"We stayed here in order to depart for the airport (RDU) at 4:30 a.m. the next morning. The check-in process was easy and the person who greeted me was lively and warm. (I often wonder what it's like to greet people enthusiastically when you're having a bad day.) Initially, I had been told that the airport shuttle only traveled between two destinations (the airport and Sonesta Select RDU). However, we learned that they would shuttle us to a nearby Italian restaurant with a pricey menu and provide us with a coupon for an appetizer. Although the menu looked tempting, we opted to walk .2 miles down Airport Boulevard to Vicino's Pizza. What a great choice! I had a Grecian pizza (which I couldn't finish) and my husband had Penne Bolognese. We slept as well as you can for a 4:00 a.m. wake-up and didn't become hungry until mid-afternoon of the following day.
The room was well designed and the shower pressure and temperature was spot-on. We had a first floor room whose patio opening into the courtyard, which was furnished with outdoor activities that may have been helpful for a family with kids. There was also a fire pit area with comfy outdoor furniture, which may have been a nice place to relax, but the grass was a bit long (8-10 inches), which discouraged me from walking in it after dark.
In retrospect, if we'd looked specifically for a hotel that would pick us up at the train station in Cary, that may have been a better choice overall.
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