DoubleTree by Hilton Austin, MN

The pool was closed when we arrived, but open again the next morning. Our rooms were comfortable and a decent size, and I liked the little on-site store with pop, snacks, and essentials. We visit family a couple of times a year, and the staff have always been incredibly pleasant and kind. We also had the best food at breakfast.

The front desk staff are still very nice, but housekeeping has consistently been the worst I’ve ever experienced. I spend more than 40 nights in hotels each year, so I’ve seen a lot. Beds are left unmade, sheets aren’t changed, trash is left behind, towels are on the floor, and bathrooms can be filthy even at check-in. If any other hotel in this city were an option, I’d stay there for that reason alone. The inside-facing rooms with fluorescent lights are depressing too, but I won’t hold that against them. After several more stays, housekeeping was still basically nonexistent. More than once, I came back to an unmade bed, dirty sink, and trash from multiple nights. More recently, it’s gotten a bit better, though still not good. There’s new management, and it seems they’ve over-regulated the hot water to cut costs. For the past month, showers have been only lukewarm at best.

The front desk was fairly friendly, but I often had to go looking for someone to help. Housekeeping was a much bigger problem. I had to keep asking for daily service, even after talking to staff in person. The lead housekeeper said the room had been cleaned, but when I got back, nothing had been done, so we ended up getting our own towels and sheets to make it up ourselves. The room was dirty, with hair all over the bathroom, a filthy toilet base, dust, and a very moldy shower. It clearly hadn't been cleaned properly between guests. The pool area also wasn't well kept. There was no general manager available, and the front desk manager seemed not to care. Nobody apologized. I was very disappointed in this Hilton.

The rooms looked nice, and the location was perfect for the weekend hockey tournament. But after holding a reservation for three months, I arrived to hear from the front manager that they were overbooked and had given my room to someone else. Nobody called or emailed beforehand. I was just told that was how it was, and that I could try another hotel and bring them the bill so they could try to cover it. The other two nearby hotels were full. As a coach, I needed to stay close to the team, so I waited around for a while and saw other people checking in without any trouble. I can only assume they dropped my group-rate booking to keep guests paying more. It was really disappointing, and I hope I won't have to come back to Austin for another hockey tournament.