SpringHill by Marriott Centreville/Chantilly

I can’t get past how frustrating the check-in was. Before driving 45 minutes, I called to ask if cash payment was possible and was told yes, with a card on file. When I arrived, the man at the desk acted like I was crazy and said they didn’t do that. I showed him the number I’d called, and it was the right location, so I went to add money to my card. Back at the hotel, the Manager Asma and I spent half an hour going in circles about payment. He said he’d deleted the card from the system, so I couldn’t pay with it. I kept asking why I couldn’t just swipe my card or book online again, and he kept arguing that I hadn’t explained myself clearly and going back over what I should have said. My bag broke while I was standing there, my things were spilling everywhere, and I just wanted a room. It felt like he was rage baiting me. I asked several times to speak to someone else because we weren’t understanding each other, but he only repeated, “I’m the manager.” The room was nice and clean, but the layout was strange. The TV sat by a dividing wall, so you could only see it from the couch, and even then only partly. Getting ice was another mess. The machines on every floor were broken except one, and that one was out of ice from everyone using it. I asked my friend to get help because the manager clearly didn’t like me. He told my friend it was impossible that they were broken, asked if he needed to go with them, then said, “you know you have to press the button right?!” How could he not know, when signs were up saying they were broken? My friend walked away frustrated too. There was a high school group on our floor. We’d been warned and I had no problem with them, but one person was a little loud. Our neighbor thought it was us and spent the night punching and kicking the wall to make us quiet, waking me up even though it wasn’t us. I left at 6am because I couldn’t stay any longer. Three days later, my deposit still hadn’t come back. When I called, I got the same guy, who said it hadn’t been long enough and would take a week. I’d originally been told it was a pending charge that wouldn’t go through. At $175 a night after tax, I’m not coming back. There are plenty of cheaper, nicer hotels nearby. The manager’s attitude was the reason. His name was Asma qureshi, or however it was spelled.

The room was comfortable and nice, and there’s plenty of parking. Our room was cleaned on the third day, but the towels were soaking wet that time. Breakfast included boiled and scrambled eggs, a bagel, orange juice, fruit like oranges and bananas, and waffles you cook yourself.

I’ve stayed at 20 Marriotts and 20 IHG locations in the past year alone, and this was easily my worst Marriott experience. I booked two nights, then added a third because I wanted to avoid checking out and back in. The first receptionist said I could keep the same room for the whole stay, even though I’d need to check out and check back in, which was fine with me. This morning, though, I was told I had to move because of the room type on the original two-night booking. The General Manager was rude and walked away without sorting it out. Priceline couldn’t help when I called either. I’m here for work and lost more than an hour dealing with this, when I didn’t have time to spare. I only added a night here to avoid the room change hassle, and it cost $30 more per night than comparable hotels nearby. Huge headache, and the staff were no help.

We found it right off I66 on our way to DC, with a shopping area across the street that has simple places to eat, including Five Guys and Firehouse. The desk clerk greeted us warmly and was very helpful, which made us feel welcome. Breakfast is the usual free hotel spread, but it was clean, well stocked, and the hot items were hot when they should be. I’d stay here again on a similar trip.