Hi Joanne, I am so sorry for what you are going thru. I understand what you are feeling. My journey to get to Mayo Clinic was long and difficult. It took six years of drs not knowing what was wrong or misdiagnosis. So when I finally was able to get an appt with Mayo I was going to do everything in my power to get there no matter the cost. First and foremost do not throw in the towel!!

I have experience with the Neurology and Neurosurgery Dept, but it was at the Rochester Campus. So with that being said. Here are my takeaways from my experience both with Mayo and accommodations.

1) Accommodations - I had never been to Rochester so I had no idea how the city even looked relating to traffic, hotels, restaurants etc. had less than two weeks to finding a hotel. Got a recommendation from a co-worker who took her daughter to Mayo 5 yrs before. So I made reservations at that hotel. After my stay I decided if I needed to come back in the future I would not be staying there. Once I arrived and saw the city I started taking notes in regards to traffic, locations of hotels and restaurant for future reference. Until you actually arrive at your destination you cannot determine what accommodations will work for you. So my taking notes it helped me with researching possible hotels to stay at the next time.

2) like anything a person does for the first time you learned what you would do and not do the next time you do it.

3) Mayo Clinic Neurology Dept - When I came to Mayo for the first time I was looking for a diagnosis. My original diagnosis before coming to Mayo was severe ulnar neuropathy and carpal tunnel. I was told to plan for 5-7 business days for my time at Mayo. My experience with Neurology and Neurosurgery was phenomenal!! My medical team at Mayo absolutely ROCKS! I now consider them family.

4) Mayo understands that their patients are coming from long distances and does everything possible to schedule appointments as close together as possible. My first appointment with the neurologist was on a Monday, tests and more appointments Tues, Wed, Thurs and by Friday I was meeting with a neurosurgeon to discuss having surgery less than four weeks later. I did experience only one time for an annual checkup (I go back for annual checkups since my first appointment six years ago) where I had one appointment on a Friday and one appointment on Monday. In my case I live five hrs away, but I decided to go home after Friday’s appointment and returned on Sunday for Monday’s appointment.

Unfortunately Minnesota and Florida are in two totally different parts of the US. Thereby hotel customers are totally different. The majority of business for hotels in Rochester is made up of Mayo patients as MN does not have the amount tourists coming to the state as FL. So pricing in FL is driven by tourist dollars. Unfortunately Mayo has no control over the prices hotels charge.

Use the time while in Jax to gather info for accommodations for next time. Talk with the concierge at Mayo in Jax for help. There may be more options for stays than just hotels. Use their services as that is why they are there. Ask about when the low season is as pricing for accommodations maybe lower as less tourists are in the area. Ask questions as I am sure there hasn’t been a question they have heard.

Using this info you can plan for future stays in Jax in needed. For me after my first experience I found a hotel further from Mayo in Rochester with a FREE shuttle to the clinic and was within walking distance to a restaurant I do not go during winter due to weather and I stay away from holidays. Annual checkups gives me a little more wiggle room now for scheduling my appointments and finding a place to stay.

I apologize for the long post. The above comments are based on my experience and my opinion. Your experience maybe different. I wish you all the best!