Quality Inn Fredericksburg, Central Park Area

The woman who checked us in was amazing, and at first the stay seemed perfect. The advertised breakfast was a letdown, though: just egg, sausage, sliced bread, two cereals, yogurt, and a waffle maker. Other guests said they used to offer more and guessed things had been cut back because rooms weren't filling up. At checkout, my room was clean, the trash was in the bin, and our used towels were in a pile. A woman came to inspect it, then asked whether I had an animal. I said no and told her she could check my vehicle. She also asked if I'd smoked in the room. I hadn't, and said the cameras would show us going outside whenever we smoked. We had only brought a couple of Walmart bags into the room. It felt like she was trying to keep my $100 deposit for no reason. An animal smell and smoke smell aren't the same thing. We won't return, and I'd tell others to choose one of the many nearby hotels unless they're fine with risking their deposit over nothing.

We had a really good stay and would come back. The room was clean, with enough towels for two and one extra, and we had no problems. I thought the no-pets sign on the lobby door might be an issue since we had our dog, but staff explained it applied only to the lobby. There's a nice area for dogs to walk, partly fenced, and a long leash would let yours roam a bit. The staff were polite, and breakfast was the usual hotel spread: waffles, sausage, eggs, coffee, cereal, and yogurt. It's in a handy area near a saloon, Gold's Gym, Target, and other places. To me, the hotel is better than its reviews suggest. J. Coles posted a review a year ago, and those photos look just like our stay.

We stayed five days over the Fourth of July. The room was fine, nothing special, and although they said housekeeping would come after every third night, nobody came. One evening I asked for extra towels and they couldn't provide any. The check-in staff were very friendly and honored my request for a room at the back after I read reviews about traffic noise at the front. I'd recommend it for a night or two, but probably not for a longer visit.

I came to the area to see the mall and spent one night here. The bed was so hard that I barely slept, and the toilet shifted when you sat down because it wasn't bolted on both sides. The walls were paper-thin too, so conversations, phone alarms, and people moaning all carried through.