TownePlace Suites by Marriott Republic Airport Long Island

The hot water was good, parking was free and easy, and the soundproofing seemed well done. Still, I can’t recommend the hotel. It’s showing its age and isn’t being cared for well: paint is peeling in several places, the bathroom fixture didn’t work and had black mold around it, and the gym had no towels or scales.

Breakfast was free each morning and wasn’t bad, and the staff were friendly. They even gave my son a little treat bag while we waited for our ride one day. But the food ran out quickly and wasn’t replaced. The first day they had plain and everything bagels; once the plain ones were gone, only everything bagels were left for the rest of our week. The lobby was dark and uninviting, nothing like the online photos, though they did give us a welcome bag. Our room was dingy, dirty, and outdated. The curtains were ripped, so I had to use a claw clip to keep the light out. There was dirt and hair hanging from the adhesive on the wire channels by the end tables. The bathroom floor had lipstick stains, and there was lipstick on the sheets too. The bed was sunken from years of use and badly needed a new mattress, or at least to be flipped. Most nights, people were out and about at all hours, and it was hard to sleep with so little noise insulation. One night from midnight to 4 am, people ran through the hall, slammed doors, and smoked weed. I put a towel under the door and into the large gaps around it to keep the smell out. Housekeeping doesn’t come every day, and when they do, they don’t clean much. The floors, which are laminate, were extremely dirty. If you’re not a sensitive sleeper and don’t care much about cleanliness, it may be an okay stay. But after staying at the Courtyard Marriott right across from it, the experiences were completely different. For maybe $200 more, I’d stay there.

It was adequate for the price, but I paid $300 for one night in a suite and wasn’t told when booking that dogs cost extra. They call themselves pet-friendly, then add $150 because I brought my dog. I understand an extra fee or a deposit if a dog damages anything, but $150 for one night is outrageous. It’s not a deposit, so I won’t get it back. I was annoyed they didn’t mention it when I called. It feels like robbery.

Our booking was through Hotels.com. I checked that site’s reviews, but they weren’t transparent, and I didn’t read the Google reviews. Read Google Reviews before reserving. We were happy enough with the room itself: it was freshly painted and had the amenities we needed. The hotel was another matter. Nobody told us it housed homeless people and asylum seekers, and we hadn’t paid nearly $2,000 to stay somewhere that felt uncomfortable or unsafe. Marriott may be protected by New York State law in choosing whom it houses, but as a customer I can choose where to stay and spend my money. I wasn’t given honest information to make that choice. The continental breakfast was pretty good when there was food left. We saw people carrying boxes of food back to their rooms, and even at 9 AM, there wasn’t much left. The parking lot didn’t feel safe based on what I saw. Sometimes the elevator didn’t either. I love animals, but it was a shock to have a 200lb dog right in my face. The hallways were very dirty and stayed that way throughout our seven-day stay. We called the hotel with our concerns. They made it clear that the law gave the hotel a legal safety net, and said my concerns and photos were “illegal”.