SpringHill Suites Irvine John Wayne Airport/Orange County

The room felt spacious and was nicely furnished, with the desk and wall layout giving it a two-room feel. The shower and sink are separated from the toilet and sink, which seemed odd and made things unnecessarily complicated while we were staying there. It’s easy to get to John Wayne Airport (Santa Ana/SNA), shops, and places to eat, and the staff were friendly and welcoming. Breakfast was fine, a slightly upgraded continental spread, though the eggs seemed fake and the juice cups were the tiniest I’ve seen. It was like drinking orange juice from a bathroom mouthwash cup. Parking is $20 a day. For a $175-a-night room at a second- or third-tier hotel, that feels like a strange add-on. They could just include it in the room rate.

The kids loved staying here for their tournament, and the neighborhood was clean and felt safe. It’s centrally located, with an indoor pool and free hot breakfast. The studio suites sleep five, with a couch and pullout sleeper, and the split shower and bathroom with double sinks in every room is a clever setup. The beds were very comfortable, and we liked the room designs and West Elm furnishings. The hotel was clean, modern, and updated. I brought my team and their families, and would stay again or recommend it to anyone looking for a nice place at a good price. I paid for parking up front on Expedia and got the daily rate down to $11. That seemed fair, and even with that extra charge, the room cost less than most other options around town.

Half the rooms seem to look inward toward other rooms and get very little sunlight. Our room was cold even with the AC and fan off. The heater didn’t work well and made a lot of noise. The shower pressure was low, the sinks drained poorly, the toilet didn’t flush well, and the bed was the worst I’ve slept on. The lights and charging ports beside the bed didn’t work either. The walls are paper thin. We could hear everything from meeting calls next door to kids running down the hall and slamming doors. I called the front desk several times, but little was done. When I raised all these problems at checkout, the desk staff were somewhat rude and wrote nothing down. It was one of my worst hotel stays. I switched hotels and had a great experience at Fairfield Inn & Suites in Tustin instead.

The breakfast was a good continental one, and I love a waffle machine. The location was good and the staff were super nice. But fleas. Lots of them. Around 10 pm, as we were heading to bed, I saw a bug on my hand. It wouldn’t die when I tried to kill it, so I sprayed it with cologne, then checked and found it was definitely a flea. See the pictures for a few specimens. We don’t have a pet and hadn’t been around pets. I looked over the white bathroom tiles and found a couple more, then a couple more in the other toilet room. I tried telling myself it was California and a few fleas weren’t the end of the world. One last check before bed, and, oh lord, there they were in the bed. I called to ask for another room, then had to call back about 15 minutes later to ask if we could move. They were working on it, but the boss wasn’t answering. Eventually the woman switched us and brought a new key card. She just handed it over without a word, like the situation was so bad there wasn’t much to say. It wasn’t her fault, and it was kind of funny. The worst part was walking past the old room on the way out and seeing a maid apparently doing the same room flip. We were stunned. Now I’m home, sitting in bed and paranoid that every sensation is a flea I brought back. I won’t return, and good luck to you.