probably my favorite American style Italian food anywhere. The lasagna is is pretty indulgent. I would otherwise never recommend Italian food, but I love it at Sugo’s.
There is parking across the street and a bit north from Hyatt for about $7 per hour. You mostly likely won’t need more than 2-3 hours.
The Hyatt Regency at St. Louis is one of the HRs that gives me heartburn whenever I have to travel to St. Louis, especially considering how many excellent Marriott properties exist in the city, both downtown and in Clayton. There are no true suites at the HR – all open floor plans. Bathrooms are falling apart, water from the sinks is turbid (I hope you didn’t drink from the faucets). The Regency Club is on the upper floors and is visible from rooms facing the inner courtyard – it’s such a great (wasted) space, but the views are of East Saint Louis (i.e., urban decay). All rooms are connecting rooms, which, I guess is good if you are traveling with a family. Elevators are filthy and in disrepair, dining options are limited and uninspiring, and don’t get me started on the noise from hallways and neighboring rooms. All in all, this hotel might have been nice 20-30 years ago, but today…oof.
I did not see any Regency Club. Is it closed?
No, we did not drink water.
But yes, very depressing hotel. Cheap, but depressing.
Matthew –
Yes, the Regency Club is closed. The upper floor hallways (I believe it’s on either 15th or 16th floor) even retain the signage directing guests to it. I one had a corner junior suite that looked onto the inner courtyard and you could see directly into the Regency Club. It was weird seeing it with blinds open, but completely deserted. I asked the front desk if they were ever going to reopen, and they flat out said no. What they’ll do with the space, if anything, is beyond me. It pains me as a Globalist to know that Marriott, Hilton, and even Accor blow Hyatt out of the water in St. Louis. But then again, the HR is geared primarily toward convention goers, so they have steady business.
This is a depressing hotel with great service and a surprisingly good gym. It’s a great value, and that’s why I say here, but there’s not really a reason for anyone to be in downtown STL unless they’re going to a sporting event.
Also @Matthew, you forgot to mention another Eero Saarinen masterpiece… The STL airport! It looks very similar to JFK and was featured heavily in Up in the Air.
Up in the Air was filmed in St. Louis. George Clooney’s apartment was filmed in the Mansion House Apartments, on N. 4th St.
Matt, I thoroughly enjoyed this trip report from start to finish. Even if not much of a RT 66 component. Hope to read more of these.
Thank you, CMT!
So good reminds of my Route 66 in 2019 just months before Covid crazy time, from Las Vegas all the way to Chicago by RV and got same dull weather in St. Louis, apart Arch also Budweiser factory visit during Christmas time was really Interesting and worth.
Can’t wait be back States for new RV adventure hoping in class or better in First class 🙂
Mole Negro is what you had on your beef. There are many different mole sauces, including the famous 7 Moles of Oaxaca, which Negro is one of. Additionally, Chicago may have the best Mexican food in the US considering they have the largest number of Mexican immigrants of any major US city after your hometown Los Angeles.
The Mole Negro was so delicous….I am craving it right now.
I am enjoying your Route 66 travels..
Thanks Dee!
I rather like the “Welcome to Illinois” sign. So many states have the governor’s name on it. It gives them free PR and requires costly changes when a new one is elected.
Thanks for the travelogue. I hadn’t done any vacationing by car for years. Covid hit, and I could work from anywhere. I put 4,000 miles on a round trip in late 2020 and early 2021. Like you, I didn’t drive long days. I had forgotten how fun it is to arrive in a new city and find a nice restaurant. Even if the food wasn’t great, the experience was.