Super 8 by Wyndham Acworth/Atlanta Area

The rooms have always been clean on the four separate visits I’ve made, about 10 nights total. Breakfast is minimal, but good. I’d absolutely recommend this if you want a clean, cheaper motel. If you’re after a Holiday Inn Express or Hampton Inn, stay there and pay two or three times as much. This place isn’t that, but it is clean and cheap.

I was driving from Florida to Michigan, exhausted and arriving close to 1 a.m., with only a few hours to sleep. I bought a nonrefundable room on trulicity and forgot to add my pet. When asked, I said no because I was in a hurry. I’d booked a non-smoking king, but after driving all the way to the back and climbing three flights of stairs, the key didn’t work. It was cold, and we kept trying it. When we returned, the lobby I’d just been in was locked. A woman kept saying, “U lie u lie u have pet when people ask u dont lie.” I apologized and asked to pay the $15 pet fee since I couldn’t get a refund and was exhausted, but asked her to stop telling me I was bad for lying. She eventually gave me a key to a different room with two small beds, nasty blankets, and a big burn hole in one. When I called to ask who was the liar now, she offered another room. I was too tired, so I hung up. She called the hotel phone five more times, then called my cell 15 more times and texted about bringing me a blanket, even after I told her to stop calling and texting. I didn’t feel comfortable showering there. We slept in a small bed with our clothes on and left five hours later. The lobby was still locked. There was no super start breakfast, and they laughed at me for being “such a liar.” Don’t go here. There are plenty of other hotels.

The location was just right for a family event, and the price looked like a bargain. I booked through Expedia, and my mistake was skipping the protection because I’d never needed it before. We arrived around 1 a.m. and had to ring the buzzer because no one was at the desk. The woman came out looking as if we’d woken her, which was understandable at that hour. She said we’d booked a smoking room, and we didn’t mind the smell at first. Then we saw burn marks on the sheets and toilet seat, and the lighting made everything feel dingy. The worst part was the short hairs all over the sheets and pillows. They looked like dog hair, and there was so much of it that it didn’t seem human. One bed had less hair and debris, so we lint-rolled it. The other was too much. Tiny black specks added to the gross feeling. I got up around 7, packed the car, and took pictures as proof. I planned to ask to leave and get a refund because the room was far too dirty for the price. I’ve stayed in smoking rooms, but this wasn’t worth it. When I told the desk woman about the problems and asked for a refund for the remaining stays, she said she couldn’t refund an Expedia booking. She said she believed me, but I should have told her the night before instead of waiting until morning. She said some guests lie and mess up rooms to stay for free, and claimed second-floor rooms couldn’t have dog hair because pets aren’t allowed up there. I showed her the photos, and she said it didn’t look like pet hair, but said housekeeping would fully clean the room again. I’m not the type to push or make a scene, so I thanked her for hearing me and arranging the re-clean. As soon as I left, I booked another hotel down the road that was much better in every way. I bit the bullet because I didn’t want more stress. It took all my nerve just to ask for the refund. About an hour later, she called to say the room was clean and we could return. We checked that night. The beds had been remade with new sheets and looked cleaner, but the smoke stains were still on the toilet. Housekeeping did what they could, since removing those stains would mean replacing the whole toilet seat. I appreciated that they cleaned again, but by then it was better to stay at the other hotel. In the end, I’d pay $50 more for a room elsewhere. If you don’t, get the protection. Save yourself the stress. Don’t be like me!

I’ve been staying here every week while I look for a home. It’s clean and friendly, and they take care of any issues that come up. I’d recommend it to anyone wanting a peaceful, clean place.