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Courtyard By Marriott

Courtyard By Marriott is nearly synonymous with business travelers and airport hotels. But as of late the Marriott budget brand is doing whatever it takes to become relevant. And we have to say it's working.

Take their new lobby design which the brand started unveiling last year.

We visited the just-renovated lobby/public space at the Courtyard by Marriott John Wayne Airport in Irvine and upon entering the hotel, a huge flat-screen TV called the GoBoard greets you (visually) giving you local information like weather and traffic reports as well as news headlines. Off to the left is The Bistro ("Eat.Drink.Connect") with a bar, made-to-order menu items and plenty of seating. Even better, nearly every table has outlets so you can wet your whistle while you work.

Behind the GoBoard is a business center with six computers and a dedicated boarding pass print-out area. Oh and a free coffee station. But what we loved the most were the hotel's "media pods," little booths with flat-screen TVs, outlets and close proximity to The Bistro. And since the entire lobby has free WiFi we were able to get online no problemo. Thus we sat down and watched basketball while reading about Madonna's unfortunate fall off her horse in the Hamptons as we sipped some Chardonnay and indulged in a grilled chicken salad. All the while, we were able to charge our computer.

Obviously, the Courtyard is ideal for business travelers but we also noticed it was great for families with children. Kids come with all sorts of gadgets these days (Nintendo DS, iPods, DVD players) so the abundance of outlets makes it possible for parents to keep the kids entertained and more importantly, keep those gadgets juiced.

To find out more about which Courtyard has the new lobby look, visit GoCourtyard.com.