This is the best residence inns i have been to (so far)! The property is beautiful, with a great sitting area outside. The 2 bed room suite is spacious, and very comfortable however the bathroom is rather small. The beds are comfortable. The TV is rather slow reacting to power and changing of channels. The A/C unit is very loud in the living room. There are PLENTY of outlets all over in the suite. They are perfectly arranged, even an outlet by the light by the bed to charge your phone over night but still have it at easy reach. The breakfast was good, had a nice variety- oatmeal with lots of choices of toppings, waffles, potatoes, eggs, sausage- and the staff was very quick to bring out more food when brought to their attention. The internet was good, not slow or coming in and out. The two bedroom suite is always equipped with a FULL kitchen (stove, microwave, dishwasher, fridge/freezer). I would definitely stay here again when i am in town! Try to stay at the Residence inn Gainesville I-75, NOT the residence in on SW 13th st- its a very dark, old property.. which i never want to go back to.

Full Disclosure - I stayed here for free on account of about a million Marriott Platinum Elite points.

Unfortunately Marriott properties in the Gainesville area are all on the outskirts of town. This is the closest (aside from the Courtyard next next door) to the action. "The action" for most people who stay here seems to be the University. Football games, other events, perhaps even a debate. We'll get to that later.

It's a new property in the most recent iteration of Marriott design. They have an outdoor pool that looked very well maintained, an outdoor patio with plenty of seating and a natural gas fire-pit or two and a modernized lobby where breakfast is served free every morning. I cringe a little mentioning the breakfast - I've spent over 130 nights in a Marriott between this year and the last and the breakfast, believe it or not, has finally started to burn me out. You try going that long!

Seems like due to University proximity this place sells out a lot. There were about a million kids milling about when we were there, screaming in the halls, leaving popcorn in the elevators...etc. Strangely enough, these same wild kids were all dressed in suits and dresses ready to go to a debate event the following mornings. Could have fooled me.

The rooms are spacious as you'll find in any newer Residence Inn. The rooms are designed to feel more like home and less like a traditional hotel. You'll get a full kitchen with a stove, microwave and full size refrigerator. Plenty of plates, cups, silverware and cooking utensils but no bottle opener. Use the back of a fork to pry your bottle caps off. Just a few steps from the kitchen is a table for four, couch, comfortable chair, coffee table and a flat screen HD TV. The room is set off of the living room with its own door to further the separation. There's another flat screen HD TV in the bedroom and plenty of recessed lighting to make the place look nifty when it's dark. The bathroom is separated from the sink but unfortunately has no manually operated fan.

Four of us shared a two-bed room and it was comfortable for four days. Strangely enough, two beds don't amount to four towels being in the bathroom. We had to call down to the desk to get an extra towel about three out of the four days. Seems like the amount of towels should match the amount of sleeping spaces in the beds or the amount of chairs in the living area....

I confused the staff on our second day by returning to the room to find my deodorant. They asked if we needed service and I told them to just make the beds and straighten things up assuming that meant the normal housekeeping services. I've never cleaned a hotel, I don't know what they do. They somehow took that as, make the beds then remove all towels from the room (four) and replace them with new (three). C'mon. There were some other oddities in that particular day's housekeeping but I forgive them. I played the assumption game and they bought in.

If you've forgotten anything the front desk likely has it. They even had deodorant when my stick went missing. Normal amenities like a gym and 24 hour laundry is also available on site as well as plenty of free parking.

About the location... you're right off of I-75 and Archer. You're 5 miles from the city center and you should know that's a lot further than it sounds if your plan isn't to drive all weekend. You can take a bus into downtown by walking to Butler Plaza. The #1 will take you down there M-F then it changes to the #402 I believe. Don't wait on the side of Archer like we did. You'll see a ton of buses go past wondering why the one you're looking for, that's written on the bus stop you're standing next to, isn't coming. Go into Butler Plaza in the little bus mall in there - it's easier. Eventually we got on a bus and rolled into town for a cheap $1.25. Unfortunately the bus service back to the hotel is a little spotty, even using the Later Gator buses. You can walk the five miles if you'd like but it's way long. We ended up just having someone take it easy on the drinking all day to be the DD later in the evening and parked at a downtown parking garage next to the Hampton Inn. If I were to go to the Fest again next year, I'm torn on if I'd stay a little closer if not right in downtown, or if I'd go the free route again and just replicate the take-it-easy plan to drive home at night. A cab ride back to this hotel from city center will run you about $24, by the way. Pricey venture. The hotel does not provide a shuttle anywhere.

All in all, it's a good hotel in a very quiet area of town. Especially good if you have a car at your disposal. Without one you're just kind of stranded in the beginnings of the burbs with only a few options.

The hotel is beautiful, well kept, and the people are friendly and attentive. One of the nicer Marriott's in the area, for sure, and the price shows that (based on it's expensive rate, continually).

For a Residence Inn, this one is actually a bit higher scale than many others I've stayed at. The kitchenette area is actually a darker wood, and beautiful to look at. This hotel would get a 5-star from me if it weren't for the pool hours, seriously. We were told the pool is open from 9AM-9PM. Really? I've NEVER stayed at another Marriott (and we stay at a lot) that has this strict of hours. It doesn't allow for someone who works very early or very late to use the pool at all. The only reason I could see for this would be that the pool is outside near rooms, and this does appear to be more of a business persons's hotel than a family vacation spot.

Perfect location, close to everything off Archer Rd. Great hotel in general.

We stayed here for a Gator football weekend and fortunately we were pretty tired when we got back to the room. The room itself was terrific, very spacious, with everything you could possibly need. However, both my husband and I had trouble sleeping because the air conditioning unit in our room was very, very loud. That was really the only negative. Breakfast was fine and the staff was very pleasant.