When planning for Microtia reconstructive surgery or canalplasty (Atresia repair), you may find yourself traveling a long distance to get to where your surgeon of choice is located. In addition to traveling far from home, whether it be a two hour plane flight or traveling from another country overseas, you may be required to stay for a while following surgery for post operative appointments.
* It is always suggested that you ask for a list of suggested places to stay from your surgeon of choice’s office. They know the area and often have a list put together that can help you pick and choose where to stay when traveling. Also, hotels change from time to time, so an updated current list at the time of surgery would be ideal. Below are well-liked, suggested places to stay at and fun attractions to see when traveling during surgery in the United States:
Hotels and Rental Properties to Stay At
Palo Alto and Los Angeles
California
Surgery with:
Dr. Joseph Roberson
Palo Alto, California
Staybridge Suites in Sunnyvale
900 Hamlin Court
Sunnyvale, CA 94089
Ph: 408-745-1515
http://www.ichotelsgroup.com/h/d/sb/1/en/hotel/mtvsv
A room list description is as follows: 1 bedroom and 2 bedrooms available, Full kitchens, Fireplace, VCR, Pool Fitness Room, Continental Breakfast and more. Ask for a surgical discount rate.
Hotel Keen
Hotel Keen
425 High Street
Palo Alto, CA 94301
Reservations: 650-327-2775
Reservations-keen@hotelkeen.com
– A hotel when visiting Dr. Roberson. Walking distance from (Downtown Palo Alto), Whole Foods Market, CVS and Walgreens, Starbucks/ Peets Coffee (if you are a coffee drinker), and a variety of cafes/restaurants. It is also within minutes of Stanford University, and Stanford Shopping Mall. Average night stay price, $119/nt. Ask about a surgical discount using the Stanford rate and this hotel is 5 to 15 minutes from Dr. Roberson’s office.
Residence Inn Mountain View
1854 El Camino Real West
Mountain View, California
Phone: (650) 940-1300
Ask about a surgical discount using the Stanford rate and this hotel is 5 to 15 minutes from Dr. Roberson’s office.
Courtyard San Jose Cupertino
10605 North Wolfe Road
Cupertino, California 95014
408-252-9100
http://www.marriott.com/
For visiting Dr. Roberson. Serves breakfast & dinner every night. Whole Foods Grocery Store is near.
Best Western in San Mateo
2940 S Norfolk Street
San Mateo California 94403-2018
Phone: (650) 341-3300
http://bestwesterncalifornia.com/san-mateo-hotels
www.airbnb.com can also help with a rental home ….some for as low as $100/night when visiting Dr. Roberson.
Hollywood, Palo Alto and Los Angeles
California
Surgery with:
Dr. John Reinisch
Dr. Sheryl Lewin
California
Hollywood Orchid Suites in LA
1753 Orchid Avenue
Hollywood, CA 90028
Front Desk (323) 874-9678
Reservations (800) 537-3052
Fax (323) 874-9931
(Behind Chinese Theater, Next to Kodak Theater and Hollywood Renaissance Hotel)
info@orchidsuites.com
reservations@orchidsuites.com
– Coming attractions: Cirque De Soleil, Hard Rock Cafe and the Rolling Stone Cafe opening soon at the mall right next door to this hotel. Lots to do all within walking distance. Rates are very reasonable and there is a grocery store within walking distance. You may not need to rent a vehicle until exploring and heading to Diego and other places. When needing to go to doctor appointments you can take a cab as it is much cheaper than renting a car for 10 days.
Le Parc Hotel
733 N West Knoll Dr
West Hollywood, CA 90069
(310) 855-8888
http://www.tripadvisor.com/Hotel_Review-g33252-d84460-Reviews-Le_Parc_Suites_Hotel-West_Hollywood_California.html
One of the is one of the hotels recommended by Dr. Reinisch and Dr. Lewin when you visit his office. Has a kitchen and has a good restaurant in the hotel which also has room service. Close to everything – movies, shops, grocery stores and Santa Monica Beach. Average night stay price, $199/nt.
Hotel Keen
425 High Street
Palo Alto, CA 94301
Reservations: 650-327-2775
Reservations-keen@hotelkeen.com
– A hotel when visiting Dr. Reinisch and Dr. Lewin. Walking distance from (Downtown Palo Alto), Whole Foods Market, CVS and Walgreens, Starbucks/ Peets Coffee (if you are a coffee drinker), and a variety of cafes/restaurants. It is also within minutes of Stanford University, and Stanford Shopping Mall. Average night stay price, $119/nt. Ask about a surgical discount using the Stanford rate and this hotel is closer to Dr. Roberson’s office than to Dr. Reinisch and Dr. Lewin’s office.
West Hollywood Vacation Rental apartment
http://www.homeaway.com/vacation-rental/p268879
An elegantly furnished hideaway, central to everything.
West Hollywood apartment rental – Master Bedroom
See all 12 photos
Description Apartment, 1000 sq. ft.,
2 Bedrooms, Sleeps 4, 2 Bathrooms
Amenities downtown, tennis court, pets considered, air-conditioning, internet access
Rates per property (USD)
$225/night
$1,500/week
$5,100/month
Peter Mitchell
+1 213-364-2656
+1 323-851-3650
Speaks: English
Santa Monica Vacation Rental cottage
For a location closer to the beach visit: http://www.homeaway.com/vacation-rental/p281153
Quiet country chic cottage 2 Br. guest house
Santa Monica cottage rental – Real fireplace;sectional sofa; 46in flat screen TV
See all 11 photos
Description Cottage, 1000 sq. ft.,
2 Bedrooms, Sleeps 4, 1 Bathroom
Amenities beach, near the ocean, internet access, satellite or cable, TV, DVD
Rates per property (USD)
$1,050/week
$4,000/month
Cottage Rentals
PH: 310-617-1977
Speaks: English
* Contact the owners and see if they are available during your surgery dates.
A couple more rental cottages/homes in west Hollywood that are great:
http://www.homeaway.com/vacation-rental/p330073
Los Angeles Children’s Hospital
4650 W Sunset Blvd
Los Angeles, CA 90027
Ph: (323) 660-2450
You can always call the LA Children’s Hospital and ask them if they have a list of special accommodations while staying for surgery. Sometimes, they know of special places to stay for families that may cost as low as $50/night.
Cedars-Sinai Medical Center
Craniofacial and Pediatric Plastic Surgery
250 N. Robertson Blvd, Suite 506
Beverly Hills, CA 90211
Office: (310) 385-6090
www.cedars-sinai.edu/Patients/Programs-and-Services/Microtia
Call Cedars and ask for a list of places to stay for families traveling to the medical center for surgery.
Ronald McDonald Houses in Los Angeles
1250 Lyman Place
Los Angles, CA 90020
Ask to speak with Eliana at (323) 644-3000 or (310) 423-3277
This location is near to the Vermont/Sunset Subway Station
It is nice and also has a kitchen that you can use, private room for each family, play rooms for the kids, games area, common area for everyone to socialize, and also very caring assistants throughout the place. Most of occupants are families with little ones who are staying long term for their medical treatments in the area. You can tour the home on line if you google Ronald McDonald House. By the way the corporate Ronald McDonald Home is: (626) 744-9449. Hopefully this info is useful for some families. The room is approximately $25/night and sometimes free if you really cannot afford rentals. Accommodations and pricing is always subject to change.
* Important: Please keep in mind that families seeking cancer treatments are subject to first stay at the Ronald McDonald House. So, if you have a room, you may lose it to one of these families if there are no other openings.
Fun Things to Do and Fun Places to See When in California
Menlo Park behind the Stanford Mall a few
blocks.
The Dish. Sports games: Stanford.
Other things to do around Palo Alto (after surgery with Dr Roberson or Dr Brent)…
– went for a drive around Stanford University
– visited the NASA Ames Research Centre
– Gilroy shopping outlets (lots of great shopping – a bit of retail therapy for Moms).
– Jelly Belly factory tour in Fairfield
– We also continued on to Sacramento from Fairfield. Spent a night there & then the next day had a look around Old Town Sacramento.
– Spend some time in San Francisco sightseeing.
Other fun places to see when visiting Palo Alto, Ca for Dr. Roberson.
– Fisherman’s wharf/aquarium
– sea lions at the wharf
– double decker carousel in the middle of the wharf
– the zoo for sure! super fun.
– the Palace of Fine arts/Exploratorium – the Palace won’t be super fun to a 3 1/2 year old, but there are swans/ducks in the lake/fountain area and the Exploratorium is AWESOME.
– ice cream at Ben & Jerry’s in the Haight. They’re a little expensive though, but it’s cool to see it.
– if you like boats, Alcatraz is totally worth it. it’s about $45 for an adult, I think and you can stay out there as long as you’d like as long as you catch a boat back. It’s a neat boat ride over and back, with a great view.
– Lombard street, it’s the crookedest street in the world, he might have fun walking down it
– Coit Tower might be fun too! it’s got great views of the city
– obviously the golden gate bridge
– you HAVE to take a trolley!
– Chinatown’s fortune cookie factory – it’s on Ross Alley, it’s off the main street in Chinatown but you can get samples there. that was really cool.
– Golden Gate Park – has TONS of stuff – a big botanical garden, lakes, random things, a Japanese tea garden.
– the Civic Center has farmer’s markets every Sunday. You’ll have to check one out, tons of great stuff.. honey sticks, fresh fruit, pastries.
– Musee Mechanique – it’s down by the wharf and has tons of old penny arcade games
– Mission District, it has a lot of really awesome murals.
Tree House Social Club
426 South Robertson Boulevard
Los Angeles, California 90048
Ph: 310.288.3024
Fax: 310.288.3042
info@thetreehousesocialclub.com
Hours of Operation:
Monday – Thursday: 10am – 3pm
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It is about 1/2 block away from their office and it is a great place for preschool play and yummy lunch! It is a great place to go to play and have lunch either before or after ward ($9). It is geared for smaller kids, so it is rather “safe play” with a big tree house with small slide in the middle, and even art projects you can purchase to do there. We also took a children’s music class there from two dad’s who rock-n-rolled ($20). The food is great, with a super kids menu, and apparently celebrity mom’s go there. It was an excellent way to add something fun around the Dr visit and to play with other kids. Closed on Fridays. Bring your cell phone ear piece with you. You cant talk on your cell phone while driving!
More helpful information when traveling to Los Angeles, CA for surgery (some of this is mentioned above previously):
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More Helpful Tips
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Listen to what the surgeons suggest/recommend.
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Book your stay for the period of time the surgeon would like you to stay for post op.
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Pack clothes for the season during your scheduled surgery.
- Try renting a house or an apartment/condo/hotel that has a kitchenette.
- If you plan on going to Disney Land you can request (or the surgeons will often get you one) a medical pass so that you don’t have to wait in lines for the rides, especially if your child just recently had surgery and you are trying to have a little fun.
- If you are planning to visit Disney parks in Anaheim, you may want to consider staying at the
Holiday Inn Hotel & Suites Anaheim
1240 South Walnut Street
Anaheim, CA 92802
Ph: (800) 308-5312
Room stays cost from $100/night for a two room suite.
San Antonio, Texas
Surgery with:
Dr. Arturo Bonilla
Texas
Spring Hill Suites San Antonio Medical Center/Six Flags
11426 IH-10 West
San Antonio, Texas 78230 USA
Drury Inn and Suites
Reservations: 1-800-378-7946, call and ask about the two suggested locations below:
https://wwws.druryhotels.com/
The Drury Inn and Suites has two convenient locations near Dr. Bonillas office and near North Central Baptist Hospital. The hospital is about 15 to 20 minuets from Dr. Bonilla’s office.
As far as activities for our families to experience while staying in San Antonio, there is so much to choose from. There is a phenomenal theme park by the name of Morgan’s wonderland which is catered to those whom have disabilities, and is the only one of it’s kind in the world. There are also other theme parks that people maybe more familiar with such as Sea World and Six Flags Fiesta Texas. All parks are wonderful and I am sure every child and their families would have a great time. Another attraction which I personally love is the downtown Riverwalk. There are many shops, restaurants and not to mention all the history sitting right on the river. I am also pending a phone call back from a representative at the San Antonio Zoo, to see if there are any discounts they can provide for our patients. If you have any questions, please contact Dr. Bonilla’s office at 210-477-EARS(3277).
Here are some of the links to the locations I mentioned:
San Antonio Riverwalk: http://www.thesanantonioriverwalk.com
Morgan’s Wonderland: http://www.morganswonderland.com/
Six Flags Fiesta Texas: https://www.sixflags.com/fiestatexas
Sea World: http://www.seaworld.com/sanantonio/
San Antonio Zoo
Other Rental Home and Hotel Options
Hotel Crest View
901 East El Camino Real
Mountain View, CA 94040
Ph: 1.888.284.7428
http://www.mountainview.net/crestview-hotel/
They have suites, laundry, continental breakfast & dinner. A grocery store is a few mins walk & there area lot of things to do around there.
Plaza Suites Hotel
3100 Lakeside Drive
Santa Clara, CA 95054
Ph: (408) 748-9800
Hotel Reservations: (800) 345-1554 (US/CANADA)
http://www.theplazasuites.com/
It’s a very nice place, the rooms are suites so you have a bedroom and a separate living space, which is nice to have. Breakfast is included each morning and it is delicious!!! They also have complimentary happy hour every night from 5-9, which is also nice for mom and dad 😉 You can book off of Travelocity with flight and car rental to save some money.
You may want to rent a house to stay in instead of staying in a hotel/motel for more of a comfortable stay. This also depends on availability so you may want to look into booking accommodations a head of time before there is limited availability regarding closeness to the hospital or surgery center or being close enough and convenient so you don’t have to battle traffic. I have listed a couple of sites below that offer rental house information. Depending on the landlord…you can always ask for a discount (if possible) and see what they say because of your stay being of medical need.
Try the below two sites for rental house information:
1. www.homeaway.com
https://www.homeaway.com/d/40403/united-states
2. www.vrbo.com
Rent a house, condo or apartment…
* When inquiring about these rental properties, please make sure you find out how far away they are located from both the surgeon’s office and the hospital because a 20 minute drive could easily turn into a 45 minute drive with traffic. Make sure you get the facts before you book your stay.
The above properties are in a very nice place near Santa Monica Airport, at only
5 minutes in car from the beach and less than 30minutes from the Hospital.
More vacation homes to consider when having surgery in California.
For the below links, the landlord’s name is Peter. Very pretty properties: http://www.homeaway.com/vacation-rental/p268879, and his other properties are: http://www.homeaway.com/vacation-rental/p268881 and http://www.homeaway.com/vacation-rental/p268877).
The owner of the Santa Monica properties is Evelyn Kelly. They are very affordable (the one bedroom cottages are $150 a night). washer/dryers, pottery barn-ed from top to bottom. Click on the following link for details:
http://www.homeaway.com/vacation-rental/p281153 (2 bedroom)
Another great rental home in/near the Los Angeles area that is great and comparable to the price of staying in a hotel:
Near Santa Monica, for about $120.00USD/per day that had 2 to 3 bedrooms and a backyard.
You could find nice properties in www.homeaway.com.
Rental Cars
For rent a car, consider renting from ARROW RENT A CAR as their prices are pretty good. You could contact Al & Mo, the owners at: 1-800-856-0770 or 1-310-419-5900. Their website is: http://www.carrentalla.com/
Airline Discounts
Ask for airline discounts! You may get some financial support from some of the airlines when inquiring about discounts for medical/surgery related trips.
Miracle Flights Foundation
Miracle Flights is another organization that can help out with FREE flights.
Ph: 1-800-FLY-1711
http://www.miracleflights.org/
American Airlines, Northwest, United Airlines, and Frontier participate in discount programs during family crisis and medical situations, even during funerals. They may not cover the whole cost, but can be helpful.
Helpful Information for Traveling With a BAHA
Interested in traveling issues/information with BAHAs when flying and going through airport security? Below are some helpful links:
http://www.tsa.gov/travelers/airtravel/specialneeds/index.shtm
http://hearingaidexpress.com/2010/12/tsa-offers-advice-for-flyers-with-hearing-aids/ * This link contains information that states that it is “NOT NECESSARY TO REMOVE HEARING DEVICE!”
Traveling Abroad or Overseas for Surgery?
When traveling for surgery from another country, please ask your surgeon’s office for travel details. For example, it may not be acceptable to travel for surgery on a “work” VISA. It may not be acceptable to travel for surgery while claiming that you are traveling to your destination on “vacation.” Again, in addition to speaking with your surgeon’s office when obtaining this information, you may also want to visit the following links for more details: https://travel.state.gov/content/visas/en/law-and-policy/laws-and-regulations/us-visa-policy.html and http://www.tsa.gov/traveler-information Seeking treatment for medical conditions overseas may require a specific type of visitation VISA. It is very important to reveal what your true intent is for travel. By misrepresenting to any country’s government that you are planning a trip to visit family or take a vacation when you are indeed traveling for a surgical procedure can result in serious violations.
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