Fairfield Inn & Suites Jasper

The room felt spacious, clean, and almost brand new, and I’ll definitely be back. At check-in I found I’d been upgraded, and they gave me a cute Elite member bag with snacks and water that I really needed after a long drive. The hotel is in a cool spot, with an old train track out front and a beautiful river view behind it. There’s a list of recommended restaurants, which I appreciated, and I’d suggest the short walk over the bridge behind the hotel to Cranberries.

I’ve stayed at some great Marriotts, and this was one of the best in a long time. Breakfast was the only letdown: it was mostly gone, and no one refilled it even though there was still about an hour left.

My wife and I are Platinum Marriott Bonvoy members and stay at this property from time to time. We always request the guaranteed 4 p.m. checkout at check-in. I was asleep when the room phone woke me. A woman asked if we were staying another night. I was groggy, but politely told her we had a 4 p.m. checkout and asked her to check our account. I already knew it was there because I’d asked the nice woman juggling breakfast and the front desk to confirm it, and she did despite having two jobs to handle. After noon, the caller confirmed we did have checkout at 4. I asked why she hadn’t checked the computer before calling; she said nobody told her. I don’t know her role, but her voice sounded annoyed that she couldn’t get us to leave when she called. I felt uncomfortable, like she wanted us out right away for some reason, so I showered quickly, packed, and left. After loading the car, I went to the front desk and nobody was there. That wasn’t unusual, so I waited a minute, then called out in a slightly louder voice for help and gave the woman at a desk our room number and a small complaint. It was clear her job wasn’t the front desk or listening to a grown man complain like a schoolgirl whose pigtail got caught in a swing. The night clerk who checked us in was one of the nicest hotel staff I’ve met, and the morning woman handling breakfast and the desk was great too. Sounds like a country song, all that work. But unless you’re close with whoever called the room, even being Platinum won’t get you a 4 p.m. checkout here. We’ll stay at a non-Marriott in Jasper next time. Fairfield by Marriott in Jasper, Indiana management should look into this. I stayed over twenty days at a Fairfield in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania in September this year, and even in a much bigger city the staff were far nicer than the woman who called me, lol. Go Steelers! Maybe she could train there.

It’s peaceful here, and the walking trail next door is a great location perk. Our room was clean, including the bathroom grout, and the staff were friendly and helpful. The parking setup is a little different.