Country Inn & Suites by Radisson, Fond du Lac, WI

The rooms are a decent size, and breakfast was the usual free hotel spread, good enough. There’s no wall thermostat, though, so you have to do the old-school guess-and-check routine or hope you got the setting right.

The location is the only thing I’d give this place credit for. The bread and pastries at breakfast were hard and stale; I told the staff, and they threw the old food out and put fresh items in the bins. We left the Do Not Disturb sign up for the first two days because we didn’t need towels or bed service. On day three, we took it down and told the front desk we wanted the room attended to. When we returned, the beds were still unmade and all the towels were gone, with no clean ones left. The woman at the desk said that happens sometimes and that they have trouble getting responsible employees. On our fifth night, a hockey team’s kids were running through the halls and jumping around in the room above us at 10:45 p.m. Their parents were in the lobby with alcoholic drinks. My husband complained to staff, who said they’d speak to the parents. After that, the noise got worse, someone kicked our door, and later the kids pounded on it. My husband went back to the desk, but nothing changed. We felt unsafe and harassed. I called the front desk and said I’d call the police. They apologized, but there was no resolution, so we packed our things and waited until the police arrived at 11:45 p.m. to give a statement. Other guests were also complaining at the desk, but nothing was done. There clearly weren’t quiet-hour rules the staff could enforce. I reported it to the corporate number. They gave me a case number, but when I called back a few days later, they said the manager had never responded. I then called the hotel myself. The person who answered said the manager would be there after 3 p.m. When I called around 4, a man with a foreign accent was evasive about where the manager was. I think it was the manager, but he didn’t want to speak with me. Corporate sent me the manager’s email, so I repeated the complaint and asked for a reply. I only wanted a refund of about $120 for our last night, but again there was no response. We were in town to help family because my mother was in dire health. She’s going to survive for now, but we needed a good night’s sleep. Instead, the loud, rude guests and their kids made us miserable, and hotel staff and management left us feeling dismissed. I’ll never stay here again. The manager showed no accountability, professionalism, or humanity.

Our group stays here a few times a year, and this morning we had to check out unexpectedly at 6 a.m. The man at the front desk was angry and rude, and refused to remove the charge for the night. I stay at a few dozen hotels each year and have never had trouble checking out early or dealt with such an unpleasant desk clerk.

We rolled in at 4 a.m. and got a king suite for a few hours with a late checkout. Check-in and checkout were simple and hassle-free. Tucked behind the Loves truck stop, it’s easy to get to but still quiet. A great spot to drop your boots for the night, or even just a few hours.