Motel 6 Indianapolis Carmel

The room had a modern style, but a busy street nearby kept it from feeling as peaceful as it should. Public transit was easy to reach. I wasn’t keen on the large tablet for check-in and check-out, and the chocolate chip cookie was small, so I wished for another soft one. Still, it was a nice touch for a lonely heart on Valentine’s Day.

The bed was surprisingly comfortable, and the bathroom had nice new fixtures, better than the Comfort inn I used the night before. They also let me bring my dog. The place is cheap, so with modest expectations it isn't bad. Still, the hallways are dingy, the microwave is dirty and awkwardly wedged into its space, and there's a faint, unpleasant smell I couldn't identify. The renovations look mostly like lipstick on a pig.

If you want to relax and watch TV, this probably isn't the place. There aren't many channels, and they keep cutting in and out. Even coffee isn't available after 10. It feels like they're trying to save money on every little thing, and it's too nitpicky for me. I'd rather pay a few bucks more to stay somewhere else.

My aunt was trapped in the elevator for half an hour. She kept pressing the buttons, but nobody came, and the emergency phone button didn't work. I had to find someone to help. He reset the elevator, and only after that did the phone button work. Her husband is claustrophobic, so I can only imagine how that felt for him. Staff said this had happened before. I asked them to refund her stay and had to fight for it. In the end, they compensated her for just one night. The rooms were missing basic things too. Mine had no refrigerator, coffee maker, or microwave; another woman said she didn't have a TV, while my aunt had only a microwave. The lobby looked janky and under construction, and when I came in there was nobody at the desk, just a man on a screen at the kiosk. They only had coffee in the morning, there were no 'do not disturb' signs, and the service wasn't good. I don't recommend this hotel and wish I didn't have to give it even one star.