Red Roof Inn & Suites Jacksonville, NC

The people at the front counter were extremely nice, but bugs had gotten into two of the three rooms we reserved. We checked out as soon as we saw them, and I still haven’t gotten the refund back to my card. Definitely won’t be coming back.

Katherine was so welcoming and sweet. We booked at the Red Roof Inn around midnight on Friday, 10/31, looking for somewhere to crash, and she kept us company and chatted until check-in time. She was funny too, and I’d come back just for her. The rest of the staff were equally friendly. The room was fairly clean, roomy, and comfortable, with working A/C and modern TVs. The sink and tub leaked, though the bathroom was acceptable, and breakfast was mediocre. Still, it was a good stay for a reasonable price in a nice location.

The front desk barely let me explain before the woman interrupted to say there was nothing they could do and Red Roof wouldn’t approve the cancellation. I called because Booking.com showed no message from Red Roof, and I wanted to know how she had that information. She said she didn’t need to see it because she already knew the answer. I gave up and hung up. A minute later, Booking.com finally replied, bluntly saying my free cancellation wouldn’t be granted because I had requested it after departure time. That was false. I’d tried to cancel before the arrival date. I booked for Thanksgiving to visit my son, who lives on a base in North Carolina, but he fell ill and we couldn’t make the trip. On Monday, I called Red Roof staff to cancel or ask for credit, since I’d booked through Booking.com, and they told me to contact the site. I had trouble reaching Booking.com, probably because of the holiday, but someone eventually helped me through the cancellation process and said Red Roof would have 24 hours to respond, so I should watch my messages. The Sunday after the reservation, I called the front desk because Booking.com still showed no message from Red Roof, and then called again. I’ve never written a review before, but the communication from this place was so frustrating that I felt I needed to. I hope this reaches someone who can help me or future travelers.

The staff were nice and moved me from the first room after I reported the cigarette smoke, but I found three roaches in the replacement room. I was meant to stay three nights and didn’t want bugs getting into my luggage, so I left. They refunded everything except the night I checked out because I’d passed some kind of grace period. That was out of my control, and I wish they’d refunded the full amount. I couldn’t even make it through one night. I won’t recommend this hotel under any circumstances. I’ve stayed at four other hotels in Jacksonville, some cheaper than the Red Roof Inn and suites, and I’d pick any of them instead.