It ain't San Sebastian, but it'll do in pinxto

I agree, avoid  Bloomington. The light rail goes from the airport to downtown and is safe and easy to use. Solara at 9th and Hennepin is a good Tapas place. Hope to see you in Minneapolis.

That's where I do most of my hobbying with ne'er a problem. Parking isn't an issue and getting around is easier IMO.

I have only seen one girl downtown. I had to park at a meter two blocks away and I thought I got lucky. She usually works in Bloomington and told me she prefers it there. She said the clientele is better (no offense intended). PM me if you want her number.

I can see where downtown may have some advantages, but I suspect much of the advice you get on this location question may be for selfish reasons only. Yes I admit, that's one reason I defend Bloomington! As far as hotels go, I see nothing wrong with the Hilton or Radisson and I'm sure there are others.

I agree.I have hobbyed all over the city,even Brooklyn Center and Brooklyn Park.I've also never had a problem. I went downtown only once,and never again.It's too much trouble findig a place to park.

Lets see, Downtown a real pain in the ass traffic, and parking sucks. Plan on a extra hour spend being pissed off.
Bloomington, easy parking right in front of what ever hotel and there are several and traffic is for the most part better. I have talked to several traveling providers who say they do better there than downtown.

Add me to the list of hobbyists who don't care to go downtown.  Almost any suburb,
north, west, or south, is much more convenient travel and parking wise....at least for me.

If you use the 3.5 and 4 star hotels you shouldn't have any problem. The Bloomington LE cruise the 2 star lots- but they stay away from the nice places.  I do agree that seeing a $150 hooker in Bloomington is risky- but it is risky in any burb.
There are a half dozen very nice hotels in Bloomington- it's the Red Roof Inns of the world that you should stay clear of.

Well, the chorus of voices seem to make a good point, that any problems with Bloomington may be more of an issue with the cheaper motels in the area.  And while I personally don't mind visiting downtown, it sounds like many others feel otherwise.

Hilton, Embassy Suites, Radison, Crowne Plaza and Doubletree should avoid any issues.

Solera is still the best tapas place in town and well worth a trip downtown (check out the rooftop).  As someone else pointed out, if you're staying near the Mall of America, the light rail will get you downtown quickly and inexpensively.

always first to get bashed. Apparently some guys don't like the drive or don't know how many nice hotels are there. Easy to find, easy to park. What's not to like?

I have heard for years to avoid Bloomington, I have not had any issues in Bloomington but I have had some providers refuse to see me for outcall there.  I do know that Bloomington PD does work with hotel staff to spot signs of illegal activity.  Better safe and stay away.

Downtown does have parking issues, but a lot of potential customers work there, and would prefer a DT incall.  Parking in a public garage cost a few dollars, but it's not high enough to prevent me from driving DT.  

Don't know what the big deal is with parking downtown.  There are loads of ramps, and it costs, what, an extra $8?  I've got no problems with Bloomington, I'm sure I've visited with more providers there than downtown, but I more reliably run into a traffic mess on the 494 strip through Bloomington than downtown.  For those of us that live in the north or northeast, downtown is a whole lot quicker to reach.  

I'd imagine another reason most of the visiting agencies choose downtown is because there are more potential clients, and there's a whole lot more venues for decent food and drink downtown.

Re: Thank you all for your help, it's greatly appreciated

It all depends on where you are coming from in the metro area and the time of day. Bloomington is a pain for those on the north side who don't have flexible hours. Traffic is bad in the morning, 7 - 10 and the evening 4 - 7. For hobbyists on the north and west side downtown is much easier traffic wise. You are traveling opposite the flow in the after work hours and parking is a 5 - 8$ fee close to all hotels. The traffic is much more easy to handle downtown, than on 494.

I like downtown because the hotels are almost always very busy. The more people coming and going, the less any one person coming and going gets noticed. I know that busy lobbies are not exclusive to downtown hotels but it's my preference.

I personally do not understand why a guy who is spending $300 or more for a session would balk at an extra $5 or $7 to park. But that's just me. Minnesotans do seem to have an adversion, in general, to paying for parking.

So, I like downtown and I like the immediate west burb area around 100 and 394.

I do have a funny story about Bloomington. I had a session at a hotel on the strip one time, and the hotel was packed... totally crowded... with weird people milling around all dressed in all sorts of strange costumes and made up with bizarre make up. It was a convention of fans of a certain type of Japanese superhero - warrior comic book genre.

The only person who looked conspicuous was... you guessed it... the guy in the gray dress pants and polo shirt carrying a briefcase... LOL...

WHY NOT?  im so sick of seeing posts about bloomington being bad news.  like said in privious posts,  as long as you stick to nice upscale hotels, you dont have to worry.
that goes without saying, wether it's plymouth, roseville, eagan, bloomington, downtown mpls, st. paul. burnsville, etc,,,,,  hotels in all these cities work with PD.
when you deal with downtown, you deal with traffic, parking meters, parking ramps, parking lots (none of which are free),bad construction, and for many, just not familiar with downtown can be hard to navigate.  and i cant even remember the last time i had requests for downtown.  for out of towners, especially those staying close to MSP/STP airport, bloomington is spot on!  i have worked out there on and off for years, NEVER had a problem.  always parking . always easy to find.  always use nice upscale places!

as far as downtown goes....if its such a gem,,,,,,,,,then i guess i should expect to see requests for downtown to be popping up on my email,,,,?

just a thought,,,,

XOXO
selena