Baymont by Wyndham Atlantic City Madison Hotel

The clerk said we'd get a refund when my husband told them we were leaving, but apparently that wasn't true. I've called several times and still haven't reached anyone. We'd only been there about an hour. The online photos made the hotel look nice, but inside it was disgusting: a tiny dirty room, hair in the shower, a gross smell, no TV remote, terrible TV picture, an AC that didn't work, and a door that wouldn't shut properly. Then an emergency alarm went off and terrified my toddler. She screamed until we got to the car and still worried about it days later. It was raining, so we hadn't brought our things in yet while we waited for it to pass. We went to Showboat and practically kissed the ground when we arrived. My daughter called it the "safe hotel" and Madison the "bad place". Kids tell it like it is.

The beach and Boardwalk are right nearby, which earned it another star from me. We had to pay the lot next door for parking, a somewhat annoying $40 for the weekend. Our rooms were much bigger than I expected. There were always random people hanging outside, though most were nice and didn't bother us much. The decor and cleanliness weren't great, but if you only need somewhere cheap to sleep and shower, you can make it work.

We paid $1,000 for the weekend, then another $80 for parking in a lot strewn with garbage where people partied, huffed balloons, urinated, and slept in cars. The room was unpleasant, with old, nasty towels and washcloths. Neither the shower nor the sink drained properly, so we had to shower in ankle-deep water. We spent as little time in the room as possible. The photos online were very misleading, and I don't know how this place got a 4-star rating.

The lobby looks clean and updated, but the rooms don't. They have modern pictures on the walls, while the curtains and furniture need replacing and the carpet needs a deep clean or replacement. It feels like they started upgrading things but cut corners. There was a man sometimes at the unaffiliated parking lot with a handheld card reader, or you could use the machine, which takes exact money and gives no change. The lot seemed sketchy and was the only convenient place to park. The entrance isn't welcoming, and there were bums and drunks hanging around out front. The hotel has potential if the owners put real money into fixing it up.