From the painting of the iconic Buddy Holly eyeglasses in the hallway to the Texas star on the wood-plank map of the United States in the lobby, everywhere you look at the Overton Hotel and Conference Center reminds you that you’re in Lubbock, Texas. Instead of “cookie-cutter” couches and tables in the lobby, there are arrangements of antique furniture and collectibles. Works by local artists line the walls.
Located at 2322 Mac Davis Lane, the hotel is the first and still the only AAA Four-Diamond hotel in West Texas. Views from the guest rooms are spectacular, especially the higher you go in the 15-story hotel. From my room, I could see across Lubbock rooftops all the way to the horizon.
The bedroom was cozy but what really caught my attention was the “throw”. It’s trendy for hotels to forego bedspreads, just placing a swath of color across the foot of the bed.
Here, instead of something merely decorative, was something useful: a lush, dark red knitted rectangle that almost looks like a shawl. If it had been a different season — daytime temps were pushing 105° when I was there — it might have found its way around my shoulders as I headed out to dinner.
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I was pleased to find, along side the makeup mirror, four of the expected liquid amenities in the bathroom: lotion, shower gel, shampoo and conditioner, all from Gilchrist & Soames. The coffee maker is from Keurig and there’s a mini-fridge, but the bottle of mineral water was priced at a “don’t touch” $3. Fortunately the tap water was fine and the WiFi fast and free.
Although I didn’t have time to check it out either one, there is a fitness center with all the expected work-out gear and a heated outdoor swimming pool.
It’s a short walk west to the campus of Texas Tech University, which has an enrollment of more than 37,000 students. But, that’s not why you want to wander that way (unless, of course, you’re in town to visit a student or take in a football game).
The school has an extensive collection of public sculpture scattered around the expansive campus noted for its Spanish Renaissance-style architecture. At left is “Read Reader” by Terry Allen, executed in bronze in 2003.
Just a few blocks to the east is downtown Lubbock, with all sorts of restaurants and music spots where you’ll find everything from country & western to rock ‘n’ roll. You remember Buddy Holly, right? The “day the music died” guy? He was born, raised and buried in Lubbock.
The hotel is seven miles from Lubbock Preston Smith International Airport, and there’s a free airport shuttle. Reservations can be made on the hotel’s website or at an OTA like Booking.com or Hotels.com.
(Photos by Susan McKee, who was a guest of Visit Lubbock during her visit)
