First Avenue Suites, Rochester

Like so many others, we came to First Avenue Suites because of a trip to Mayo Clinic. The Suites are centrally located with easy -- and covered -- access to all the Mayo buildings. Methodist Hospital is close by and St. Francis is only a few blocks down Second Street away. You can't beat this location. You also can't beat this price. We had a large apartment with a spacious and comfortable living room/dining area, two bedrooms and two baths. There is an elevator and stairs. The kitchen is adequately furnished with all the needed items, including a tea kettle. (If you are a true tea drinker, put in a tea pot, though.) Each bedroom has a phone and a television. You control the temperature in your apartment. While the accommodations might not be a luxurious as an up-scale hotel, it is cheaper and you can save bundles on food. If you do want to eat out, though, there are a number of near-by restaurants. The staff was friendly and knowledgable. All our issues were taken care of with a smile. The one drawback here is parking. You will have to walk from a nearby parking garage, but not terribly far. There is a 15 minute loading area just outside the Suites' door that makes loading and unloading much easier. I do wish we had known about that before we arrived. Also, although linens will be cleaned and replaces on request, there is no daily cleaning. You are on your own for that, but it doesn't take much effort to stay on top of that issue. We were there four days. We were comfortable and relaxed. Had we needed to stay longer, the facilities would have been even more convenient because we really did have a sort of home-away-from-home. Everyone in our family was extremely pleased to have found this place.

The check in was easy, fast, and courteous. Our suite is like a small apartment with most of the utensils for daily living furnished. Some inconveniences, like a small towel for a bath mat, no trash can in bedroom, teeny microwave, broken toaster, small wattage bulbs in table lamps, and a very high toilet with no platform adapter (must be great for a some people with a handicap). These are offset because they placed a WONDERFUL recliner in the bedroom for my wife as she recovers from surgery. The centrally located washers and dryers work very well and the area is kept clean and neat. Oh! They provide the washing detergent. For 75 cents to wash and 75 cents to dry, a very nice touch. There is a 32" TV in the living area and a smaller one in the bedroom. The larger one has a DVD attached. The telephone worked from day one - caller ID and voice mail too. The Internet DSL cable plugged in just like I was at home - no special log in, codes, etc. The freezer and refrigerator handles our weekly purchase of food with no trouble. The vacuum cleaner works well. There is no bucket for the wet mop and the mop is somewhat over used, but I bet if I ask I will be OK. Without being here it is difficult to describe how convenient this place is to EVERYTHING. Really, it is ALL HERE.