Last year, my husband and I went to Cleveland for the Indians’ home opening weekend. We stayed in Independence and ended up driving to somewhere and parking and getting on the Rapid Transit thingie. We liked the Rapid Transit, but would like to stay somewhere close enough this time to walk to a station rather than drive.
I’d prefer not to stay downtown for monetary reasons, since this is a long weekend and funds aren’t exactly plentiful.
Any help you can give would be lovely.
I’m a former Clevelander who visits the old homestead a few times a year. There’s a pdf Rapid Transit map here . If you were in Independence last time, you may have picked up the branch that goes to the airport. Staying near the airport and using that branch may be your best bet - I don’t remember there being a lot of lodgings along the Shaker (Green) or Van Aken (Blue) routes. I don’t know anything about the red line off to the Northeast, but the stop descriptions don’t look promising. 
Yeah, the East Red line is pretty much a bust, running through rough neighborhoods with nothing resembling a hotel anywhere near it. (At the end, at the Windermere station, you can catch a Laketran bus out to Lake County, but I do not know the laketran service area or what motels/hotels it might visit.
The Green line is pretty much all residential.
Aside from staying AT the airport, I am not sure what sort of lodging you can find along the West Red/Airport line. (A westsider might drop by to give better info on that line.)
The Blue line might be an option, with a small hitch. It ends where Van Aken Ave. runs into the intersection of Warrensville Rd., Northfield Rd., and Chagrin Blvd. and I cannot think of any motels near that intersection (that don’t rent by the hour). However, two miles East, in beautiful Beachwood OH (and adjacent but not quite as beautiful Windermere, OH), there are a number of motels/hotels on Chagrin Blvd, Park East Dr. (Beachwood) and Orange Place (Windermere) (all use zip code 44122, I believe).
Bus Route 5 (Weekdays), (Saturdays), and (Sundays) passes through that area, with a special loop to pick up hotel patrons from Park East. (Orange Place folks may have to hike the half mile down to Chagrin Blvd.–I really don’t know.)
Here is the Cleveland RTA index page. From there you should be able to find maps (.pdf) of the whole system, (bus and light rail), prices, and ways to transfer. It would probably be a good idea to check back before your trip to see what might have changed–although I would not expect them to cut the hotel loop buses in the summer.
Park East is the first street extending South from Chagrin Boulevard just west of the Chagrin Exit for I-271. Orange Place is the first street extending South from Chagrin Blvd just East of the I-271/Chagrin exit.
Here is a list (if the link works) from Yahoo! Yellow Pages of the Hotels in that neighborhood (after clicking past all the advertising pages that did not provide addresses):
Beachwood hotels
The same list copied from the page in case the link failed:
Clarion Beachwood 26300 Chagrin Blvd (216) 831-5150
Cleveland E Beachwood 3663 Park East Dr (216) 464-5950
Courtyard-Cleveland Beachwood 3695 Orange Pl (216) 765-1900
Embassy Suites Hotel 3775 Park East (216) 765-8066
Extended Stay America 3820 Orange Pl (216) 595-9551
Hampton Inn-Beachwood 3840 Orange Pl (216) 831-3735
Hilton Cleveland East 3663 Park East Dr (216) 464-0871
Holiday Inn Cleveland-Bchwood 3750 Orange Pl (216) 831-3300
Homestead Studio Suites Hotel 3625 Orange Pl (216) 896-5555
Radisson Hotel 26300 Chagrin Blvd (216) 360-7341
Residence Inn-Beachwood 3628 Park East Dr (216) 831-3030
Super 8 Motel 3795 Orange Pl (216) 831-7200
There is also a new Marriott a mile South on Harvard Rd at Richmond Rd, just West of the I-271/Harvard exit, but I did not look to see what busses might service it.
I guess I want to know why you want to be able to walk to a rapid transit station rather than drive to a rapid transit station? While I can imagine you had to drive for 15 mins or so before, what is your objective?
Mostly just that it would make sense (well, at least in my own head) if we didn’t have to get in the car at all. I dunno. Driving to get there seems wasteful if it’s not necessary.
I appreciate all the help so far, though I’ll admit the results haven’t been what I was hoping for.
If you aren’t stuck on Independence, there are a couple of hotels on W. 150th Street near Puritas Station? Back in the day it was a Days Inn but I am sure its changed since then. I know they are walking distance and the ride into town isn’t too bad.
IANAWestSider, but… sorry I wasn’t clear - you’re right, and staying at the airport was what I meant. I’ve taken the airport rapid a few times and can’t envision much in the way in lodgings along that route either.
[nitpick]Isn’t it Woodmere? Windemere is where the Red Line stops.[/nitpick]
I was guessing “being able to drink beer at the game” here, but who knows? 
True, Having typed Windermere (the Northeast terminus of the Eastern Red line) I repeated that word when I meant Woodmere–home to a truly odd police department.
You sure you don’t want to check out the Hilton Garden Inn downtown? It’s right next to the stadium on Carnegie, only $92 or $100/night that weekend if you prepay. No driving at all!
You could also give me $100 and bring a tent and stay in my basement, and I’ll DRIVE you to the game 
I’m a sucker for renters these days…heh.
Why would they need a tent in your basement?
I used to live in the West Park section of Cleveland, between downtown Cleveland and the airport, and there isn’t much in the way of hotels in that area - it’s mostly residential.
You could, of course, stay at the airport; that would be the cheapest option if you wanted to be close to the Rapid.
I’d suggest looking at hotels at or near Public Square. They are cheaper on the weekends, usually, because their main customers are business people who stay during the week.
I could also suggest a rental in the Shaker Heights area if you are interested in that; it’s very near Shaker Square, but it would require a bit more walking to get to public transportation. It’s a very nice area, though, and a nice rental - I just stayed there this past October and the rate was $75 night, IIRC, for the lower floor of a beautifully furnished Tudor - bathroom, two bedrooms, kitchen, dining room and sitting room with fireplace. Making at least some of your own meals would help to save money, and there are shops and restaurants within walking distance.
There’s also the Brownstone Inn - it’s a bed and breakfast which is about a mile and a half from the stadium: