Home2 Suites by Hilton Eau Claire South

The breakfast was awful. There was no fruit or eggs, and the little meat they had was fried so badly that nobody in my family could eat it. We had to spend $50 getting breakfast somewhere else. The pool was so cold my family couldn't swim, even my husband, who swims in Lake Erie. The bed was painfully hard, and I woke up unable to walk straight for about three minutes. We chose this Home2 Suites because we'd had comfortable beds and good stays at other locations before, but this was the worst hotel experience we've had. Raj, the manager, refused to refund any of our stay because our reservation was prepaid and non-refundable. I felt at least the breakfast cost should have been refunded. I'll be complaining to corporate. Maybe this was a one-off bad stay at this location, but after the experience and management's refusal to try to make things right, I won't book at any Home2 Suites again.

Housekeeping was a bit loud in the hallway early in the morning, though we were already awake, so it didn't bother us much. The rest of the stay was comfortable and clean. Check-in went smoothly, the room was great, the shower pressure decent, and breakfast was a good standard continental one.

On my third visit to this Home2 Suites, the strong perfume-like smell from the room's cleaning products irritated me physically as soon as I walked in. I've run into highly fragranced cleaners at another Home2 Suites too, and now I'm looking at other hotel brands to avoid ending up in another room that bothers me this way. I don't know who at Hilton thought these products were a good idea. My first two nights here were very different. I usually choose Home2s for their locations and affordable rates, and on that first stay I had a spotless room on the fourth floor, friendly, efficient staff, and no problems. I'd have given that stay five stars. The second time I came back that same week, I was on the second floor. Someone above me stomped and banged around from 9 PM until leaving at 5 AM. It was so loud that I woke up several times. I wouldn't risk staying below someone again, since it seems like there's nothing between the floors to cut down the noise. I'd only return if I could guarantee a fourth-floor room. Across both stays that week, I spent four nights here, and the later fragrance issue made this my last visit.

We spent four nights here, and changing rooms didn't solve the bathroom problem. The first was Room 107, where the shower curtain had a strong stale, musty odor, and there was visible mold in the shower. The second, Room 307, had a similar smell, though less overpowering. I eventually took that curtain down myself, put it in a bag in the corner, and showered without it for the rest of my stay. The cable TV in that room also kept cutting out. When I arrived around 11 PM on Monday, I noticed the foul bathroom smell but waited until morning to report it. At 6 AM I told the front desk, and they said housekeeping would handle it. Nothing had changed by evening. I followed up and waited 45 minutes, then was told there were no spare shower curtains. They said housekeeping would take care of it the next morning, but another day passed without any action, so I asked to move rooms. These problems and the lack of response were extremely frustrating. A room can look clean at first glance, but the hygiene and maintenance issues I found were unacceptable, including not having basic spare items like shower curtains. The staff's lack of follow-through reflects poorly on the hotel. I hope they improve cleanliness, maintenance, and customer service. My confirmation number ends in 2103, and my check-in date was 07/21.