Fairfield Inn by Marriott Hattiesburg

The room had a good-sized patch of carpet soaked from a leak in front of the fridge, so our socks were wet as soon as we took off our shoes. The ice machine on our floor was out of order, too. We had packed swimsuits for the heated indoor pool, but it was closed, apparently perhaps for repairs, and seemed to have been shut for a while. Breakfast was decent, though there was no bacon. We only wanted a restful night on our drive from Texas to Florida, but the older, poorly maintained feel of the place and the problems made it poor value for the price.

The one bright spot was how friendly and helpful the staff were. The room itself smelled musty, the bathroom door wouldn't close, and the shower had cracks and stains. Something had corroded the bathroom faucet. Our internet didn't work, there was no phone in the room, and one lamp was coming apart and wouldn't turn on. I'm glad we only needed to stay one night. This hotel is in awful shape, and I wouldn't recommend it.

Between May 7 and May 11, the pool stayed closed, and staff said the elevators had been out for more than 10 days. We had to haul our luggage up and down, and they didn't seem to care. We had three rooms, including room 223, where there was mold and a water leak. There were bugs in the rooms, and none of them were cleaned during our five-day stay, even after we asked the cleaning staff several times. Service was terrible. When we called reception for towels, they told us to come downstairs and get them. The person said they had new management six months ago and had to follow the new owners. My wife and I are still sick. I don't know why Marriot still has its banner there. Anyway, good luck to them.

The people working there were the best part. Tonya especially seemed to be keeping a lot of things going herself. She noticed the coffee was gone and offered to make me a fresh cup, checked on us more than once, and later offered towels or anything else we needed. She was very kind and accommodating. Breakfast was otherwise okay, but on both mornings I went down, the coffee had run out. This was our second soccer trip here, a year after the first. Back then the hotel felt dated but seemed good value, with helpful staff and an okay breakfast. It's gotten worse since. Check-in took a long time, the luggage carts mostly had flat tires, and the tiny elevator made loud noises that had me worried it might break down. Our room door stuck badly, so opening it took a key scan and a strategic hard push, and closing it was difficult too. We also only got lukewarm showers. For some reason there was never hot water.