Howard Johnson by Wyndham Benton Harbor/St. Joseph

It's near the highway, and the rooms were clean when I stayed. I'd had a bad experience here before, but it seems like new management has updated the rooms. The building is old, though they're working on it. For a cheap room without all the frills, I'd recommend it.

We left and found another hotel nearby after waiting over 20 minutes with no one at the front desk. I called the hotel phone line, but nobody came. There were all kinds of shady characters in the hallways and parking lot while we waited. It did not feel safe. This is a disgrace to the Wyndham family collection. Don't ever stay here. I'd have given it zero stars if that had been an option.

The front desk staff were nice, but the hallway was run down and smelled musty. I wish I'd taken pictures. There were little red handprints on the room door, and although the room looked decent at first, the bedding was dirty and stained. The replacement was dirty too, and the third set was better. The bathroom was disgusting: the shower and bathtub were black, and the shower curtain had red stains all over it. The ceiling had stains and peeling spots as well. When I sat on the toilet, it rocked and seemed like it might come off, and I'm only 130 pounds. I would have walked out if it hadn't been so late after a rough day. I overheard someone say the elevator wasn't working, and I believe I saw a homeless person sitting in the lobby. This is way below Howard Johnson standards. Stay away, beware.

My son and his wife left because the place was infested with bugs, but they weren't refunded. They weren't given a cancellation fee or anything, and the money still hasn't been returned. Customer service told me this was “raising a concern,” and that was all. I emailed them too, and they said a pest professional had inspected the room and found no complaints. That's a total lie. They still won't refund my money, though they did offer three complimentary nights at the bug infested hotel.