Hampton Inn Houston Baytown

Paying extra for a Hilton or Hampton Inn should mean not having to deal with this kind of hassle. The Hilton app’s electronic key wouldn’t open the back door at night, and it’s been unreliable every time, whatever the weather. With no response in the app and no green circle, we had to haul all our luggage around to a side entrance, then walk from one end of the building to the other. Staff made us show ID and a credit card even though we’d already checked in, then gave us cards we could only hope would work. After that, we had to cross back to the middle of the building to reach the elevator. Someone needs to get this fixed. The bathroom fan in the room was broken too, so a morning shower left everything full of steam. At least the problems were consistent.

The room was plainly not ready: both beds were unmade, trash and empty Fritos bags were scattered around, and the upholstered pad by the sitting area was falling apart. I gave up and asked for a refund rather than take the offered room change. I often stay at Hampton Inns when I travel and usually find them consistent, though I guess there’s always one exception. Getting checked in was already a struggle. I’d called about availability, was told there were rooms, and drove over. The employee said the system was down and tried to check me in from “the back.” After taking my ID for about ten minutes, she returned it and said it wouldn’t let her make a reservation, then started to walk away. I asked if I could book online and she said I probably could, so I did. A younger employee took over, found the online booking, and checked us in. The elevator made worrying noises on the way to our floor.

The hotel is a little dated, but the staff and cleanliness more than make up for that. We arrived late last night to find other guests had left luggage carts in the halls. Gladys checked the cameras, found one on the third floor, and brought it down while we were unloading the car. We really appreciated her going out of her way to help.

I showed up without a booking while the computer was down, but Gladys at the front desk got online, made a reservation, and checked me into just the right room. She was fabulous and went above and beyond.