La Quinta Inn Huntsville

I booked this cheap hotel while waiting to move into a new apartment, and the room wasn’t clean. There were bugs, including a few dead roaches and some live ones in the shower. I didn’t use the shower during the few days I was there. The grounds were unkempt, and on checkout day I noticed a huge dumpster out back filled to the brim with old mattresses and other things. The person at the front desk was missing most of the time. But it was cheap, so you get what you pay for.

Things were fine for the first two weeks. Then everything backed up: we had no hot water for four days and no water at all for two. Don’t trust the pictures, there’s no pool, the refrigerator has no freezer, and the TVs either don’t work or have poor picture and very little sound. Most of the place is closed, with only four or five rooms rented out. Staff and owners weren’t helpful, and the cleaning staff couldn’t speak English to help. They kicked me out after I asked for help with water leaking from the AC onto the carpet. I had to vacuum it up myself because there was no maintenance person to fix it. Moving rooms for just a few days would have meant shifting a lot of stuff. This place isn’t worth the cheap rate. You get what you pay for.

The pool was damaged, with broken fences and no water. We couldn’t get a refund either. We came for a business trip and checked in during our lunch break, then returned to work. When we came back around 7:30 PM, the room was filthy and unhygienic. The bed was full of bedbugs; the sheets were dirty and bloodstained; and there were blood splatters of different sizes across the floor. Dead cockroaches were in the corners, the bathroom and towels were dirty, and the fridge had spilled beer and a moldy Whataburger sandwich from previous guests. The smell was unbearable. We took our luggage straight to the car and asked the front desk for a refund, refusing to stay there. The staff were unfriendly and uncooperative, and flatly refused to return our money. They checked several rooms one by one before finding one that was somewhat presentable. Even that room smelled awful and was dirty. They wouldn’t let us speak to a manager or the owner. First they said the owner was in Dallas, then just minutes later said he’d arrive in a few hours, in the middle of the night. It felt like they were doing whatever they could, including lying, to keep our money. We tried to reach Booking.com, where we’d made the reservation. They called the front desk and got no answer, then emailed. The receptionist said they couldn’t access the hotel’s email account. After hours of pointless, frustrating discussion, my partner and I gave up and left for another hotel. I can only recommend Home2 Suites by Hilton, which had fantastic service and clean rooms. This was the worst hotel experience I’ve ever had, and I’ll never stay at Rodeway Inn again.

At first, I thought it was a decent, low-cost hotel. My room was clean and quiet, and the staff were friendly. EDIT: Make sure the desk staff tell you about the pet fee. I would have been happy to pay it. I assumed I’d paid it, but apparently the $100 in deposits wasn’t the pet fee. After two weeks, I was asked to leave, as if they’d only then read my reservation. I won’t get a refund because I don’t let my pets outside. They’re cats, and I keep them indoors.