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by MADELYN MILLER

Fantasies are very personal things. And sometimes it's hard to know how or where to make them happen.

Recently I discovered the Fantasy Suites in Denton.  I first heard about it from a friend but she wasn't quite sure where it was.  After asking around, I learned lots of people had heard about the Fantasy Suites, but almost no one knew where it was.  It's not listed in the phone book.  You need to know that it is a group of special theme rooms at the Quality Inn in Denton.

Would you like to be a sheik or Arabian prince for a night?  Or spend an evening at Caesar's palace?  Does your unfulfilled teenage fantasy involve a bed in a pink Cadillac?  Or would you enjoy an exotic evening in the Geisha suite?

All these fantasies are available at Fantasy Suites for $149 during the week or $199 on weekends.  Each visit includes complimentary champagne upon arrival and a European-style continental "Breakfast in Bed for Two."  Each suite has a double Jacuzzi, candles, and champagne glasses.

The helpful staff can arrange for a keepsake picnic basket ($39) with wine, cheese, bread, grapes and sausage.  Perhaps you'd like to order roses in a souvenir vase ($42 for a dozen) or specialty chocolates ($10) for your sweetheart.  You can even have your name monogrammed on a robe ($65 with 7 days' notice required).

In the Arabian nights room, you can sleep in a sheik's tent with Oriental rugs and a 10-sided waterbed.  Overhead, there is a mirror with turn-on flickering lights.  Desert murals adorn the walls, and you can enjoy your own personal oasis in the double-size whirlpool spa.

Or enjoy the splendor of Caesar's villa in Ancient Rome.  A marble whirlpool surrounded by columns and mirrors rests outside the secluded bed chamber with a king-size bed hung with silk drapes.

Teenage fantasies can be fulfilled in the pink Cadillac room with a vintage pink "Caddy" complete with a custom-made queen size bed.  The entire suite is designed with an Art Deco theme, highlighted by glass block walls decorated with neon lights.  Nice touches include a lipstick red high-heel shaped telephone and a neon diner clock.  There is a radio placed into the rear of the bed rather than the dashboard so it is easy to switch stations while lying in bed.

My husband and I stayed in the Geisha Garden to celebrate our 25th anniversary.  And since we'd been to Japan only 6 months before, we could appreciate how authentic the setting actually was.  Our suite was enormous — probably as large as the average Japanese home.

As we entered the sitting room, we saw a wall-size photo mural of a Japanese botanical garden.  Flowers placed in front of the photo mural blended into the background and made it seem even more realistic.  We peeked into the arched keyhole entry to the hot tub and saw a Buddha guarding our black marble hot tub.  Hanging above was a TV.  Candles, champagne glasses and plump origami-folded towels were thoughtfully placed at the side of our tub.

We passed through another keyhole archway to our sleeping chamber.  The enormous black enamel bed matched an inlaid patterned armoire that held a second TV.  The walls were decorated with traditional fans, and flowery sheets had a Japanese print.

The only problem with our stay was two areas that were too authentic for my taste.  There was no closet or hanging space — merely a rod to put things over.  The toilet had a typed note giving flushing instructions and a warning to flush twice.

Other than that, it was hard to believe our Oriental paradise was just a few hundred feet from I-35.  We had brought our own Kitaro tapes, and the setting was so perfect we expected a Geisha Girl to appear at any moment.

If you're curious about the rooms, tours are held every Sunday at 2:00.  According to manager Don Rich, many of the guests come for special occasions such as honeymoons or anniversaries.  Others merely stop for the night and are so intrigued by the idea that they decide to try one.

Reserve ahead if you have a very specific fantasy.  A $50 deposit is required upon reservation and the balance is due 30 days prior to your stay.  But you might just be lucky and get to do a spontaneous fantasy.

To reserve a room or for more information call: (940) 387-0591, Fantasy Suites at Quality Inn.

Other fantasy inns:

Fantasyland Hotel in Edmonton, Canada 800-661-6454
http://www.westedmall.com

Sybaris 708-960-5100

South Lake Tahoe Fantasy Inn 800-367-7736

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