Shareholders' Equity (Detail) (USD $)	12 Months Ended					107 Months Ended		12 Months Ended		12 Months Ended			18 Months Ended	72 Months Ended	90 Months Ended	12 Months Ended			83 Months Ended	11 Months Ended	12 Months Ended
Shareholders' Equity (Detail) (USD $)	Dec. 31, 2012	Dec. 31, 2011	Dec. 31, 2010	Dec. 31, 2012 Series A Preferred Stock [Member]	Dec. 31, 2011 Series A Preferred Stock [Member]	Dec. 31, 2012 Series B Convertible Preferred Stock [Member]	Dec. 31, 2011 Series B Convertible Preferred Stock [Member]	Dec. 31, 2012 Series B Convertible Preferred Stock [Member]	Dec. 31, 2012 Conversion of Series B Convertible Preferred Shares, If Merger is Completed [Member]	Dec. 31, 2012 Unit Redemption Program [Member]	Dec. 31, 2011 Unit Redemption Program [Member]	Dec. 31, 2010 Unit Redemption Program [Member]	Dec. 31, 2012 Unit Redemption Program [Member]	Jun. 30, 2011 Unit Redemption Program [Member]	Dec. 31, 2012 Unit Redemption Program [Member]	Dec. 31, 2012 Dividend Reinvestment Plan [Member]	Dec. 31, 2011 Dividend Reinvestment Plan [Member]	Dec. 31, 2010 Dividend Reinvestment Plan [Member]	Dec. 31, 2012 Dividend Reinvestment Plan [Member]	Nov. 30, 2012 Distributions [Member]	Dec. 31, 2012 Distributions [Member]	Dec. 31, 2011 Distributions [Member]	Dec. 31, 2010 Distributions [Member]
Unit description	one common share and one Series A preferred share
Preferred Stock Priority Distribution (in Dollars per share)				$ 11.00
Preferred Stock, Shares Issued	0	0		91,226,580	91,181,198	240,000	240,000
Equity Issuance, Per Share Amount (in Dollars per share)						$ 0.10
Preferred Stock, Value, Issued (in Dollars)	$ 0	$ 0		$ 0	$ 0	$ 24,000	$ 24,000
Proportion of ownership required to approve amendments to the articles of incorporation								Holders of more than two-thirds of the Series B convertible preferred shares
Preferred Stock, Liquidation Payment Per Share (in Dollars per share)								$ 11
Convertible Preferred Stock, Shares Issued upon Conversion								24.17104
Conversion Formula Used in Subsequent Public Offering								(X/50 million) x 1.20568, where X is the additional gross proceeds rounded down to the nearest $50 million
Preferred Stock, Shares Authorized	15,000,000	15,000,000		200,000,000	200,000,000	240,000	240,000
Expense Related to the Conversion of Series B Convertible Preferred Shares									approximately $64.4 million
Per Unit Stated Value (in Dollars per share)									$ 11.10
Unit redemption eligibility period										1 year
Unit redemption, terms										lesser of: (1)the purchase price per Unit that the shareholder actually paid for the Unit; or (2)$11.00 per Unit
Impact of Merger Agreement on Company's Equity Plans, Description										The Unit Redemption Program was suspended upon the execution of the Merger Agreement. As a result, the last purchase under the Unit Redemption Program was October 2012. In the event the Merger does not occur, the Company plans to reinstate the Unit Redemption Program.						The Company's Dividend Reinvestment Plan was suspended upon the execution of the Merger Agreement. As a result, the last offering under the Dividend Reinvestment Plan occurred in November 2012. In the event the Merger does not occur, the Company plans to reinstate the Dividend Reinvestment Plan.					In accordance with the Merger Agreement, the Company suspended distributions to shareholders in December 2012. In the event the Merger does not occur, the Company plans to reinstate its monthly distribution to shareholders.
Units Redeemed										1,600,000	2,800,000	2,800,000			18,300,000
Payments for Redemption of Units (in Dollars)	18,014,000	30,237,000	30,382,000							18,000,000	30,200,000	30,400,000			200,500,000
Redemption requests redeemed, description													pro-rata basis
Redemption requests redeemed, percentage														100.00%
Units Authorized																20,000,000			20,000,000
Stock Issued During Period, Shares, Dividend Reinvestment Plan																1,700,000	2,500,000	2,800,000	18,400,000
Stock Issued During Period, Value, Dividend Reinvestment Plan (in Dollars)																18,500,000	27,100,000	30,500,000	202,100,000
Annual Distribution rate (in Dollars per share)																				$ 0.792
Common Stock, Dividends, Per Share, Cash Paid (in Dollars per share)	$ 0.73	$ 0.78	$ 0.79																		$ 0.73	$ 0.78	$ 0.79
Payments of Ordinary Dividends, Common Stock (in Dollars)	$ 66,137,000	$ 71,247,000	$ 72,301,000																		$ 66,100,000	$ 71,200,000	$ 72,300,000

APPLE REIT SIX INC 10-K