Hampton Inn & Suites St. Louis-Edwardsville

We were already two hours into the drive when, 27 minutes before we were due to arrive, I got a call saying our reservation had somehow been canceled and they were sold out. I asked what I was supposed to do with three children at 6:30 p.m., but all I got was that they had no rooms. They clearly knew about my booking. I had made it months ago at a much lower rate than the current nightly price, so I suspect they canceled it for someone willing to pay more. The customer service was horrible, with no sympathy at all. We won't be returning to another Hampton.

The front desk woman was kind, and she gave us a refund. That was the one bright spot. Our room still had trash in the bin, hair in the bathroom, and a toy under the bed that my kids found, so the floor clearly hadn't been cleaned properly. The pool was worse. Green stuff was visibly leaking off moldy areas on the walls and pool deck and into the water. It looked murky, and even through that, you could see how gross the bottom was.

The staff were fabulous and made the stay tolerable. They seemed very practiced at handling complaints, which says a lot about how often guests must raise them. I may have to come back because the location makes it easy for me to serve several clients, but the property badly needs a renovation. The carpets were disgusting, the TVs were old and their remotes barely worked. The bathrooms need upgrades too. The plumbing had drainage and pressure problems, and the faucet in my unit's bathroom sink wasn't attached to the counter. It flopped around unless I held it upright. This place needs to be rebuilt from the ground up. I hope it's been done if I return.

The elevator broke down during our stay, and someone got stuck inside. We were on the third floor, so we had to carry our luggage downstairs. The room itself was in unacceptable shape, with bad odors, floor stains, visible rust and mold in the bathroom, and fixtures that were missing or damaged. The window was so dirty we could barely see through it. We also had no hot water. Even after running the shower for a long time and trying three times, the water stayed cold throughout our three-night stay. This was one of the worst Hilton properties we've stayed at. It needs serious repairs and renovation, and the price is too high for the area and the condition. I wouldn't recommend staying here.