Hotels near Gulf State Park Nature Center, Gulf Shores

Beautifully decorated and landscaped; the clean, newly modern style hotel had super friendly and helpful front desk staff. The indoor/ outdoor pool was awesome, comfy cozy lobby and sitting areas inside and outdoors. Southern grinds coffee shop is connected to the building, offering delicious breakfast and lunch items as well as tasty coffees, teas, and scooped ice cream. The coffee shop has one of the best coastal gift shops I've ever seen in the area. We were offered 500 bonus IHG points if we spent $50 in food/drink in the bar, but the menu didn't look that great, and we had our heart set on Cobalts anyway. The room was very spacious with wood like floors and modern marine decor, a very comfy bed. The bathroom and shower were also modern, with glass doors and optional spray wand. It felt like coastal luxury. It's further down from the busier ***** area, but that's not a bad thing. The only inconvenience is that you can not walk or cross the busy road to access the beach because there are private rentals that don't allow pass through pedestrians. You will actually have to initial an agreement that you will not do so or be fined? If you are a smoker, they have orange Adirondack chairs in the back parking area where you can puff. Other than that, smoking is not allowed anywhere on the property, not even in front or at the coffee shop outdoor tables. They say there is a shuttle that takes you to the public beach entrance less than a mile down the road. It's a nice Pavillion and showers/bathrooms, BUT parking is $10 a day! We didn't see a shuttle but then we didn't ask. We drove there with our beach gear and paid the $10! I suppose you could walk a mile if you had a wagon to haul your stuff to avoid paying the $10 beach access lot parking fee, but who wants to do that on a hot summer day. If staying at Indigo, I would inquire exactly what does using the beach shuttle entail? Anyhow, we usually use IHG points to stay at HI on the beach but it's ridiculously expensive between Labor and Memorial day (the high season), but if your looking for a nice place to stay that's away from the hustle bustle traffic in orange beach, Indigo is great if you can make arrangements for a ride to the beach access at a time suitable for your party (or just cough up the $10 for parking at the beach)!

We had the best bartender at the pool bar whole on vacation. Carrie was so friendly and helpful when we wanted to know about the the drinks, she really made the trip for us! The hotel and park are beautiful, and we had so much fun! What a wonderful, relaxing place to have a fun week.

The hotel is right next to the beach and has free parking. There is a refrigerator and utensils in the room to cook. Ctrip booked very quickly, but the hotel front desk said that they did not receive the money, and recorded my credit card again. I don't know if I will deduct the money.

I'm not a big fan of the Courtyard by Marriott brand - my company books my travel, so I wind up staying at them more often than I would choose if I could control it. The room was small and cramped. Front desk staff was fine. Check-in was a breeze. I hate when the side doors don't lock, though. That feels creepy to me. Internet speeds for the enhanced internet were around 40-45 mbps, so that's good. The A/C was a wall unit, controlled at the unit itself rather than by the thermostat elsewhere in the room. As a real plus (earns an extra star for this, actually) the room included a microwave and a fridge! Woohoo! Good luck trying to find somewhere to plug in your laptop at the desk. Both outlets were taken - one for the desk lamp and the other for the coffeemaker.