Review: SpringHill Suites Zion National Park (Springdale, Utah)

1) Very harsh to call the breakfast “disgusting” - at worse you got a granola bar and a yogurt (you don’t have to eat the sandwich, but I’m sure many guests there have experience with reheatable breakfast sandwiches

2) Seems like a solid option overall for this area. The benefit of Marriott is you can have a SpringHill suites in a remote area, then stay at a St Regis or Ritz in a big city

@ Anthony -- Fair point, I changed it to "not great," which is probably more fair. More than anything the breakfast just seemed wasteful. They give you a bag and don't tell you what the contents are. For example, I don't eat pork, so I didn't have the breakfast sandwich, and I hate wasting food, in particular meat.

It may be worth noting that Cliffrose Lodge and Gardens, which is very close to the entrance to Zion, is a Hilton Curio Collection property.

This springhill is one of the beter (luxury?) hotels of this brand. I don’t agree with to many brands. I think they are consistent so you know what to expect most of the time anyway. For business courtyards are good. Nice review though.

The design/layout is exactly like most new SpringHill suites, though colors are changed for the location.

Hi Ben,

Can you write an article or list here what cleaning protocols are you following when you get to your hotel room?
I stayed at a Towne Place Suites last weekend (first hotel stay since pandemic started) and practically wiped all room surfaces, knobs and switches with some Lysol wipes and then I started to wonder what experienced travelers like you are doing.

BTW, this is the layout and decoration at most new/renovated SpringHill Suites across the US. The West Elm sofa bed is really nice for families. Not those terrible and uncomfortable sofa beds you find everywhere.

you cant imagine using an empty gym ? why not ?

I've been in many Marriott properties since COVID hit and I agree - the breakfasts are just plain wasteful. They don't tell you what's in the bag, and usually, I don't want to eat any of that stuff anyway. In other Marriott properties, it's a "buffet" that grab and go - you can grab a bruised up piece of fruit (that's questionable in quality) and a stale bagel wrapped in plastic. I've been at this particular property for well over a month now and hardly anyone here is bothering with the breakfast.

That said, I did stay at a non-chain hotel in Wyoming and they had the full breakfast buffet going. It was awesome and great sense of normalcy.

Given that these hotels have free parking, pool, free breakfast, free WiFi etc, why call it limited service when the supposed full service hotels don't provide all these things included in room rate.

These typical hotels are 10000 times better than the St Regis and Fairmonts etc

This hotel used to be Category 4 and I used a 7-day package there. Now Category 6. Shows how much Bonvoy has devalued.

Amongst limited service brands, I'm quite fond of Springhill Suites - preferring them over Hyatt Place (especially the converted AmeriSuites locations), Fairfield, HIE, and Hampton when I have a choice. I have always had an above-average and consistent stay at SH's.

Having been off the road since late February, and doing client calls/visits/meetings online, I'm being patiently realistic about when I'll start traveling again (being over 65).

I’ve stayed at this property twice (pre-covid) and always had a very good time. Spectacular backdrop. I have to say that I’m a bit surprised that this was your first Springhill Suites visit - I must have stayed at 75+ across the US over the years. They’re often pretty good.

Lol +1 abey

I'd recommend the Holiday Inn next door, similar views and I had super friendly and helpful staff on my last stay.

Reading this is getting me excited for my trip to Zion next month. Staying at the Cliffrose. Not all that excited about the changes to the bus system within the park, which now requires a ticket and reservation but it is what it is. Looking forward to the narrows and some canyoneering.

I don't eat ham either, but I would have picked it off and still eaten the sandwich. I do like cheese and egg on an English muffin. No worse than pretending that there's no pork in street food in Asia and eating it anyway. 🙂

This looks pretty nice.
We stayed at the Flanigan's Inn two years ago, close to the Zion entrance. Our stay was fantastic, overall.

Cliffrose is much better (I was there last month) that most rooms have there own front door and direct access to the nice stream along the property and you can rent infatables to paddle around.

Springhill is one of my favorite of the mid level chain options. It is imo a step above Fairfield, Staybridge, Hyatt Place etc. The rooms are just slightly higher quality and always very consistent since every Springhill room I have stayed in had been the exact same as the one you stayed in.

Not surprised by lack of upgrade. I believe all Springhill Suites properties have are King rooms and 2 queen rooms and nothing else. There is nothing to be upgraded to.

Seems like such a missed opportunity. They could have branded this hotel a Delta or a Courtyard by adding a bar with limited food offerings. I don't know why you wouldn't put a bar into a resort-esque property in a heavy tourist area. Especially with that pool. If that property was a category 4 or 5, I'd go there for a week just to hang by the pool and explore the national park.

I've always stayed in La Verkin on my way to Zion but I've always been curious about the Springhill Suites in Springdale so this was definitely helpful. Seems like a perfect to-go breakfast for a hiking trip. If I were given that as a breakfast knowing no buffets, I would give it a 4.5 out of 5. No pancakes or anything but beats oatmeal and cereal that are staples of these outdoor trips.

The only place worth staying at near Zion NP is the Zion Lodge INSIDE Zion NP. Bookings have to be made way in advance, and it's quite basic and expensive, but you're staying in the park...

Springhill is generally my favorite "limited service brand". I love having a sofa, so two people can sit comfortably--instead of fighting over the one chair. Your photos show a pretty standard chain-wide Springhill Suites room. Under pre-COVID circumstances, I found the breakfast to be a step up from Fairfield and two steps up from Towne Place Suites and free-unlike Courtyard. Also, the newer Fairfields often have tiny, tiny rooms, so we've started avoiding them. (We do a lot of US road trips in more remote places so have a lot of limited service hotel experience!)
@Edward Thomas--not making it a Courtyard and having a bar could be because of Utah's "interesting" liquor laws.

We stayed at this hotel last year over thanksgiving and I had a nice chat with the owners family who were staying there for the holiday. Certainly one of the nicer options in Springdale, though the room layout was a little unusual.

As far as limited service goes, I've come to quite enjoy SpringHill. A lot of them are relatively new and the rooms are pretty comfy for quick 1-nighters and their usually not much more than a Fairfield. I tried going more with Hyatt after the whole Bonvoy mess but staying in one bland Hyatt Place or dated Hyatt Regency after another gets old pretty quick and their footprint is weak.

Also, I understand the brand standard requires a gym, but anyone who uses a gym while visiting one of the most beautiful national parks in the world with hikes like Angels Landing and The Narrows, really should just stay home. Life is too short to recreate indoors.

Stayed at this same hotel with my son several years ago. It was great. Perfect location for getting into the park early before the heat & the crowds.

Long time (appreciative reader) one of the original $500 gofundme donators, aficionado of amans et al, did all the parks this summer as a fam, but camp, man. Hotels suck for this type of trip.

You’ve got my email (via post). Hit me up in Florida. We’ll show you the lux side of Florida, and it ain’t the Four Seasons. Tell ford to practice his golf swing.

Seriously—open offer! 🙂

The Sprighill Suites are better than the Fairfield Inn.
I've had nothing but good positive visits at Springhill Suites.
On the other hand, I ve never had an incident free stay at a Fairfield.
My company has a corporate account with Marriott so I dont cringe unless I see Fairfield on the travel itinerary.

Sickening that Lucky is traveling during these times... it's sad to see him care so little about the health of everyone.

Appears such a botched chance. They could have marked this lodging a Delta or a Courtyard by including a bar with restricted food contributions. I don't have the foggiest idea why you wouldn't place a bar into a retreat esque property in a substantial vacationer territory. Particularly with that pool. On the off chance that that property was a classification 4 or 5, I'd go there for seven days just to hang by the pool and investigate the national park.

Similarly to @greg, I don't fully understand why this would be a "limited service hotel" when "full service" ones don't include most of those amenities on their regular rates.

Yeah, Springhill competes with Hyatt Place. All of them are better than Fairfield. You got lucky with your breakfast, I stayed at the Springhill Glen Allen, VA and all I got was a pre packaged muffin. They even took the coffee down as soon as the clock struck 9. They also managed to screw up my billing and had what looked like high schoolers working the front desk. Incredibly stingy Marriott shenanigans. I much prefer Hyatt Place.

Pre Covid ... the Denver Springhill was a great location (downtown beside arena)... but have not visited since.

The chocolate chips and walnuts at the breakfast buffet was a treat!

+1 to Greg. Often prefer 'limited service'.

Hyatt Place in St George is a nice place...but stay closer to the park. And go off season when you can still drive your own car into the canyon. In season visit other parks like Bryce or Capitol Reef, in season Zion is a madhouse anymore. Same with Arches if you're on the eastern side of the state, we had a wonderful trip in 2008 to Arches and had Sand Dune Arch (easy, flat hike) all to ourselves for over an hour, in 2016 we were back and met with hundreds of people. Zion just last year we gave up on Angels' Landing due to crowds.

But, I'm always glad to see my beautiful state featured by international writing!

I’m Marriott platinum and also have never stayed a SpringHill property. This one looks pretty nice and I’ll probably expand my search’s to include these properties; especially at locations with limited options. Nice review.

I’m surprised to find that so many people like the SpringHill brand. This property certainly looks above average, but I see very little that differentiates them from a Fairfield. I’ve probably stayed in 20 of them, none of which were memorable.

It also made me LOL that they blamed their breakfast cost cutting on “supply chain.” Creative. Not valid, but creative

The hotel looks great. I am from the area, but I don't live there. I am home regularly though. Pictures don't show the grandeur of the area. You will only experience the true Zion awesomeness if you take a hike. The desert smells really amazing and the longer the hike, the more there is to discover. The great thing is there is a hike for every ability. I have only ever stayed at the lodge in the park. All national park lodges are very very special, but book far out. Staying in Springdale is a fine option since the town is literally next to the park.

How do you always manage to take pictures of hotels with no one ever in the shot? It’s amazing - you must walk around at like 6 am or something

Ha! My gf and I also stayed there during our excursion to Zion!

My wife and I plus our dogs stayed at the springhill suites at zion. We had an executive suite on the bottom floor which was spacious. I'm a Marriott member and always stay at a Marriott for business travel, this was my first time at a Springhill. First off there seem to be very little insulation between floors, it sounded like we had a dance company upstairs causing the dogs to bark. Second, when traveling with my dogs you can at least expect to be able to leave them in the room to at least eat dinner out. I was warned at check in I can never leave the dogs in the room alone for even a minute. What's the point of even staying and traveling with the dogs. I've never been told that by a Marriott before. They would even provide a door tag warning the house keeping if you hg ad a dog. The room was extremely expensive for what you got. $305 a night plus $75 per dog for a deposit. Don't think I'll stay there again.

At this property now. It’s outstanding whether you’re a couple or family, nicer than brand standard

IMO, Sprinhills have a stronger brand identity than other limited service brands. They are thoroughly family friendly, which you can tell from their trundle bed couches, which can easily sleep two children, one on the cushions, one in the rollout bed. They also serve free breakfast. This contrasts with a Courtyard, which provides a nicer breakfast a la carte to road warriors who can expense it. Meanwhile, I have no idea about AC Hotels... basically a slightly more pretentious Courtyard?

Why are you so obsessed with this being a "limited service" property, its mentioned 10 times.
Apart from some food and beverage provision, there's nothing limited about it.
This place clearly has a strong offering for the price charged, and as you never use 90% of the facilities at the places you stay anyway, it being limited service is kind of irrelevant.