I loved how the indoor pool at Springhill Suites by Marriott in Columbia Downtown is five feet deep

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My family recently came back from a great stay at SpringHill Suites by Marriott Columbia Downtown/The Vista in South Carolina.  We visited Columbia because we are huge fans of the University of South Carolina’s Women’s Basketball Team.  They recently won the 2022 NCAA March Madness Women’s Basketball Tournament.  So there was a parade last week in the team’s honor, and we had to go see it to cheer for the team!

2022 NCAA March Madness Women's Basketball Champion South Carolina Gamecocks Team Parade

We picked SpringHill Suites by Marriott Columbia Downtown/The Vista due to its location.  We knew we could walk to the parade and wouldn’t have to bother looking for parking.  But we ended up loving the hotel for so many reasons other than just the location.  I’ll tell you about them in the review for this hotel.

Location

So as I said, the main reason my family chose to stay here was the location.  It has a wonderful location in the Vista area of downtown of Columbia.  There are plenty of restaurants within walking distance of the hotel.  We reviewed the nearby Liberty Tap Room and Grill here.

You can walk or take a short drive to the University of South Carolina.  So it is a great choice if you are visiting the University.

Now most hotels with a downtown setting generally have large parking fees.  But parking is free at this hotel, which is great!  In fact, the price of this hotel considering the location is very reasonable.  You can see for yourself here.

Another thing about parking at a downtown location like this is that you often have to park in a far-away parking garage.  But there is plenty of parking right in front of the hotel.  And since the parking is right in front, you can easily get back to your car after you’ve parked.  Which is great when you want to drive somewhere else.  Or you forget to take one of your bags in, which I did.

Pool

One of my favorite features of this hotel is the pool.

I loved how the indoor pool at Springhill Suites by Marriott in Columbia Downtown is five feet deep

It is an indoor pool, which I love as I am quite pale and need tons of sunblock when I swim outside.

Now, it is not a large pool.  And I prefer pools that also have a hot tub.

But it goes to five feet deep, which I like.  And it is big enough to swim some laps, which I like.  It was nice and relaxing to swim at the pool the night I got here.

Breakfast

The hotel also has a great free breakfast.

Springhill Suites in Columbia, South Carolina Downtown/The Vista has a well balanced free breakfast with everything from fruit to waffles

It can get quite busy, but there are plenty of seating.  There are numerous options.  You can get hot options, like fresh eggs, bacon or turkey sausage.

Springhill Suites in Downtown Columbia South Carolina has a free breakfast where you can get fresh food like sausage, bacon, and eggs

They have a lot of different pastries, like croissants and English muffins.

SpringHill Suites by Marriott Columbia Downtown/The Vista has a continental breakfast with muffins, croissants, bagels, bread & more

There is plenty of cereal.

A picture of the free breakfast at SpringHill Suites in Downtown Columbia, South Carolina near the University

There is also a waffle maker so you can make yourself waffles.

The free breakfast at Springhill Suites in downtown Columbia, South Carolina has a freak breakfast with everything I like in a continental breakfast including a waffle maker

They had yogurt, but mine was, unfortunately, a bit too frozen.

Springhill Suites in Downtown Columbia South Carolina has a continental breakfast serves hot and cold items like these yogurt

They also have coffee, juice options, and fruit.

We really liked the food we had while we were there.  We were even able to change up what we had for breakfast each day.

Springhill Suites in downtown Columbia South Carolina near the University has a great free breakfast and my family liked the juice and food we had here during our stay

My family liked our cinnamon raisin bagels we got at Springhill Suites by Marriott Downtown Columbia South Carolina's free breakfast

SpringHill Suites by Marriott Columbia Downtown/The Vista has a free breakfast with great food like waffles, pictured here.

Bathroom

There were thinks I liked and did not like about the bathroom situation.

A pro of the bathrooms was that it was a great that there were two separate bathroom areas.  One area had a shower and the other had the toilet.  I really like that they separated these areas because it meant someone could be brushing their teeth or getting dressed in one separate area while someone else used the toilet.  This is a really great feature for families.

It had sliding doors to each area, which is great for saving space.  It also eliminated those situations where you open the door and like most of the bathroom is gone because the bathroom is so small (yes, I’m looking at you, Fairfield Inn Greensboro).

But here’s the negative.  The sliding doors are a bit thin, which isn’t great for noise cancellation (or smell cancellation, honestly).  Additionally, it was very hard to close the doors all the way.  And because the bathroom areas were right across from the beds, it made those problems a bit worse than if it had been at a separate part of the room.

But these were honestly only slight annoyances.  It did not spoil the trip at all for my family.

Bed & Living Room Areas

The additional space you do get from the bathroom setup makes for a separate living room area.  I love how the rooms at most Springhill Suites I have stayed in before have both the area with the beds and the living room area.

The guest rooms at Springhill Suites in Downtown Columbia South Carolina are really spacious with room for multiple queen beds, a desk, and couch area

The desk space was great if you needed to work on your trip.  The sofa was very large.

SpringHill Suites by Marriott Columbia Downtown/The Vista guest rooms are spacious with huge sofas

It is a pull-out sofa, which means that more than four could be in a room with two queen beds.  The only negative, though, with it being a pull-out sofa is that like with a lot of sofa beds, the sofa part is not comfortable at all.  Sitting up in my bed was actually more comfortable than the sofa.

Still in all, I love that the living room area is separate.  And it makes it more like a suite, though I personally would not consider it a suite since there is no door between the living room area and the bedroom.  There is, however, a partial wall.

The living room also has some kitchen amenities.  There is a refrigerator, microwave, and a Mr. Coffee coffee maker.

Springhill Suites by Marriott in Downtown Columbia South Carolina/The Vista guest rooms have great amenities for customers like kitchen appliances

Also, the beds?  So comfortable!

SpringHill Suites by Marriott Columbia Downtown/The Vista has guests rooms with comfy queen beds

Bar

Now, Springhill Suites does not have an onsite restaurant.  Though as I mentioned earlier, there are plenty of eating options within walking distance.

But what it does have is a bar in the lobby.

Enjoy light bites and beer at the bar at Springhill Suites by Marriott in Columbia, SC

It opens at 4:00 PM.  It serves drinks and some food.  Here is the current menu.

White Wine

  • Pinot Grigio
  • Sauvignon Blanc
  • Chardonnay

Red Wine

  • Pinot Noir
  • Merlot
  • Cabernet Sauvignon

Beer

  • Budweiser
  • Bud Light
  • Miller Light
  • Michelob-Ultra
  • Coors Light
  • Yengling
  • Sierra Nevada Pale Ale
  • Wicked Weed
  • Corona Light
  • Palmetto
  • Blue Moon Belgian White

Snacks

  • Vista Burger: A juicy ground up burger cooked your way
  • BBQ Chicken Flatbread: A crispy, flatbread layered with mozzarella cheese, red onions & tender BBQ chicken
  • Margherita Flatbread with Pesto: A crispy flatbread with pesto sauce base, mozzarella cheese & Roma tomatoes
  • Chicken Quesadilla: A classic quesadilla filled with cheese, tender chicken, crispy bacon & black beans

Other Features

The hotel also has some other great features.  It has a fitness room.

Springhill Suites by Marriott, a downtown Columbia hotel, offers its guests great amenities like the fitness center, pictured here

Springhill Suites in downtown Columbia South Carolina is a great hotel with great features for its customers like this fitness center

There is a laundry room for guests on the third floor.

Springhill Suites in downtown Columbia South Carolina has a laundry room guests can use to wash their clothes and dry them

They have a business center in the lobby with a couple of computers and a printer.  When we went there to use it, they were out of paper.  We asked the front desk and they immediately replaced the paper, which was great.  And the printing was very quick.

And I really like the artwork on the first floor.

I love the artwork on display near the lobby at SpringHill Suites by Marriott Columbia Downtown/The Vista

Conclusion

My family highly recommends staying at SpringHill Suites by Marriott Columbia Downtown/The Vista if you are visiting Columbia, South Carolina.  Especially if you want to walk to anywhere in the Downtown area or to the University of South Carolina.

It is conveniently located and near lots of restaurants.  But at the same time, it is reasonably priced with no parking fees.  And it has a lot of wonderful features, like an indoor pool and free continental breakfast.

And you can save even more on their reasonable rates by clicking here.