Hawthorn Extended Stay by Wyndham Fayetteville

The overnight noise was awful. We heard gunshots, street racing, and neighbors yelling and partying, and someone tried to open our door in the middle of the night. We also got phone calls to the room with nobody on the line. Inside, a roach was in the bathroom, the sprinklers were covered with a plastic bag, and there was a big gap around the wall AC that opened to the outside. The shower tiles and toilet lid had some kind of substance on them, and the travel-size soap and shampoo looked used. The TV didn't work, some furniture was torn, and it was a surprise not to find bedbugs. The whole place smelled musty and smoky, including the elevator, where another guest was smoking. Even though the lobby looked fine, there was a “B” sanitation rating posted behind the desk. Outside, the building had graffiti, the lot was worn down, and the pool behind it was abandoned and overgrown. The room looked like a run-down horror movie hotel. I only booked at the last minute and should have read the reviews instead of trusting the average rating. This was the worst stay I've ever had. If my booking hadn't been nonrefundable, I'd have left within five minutes. It's shocking the place hasn't been condemned. Don't book.

The staff were really nice, which is too bad given where they work. We left as soon as we saw the room. It was an old hotel that needs serious work, and it was disgusting, even up at the ceiling. There was glitter all over the furniture and carpet, the bedding made my skin itch, and the carpet felt sticky and dirty through my shoes. The mattress had a deep dip in the middle, so you couldn't lie near the edge without rolling in. The room was dark enough that it almost seemed meant to hide how grimy everything was. I've stayed in plenty of cheap hotels, but this was easily the worst.

We'd paid in advance and had reservations, but at check-in they told us they'd double-booked and had no room for us. Nobody had contacted us about it, and the clerk wasn't very pleasant. It was 9 p.m. on a Friday, and finding another hotel took more than an hour because everywhere else was full. The rest of our group still had their two rooms, so we were split up too. The refund took five days. After seeing the photos our friends took of their rooms, I wasn't upset about missing out. We ended up at the Residence Inn by Marriott, which was lovely and very accommodating, and the staff there were much more personable.

The employees were about to fight behind the counter, and the whole place felt scary, including the crime around it. Our room had roaches, bedbugs under the mattress, water all over the floor, juice stains, and other mess. The hallways smelled terrible and the AC didn't work. I left without even asking for a refund because it was so nasty. Never again. This place feels like a horror movie set.