Fairfield Inn & Suites by Marriott Gulfport

The room and hotel were clean, but I wouldn’t stay here again. The price is far too high for what you get. The sheets need replacing: housekeeping couldn’t get the fitted sheet around the bottom of the bed, though I managed it, and the elastic is worn out. Breakfast didn’t get going until after 7:30, and nearly everything was prepackaged except the sausage patties. The coffee and hot water for cocoa were both out, and nobody was at the front desk. The indoor pool was freezing. The parking lot is very dark. The area seems pretty safe to me, but that still puts guests at potential risk. The elevator buttons don’t work very well, and the housekeeping manager seemed to think her stop mattered more than ours. I overheard employees talking, and I’m guessing people didn’t show up or disappeared because they aren’t paid enough. The owner could make this a great property by raising wages. Marriott probably ought to take the franchise away from the owner.

The toilet ran constantly for two days. I reported it to the front desk after the first day, but nobody repaired it, and water kept being wasted. At night the AC noise helped cover it up, otherwise it would have been even more irritating. The hotel needs serious upkeep. There was mold on the window frames, the furniture and decor looked dated, and the floors were worn with beat-up walls and a musty smell. It was relatively clean, but the condition made that hard to notice. Lint from what seems to be the dryer vent covered the shrubs and flower bed by the front of the hotel. I can accept an older building, but poor or absent maintenance isn’t excusable, and this fell below what I expect from a Marriott.

The staff were extremely friendly and welcoming, the one bright spot in an otherwise shockingly bad stay. The room was dirty and smelled stale and funky, as if it had been shut up for months. There was a bottle cap on the floor, and cigarette ashes beside the bed. The carpet was filthy too, so it was obvious the room hadn’t been properly cleaned before we arrived. The shower glass had thick hard-water smears and cloudy buildup that looked like it had been there ages. The refrigerator was rusting inside and out, and the whole hotel felt incredibly outdated. I’ve never stayed in a worse Marriott. This place is nowhere near Marriott standards, more like an abandoned roadside motel. I took pictures and can confidently say, stay somewhere else.

The employees were super friendly, helpful, and seemed to be working hard with what they had. I slept well, and our room was clean-ish, with enough towels for two. The TV worked, the AC worked well, there was hot shower water and free cold bottled water, and breakfast was available. But the shower was moldy and could have used a good scrubbing with Clorox, and there was no body wash. At breakfast there was no juice, and although there was a pancake maker, there was no mix. The coffee was so dark someone called it “motor oil.” There wasn’t an ice maker on any floor or an extra blanket in the room. The access road is awful, though that’s the city’s doing. Overall, the place needs an overhaul to meet current Fairfield standards, including the lighting and charging ports. Please give these wonderful employees a place they can be proud of.