Homewood Suites by Hilton Aliso Viejo - Laguna Beach

Breakfast had plenty to choose from and was decent, with a nice dining area. The room, though, had a handful of dog hairs, dirty refrigerator and dishwasher surfaces, and smudges and little spots on the inside bathroom door. I took pictures and showed the front desk. The comforter was paper thin, and my wife said the sheets and blanket didn't smell freshly laundered. Given the rest of the room, we wondered whether the bedding had been cleaned at all. I brought up the room condition and asked if the $16 parking fee could be comped. The front desk employee quickly said no, in a passive-aggressive way. Only after I said I'd post a review with photos did she ask me to send them. The phone rang back almost immediately, and she offered us half the room cost, over $110. She could've just gone with the $16, right? Hilarious. There was no bartender on Saturday, and the front desk said they only have somebody Monday through Thursday. Not much fun. The elevator also looked old and sounded old, which made me uncomfortable.

The breakfast was just OK, with a pretty limited selection and no waffle maker, which my partner wasn't happy about. Parking was fairly cheap for California, but you had to pay through an app instead of charging it to the room. There also seemed to be fewer spaces than needed, so coming back late could mean nowhere to park. Still, we had a great four-day trip. We booked rooms 411 and 418, and both were spotless, with impeccable bathrooms, strong water pressure, and very hot water. The beds were super comfortable, and there were extra pillows and blankets in the closet. The full-size fridge and freezer, plus pots and pans, came in handy for making a quick small meal. The TV let us stream Netflix, the internet was fast throughout the property, and the central air conditioning was quiet while pushing out cold air all night. I also liked the ceiling fan, which you don't see in many hotels these days. When we arrived, there was a warm fire in the lobby and a helpful, smiling front desk clerk. I forgot her name, sorry. I'm a Hilton Diamond member, but I try to give a fair and honest review.

The shampoo, conditioner, and shower wash were completely empty, and housekeeping hadn't done a good job cleaning the room or checking its basic supplies before check-in. When we asked someone to bring more, no one came, so we had to go down to the desk ourselves. Jeremy told us they were out of shower gel and didn't seem to think that was a problem. Nobody seemed concerned about stocking a room with what a guest needs to shower. A hotel needs a bed and a shower. This is a Hilton, not Motel 6. If you're thinking of staying at this half hotel, bring your own shower supplies. They don't have them, and even if they become available, they may not care enough to deliver them to your room.

We stayed a full week and housekeeping was allowed only once. When we got back, nobody had touched the kitchen, and the rug wasn't even vacuumed where it needed it. The bedding was worse than a motel 6, with a thin bed topper and rough sheets. Breakfast was just as disappointing, with hard, dry, over-scrambled eggs every day and thin, overcooked meat. To make things worse, one of us had back surgery scheduled early the next morning, but they cleaned the hallway carpet right beside our room until 10 p.m., so we couldn't get the rest we needed. Management refused to have it cleaned the next day instead. Service and management at this Homewood Suites were terrible, and when a hotel is in this bad shape and management won't respond, it's not a good experience. I wouldn't recommend staying here.