St Louis - neighborhoods/cheap squats

I looked on orbitz, looks like the Red Roof Inn on Hampton Ave would be a good bet. It's right off Highway 44, which will take you right into downtown with about a 5-10 minute drive. It's in South St. Louis, which often just translates into hoosiers instead of gangbangers, which, though potentially much more annoying, are less likely to jack your stereo. And it's in your price range.

If you need any other advice, just send an email. I spend at least an hour or two out of most weekdays driving around St. Louis, so I've gotten pretty good at the geography.

Anything that's "near" the city would be fine .. 20 minutes away, even ... Really, just anything that doesn't have cig. burns in the bedspreads and, uh, stains ..But it's just for one night ..

Thanks for all the help .. I may need to ask some followup questions though ..

We have several friends from or with family in the St. Louis area, so my wife has gotten it into her head that we should take a vacation there. People who know better, is there any reason to take a vacation (with kids) in St. Louis? I already know about the City Museum, so there's that, but free zoo/public gardens isn't doing much to spark my imagination.

you could take them to the bar... oh wait
well i guess you could take them to the totally desolate post-apocalyptic downtown after 5pm... oh wait
you could make them eat plastic cheese at Imo's pizza...hmm

part of the reason that the st. louis cardinals are wildly popular is that going to baseball games is probably one of two recommended activities in st. louis for families

But the City Museum and free zoo/gardens.

oh yep, didn't mean to discount those. definitely city museum, above all. and the zoo/gardens are standouts (but aren't really better than any other city's imo)

Yeah that's what I figured.

The closest I can come to being a good sport about this is that it's only five hours away by car and if it sucks we'll never go back.

yeah, well st louis natives can probably do a much better job than i can. when i lived in MO i was always an hour south or 2 hours west. after i left for college my parents moved downtown for a bit, but whenever i'd visit they would always visit the same 2-3 places within 2 blocks of their apartment.

It's a little hard to advocate for the city right now because I'm kinda pissed at their "no plowing secondary streets" policy. But I'll try - don't have kids, but am told by friends to do that this is a great place for them (uh, public schools aside).

-Yeah, yeah, the City Museum - this thing is criminally underpublicized outside of the area. Probably St. Louis' finest attraction for anyone and something I would have gone insane for as a kid. I mean, that would have been worth the trip right there. Free zoo/gardens also includes free art museum with a decent collection, if that sweetens it any. Paddleboats too (not free).
-Downtown proper isn't really post-apocalyptic - just kinda dead. You could time it to coincide with one of the festivals, which perk things up a bit. There's a new art park, Citygarden, which is designed with kids in mind - kind of Millenium Park-ish, pretty well done. Arch and grounds, of course, with a scenic view of barges and the casino in East St. Louis.
-The Missouri Botanical Garden is world-class, interesting even if you're not super into gardens, spaces for kids. Not free, though you can just claim a STL zip code without proof to get a discount.
-The Magic House in Kirkwood is a more standard-issue children's museum. There's a nice little square with a farmer's market nearby. Also in the suburbs: Laumeier Sculpture Park, Grant's Farm (kind of a petting zoo writ large), Lone Elk Park (where the bison roam free).
-Like the Mailman says, this is a great place to drink. If any of those friends/relatives are actually here, that's where they come in handy. There are some great kid-friendly microbreweries, if you're into that sort of thing. Civil Life has a big roster of well-done session brews and a nice patio with a ton of toys/games available. Not sure if any of the food in STL is going to outclass what you have, but most of the bases are covered - sizable Bosnian, Vietnamese, Mexican, Chinese communities so some decent options there.
-Eckert's across the river is a good time - giant orchard/pumpkin patch/fair.
-Chuck Berry still plays at Blueberry Hill semi-regularly! Haven't been myself, but hey, Chuck Berry!
-Um, another Six Flags?

the science museum is pretty cool! & you get to walk across the freeway from the parking lot! & free too!

the Saint Louis Art Museum is also free & totally quality. we go to art museums with the fam but ymmv

we live only a couple of hours away from STL & will make a similar weekend of it pretty soon