Every neighborhood on campus has different things to offer. Before you move in this fall, make sure you know about the places you and your friends will be living.
Brody Neighborhood
Brody is located on the edge of campus near the Breslin center and across the street from the Kellogg center. Brody is quite a ways away from other parts of campus, so if you’ll be living here, it would be a good idea to invest in a bike or a CATA bus pass. Despite the distance, Brody also has a lot of benefits as well. The rooms in Brody are considerably larger than rooms elsewhere on campus and also tend to be a bit nicer. Brody also has community bathroom so you don’t have to worry about making sure you keep your bathroom clean. The café in Brody is called Brody Square and is known for having a diverse choice of foods to eat as well as offering late night, where it stays open until 12:00 a.m. instead of closing at 8:00 pm. Brody has two CATA bus stops and is also one of the few stops that has multiple city busses stop there.
Some of the Restaurants close by: Domino’s, Hungry Howie’s, Harrison Roadhouse, and Jimmy John’s.
Stores nearby: Quality Dairy
Distance from Wells Hall: 15 minute walk
How to get to Grand River from here: Take the 1 bus near Rather Hall and stay on it until the Grand River and Abbot stop comes up.
Dorms in Brody
Armstrong Hall
Bailey Hall
Bryan Hall
Butterfield Hall
Emmons Hall
East Neighborhood
East Neighborhood is located on the opposite end of campus as Brody and has one of the tallest buildings on campus, Hubbard, as one of its dorms. Hubbard is also known for it’s Sparty’s, a convenience store located in different buildings on campus. Hubbard’s Sparty’s has a grill where you can get food such as burgers, fries, chicken wings, chicken tenders, grilled cheese and other items. East is a perfect location if you are a business major and have classes in the business college, since it is only a ten minute walk away. Getting a bike or buying a bus pass is a great idea if you are living here because East is far from most of the lecture halls. The 30 and 31 buses both stop at East and both run until 2:00 a.m., so the bus is a very convenient way to travel if you are living here. Grand River is a 15 minute walk from East and taking the trail to get there is convenient and fun. Dining halls include Hubbard, Holmes and, Akers with both Holmes and Akers staying open for late night.
Some of the restaurants close by: Wings Over, Pizza Hut, Pizza House, Menna’s Joint, Conrad’s Grill and Bell’s Greek Pizza are all a 15-20 minute walk away.
Stores Nearby: Rite Aid, Mobile Gas Station and Velocipede Peddler
Distance from Wells Hall: 15 minute walk, about 10 minutes for bus ride on the 30 bus
How to get to Grand River from here: Get on the 31 bus from East and ride it until the bus gets on Grand River and get off on the first stop.
Dorms in East Neighborhood
Akers Hall
Hubbard Hall
North Neighborhood
North Neighborhood has the oldest dorms on campus, and they look like they could be a part of Hogwarts from Harry Potter. North’s location is convenient if you like to walk and is pretty close to the library, Wells Hall, Spartan Stadium, MSU Union, Eli and Edythe Broad Art Museum and the many restaurants and stores on Grand River. Even though North’s location is convenient if you want to walk, taking the bus isn’t as easy. The 33 bus runs through North and takes you to the MSU CATA station in a very short trip, however this is the only bus that runs and tends to get crowded when the weather is bad. The bus also stops running after 7:00 p.m. Another potential problem is North only has two cafés, The Gallery in Snyder/Phillips Hall, which stays open for late night, and Heritage Commons in Landon Hall. If you don’t want to spend money on food, a useful alternative is going to the Union’s late night, where you can eat in the café as one of your meals instead of paying for it or using your combo exchange before 8:00 p.m.
Restaurants close by: Conrad’s Grill, Bell’s Greek Pizza, Little Caesar’s, McDonalds, Jimmy John’s, Subway, Five Guys Burger and Fries.
Stores close by: 7/11, Game Stop
Distance from Wells Hall: 10-15 minute walk depending on exact dorm
How to get to Grand River from Here: Grand River is across the street from most of the dorms in North. The 31 bus stops at Snyder/Phillips and can take you to Grand River as well.
Dorms in North:
Campbell Hall
Gilchrist Hall
Yakeley Hall
Mayo Hall
Williams Hall
Mason/Abbot Halls
Snyder/Phillips Halls
River Trail Neighborhood
River Trail Neighborhood is aptly named because of its proximity to the Red Cedar River that runs through campus. River Trail is right next to East Neighborhood and is often mistaken as being the same thing. River Trail is more centrally located than East and is right across the street from the MSU CATA station, which makes taking the bus easier. River Trail is also close to Wells Hall, International Center, Erickson Hall, Spartan Stadium, MSU main library and Eli Broad College of Business. The dining halls in River Trail are The Vista in Shaw Hall and Riverwalk Market in Owen Hall. The Riverwalk Market is perfect for getting a taste of their made-to-order food, but unfortunately it counts as your combo exchange for the day. The Vista is known for its large variety of foods and usually serves food that you won’t see anywhere else on campus, but they do not serve late night, so most people go to Holmes or Akers for a late night snack.
Some of the restaurants close by: McDonald’s, Five Guys Burgers and Fries, Buffalo Wild Wings, Conrad’s Grill, No Thai, Cosi and Chipotle
Stores Nearby: CVS, 7/11, American Apparel, Urban Outfitters, Pitaya, East Lansing Threads, Student Book Store, Ned’s Book Store and Curious Book Shop
Distance from Wells Hall: 5-10 minutes
How to get to Grand River from here: Take the 31 and get off on the stop after the Snyder/Phillips stop.
Dorms in River Trail:
McDonel Hall
Owen Hall
Shaw Hall
South Neighborhood
South Neighborhood is a great location for anyone who is a sports fan, as it’s only a 5-10 minute walk from the Breslin Student Events Center, Spartan Stadium, Munn Ice Arena and Ralph Young Field. On football game days, depending on which building you are in, you can see the tailgaters from your window and you can usually hear the football games if you walk outside or even just open up your window. However, this makes it nearly impossible to sleep in. On the plus side, though, if you have tickets to the football game you don’t have to worry about parking and can just walk from your dorm to the stadium. Another downside to living in south is that it is the furthest away from Grand River and there isn’t a convenient way to get there that doesn’t require walking for almost half an hour or taking two buses. There are three cafes in South: South Pointe in Case Hall, Holden Dining Hall in Holden Hall and Wilson Dining Hall in Wilson Hall. South Pointe is open everyday from 7:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. Holden Dining Hall is open only during the weekday, 7:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. Monday-Thursday and 7:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. on Friday. Wilson’s café is open everyday but doesn’t open up until 4:00 p.m. and then closes at midnight.
Restaurants close by: Subway, Taco Bell and Woody’s Oasis
Stores close by: Quality Dairy
Distance from Wells Hall: 10-15 minute walk
How to get to Grand River from here: Take the 30 bus to get to the MSU CATA station and get off at the CATA station and wait to catch the 31 bus that is headed to Grand River. Get off at any of the stops on Grand River.
Dorms in South:
Case Hall
Holden Hall
Wonders Hall
