Travelodge by Wyndham Laurel/Ft. Meade/Near NSA

Room 404. The people next door were a couple with a baby and a young kid, and the adults spent the night fist fighting. The baby screamed whenever they started up. The room had ants here and there, but I didn’t see the roaches people mention. It had just snowed and was chilly, so maybe it’s simply not bug season. The shower tiles were coming off, with big cracks and no grout. That could mean costly water damage later, though it seems like an easy fix now. The headboard was falling apart, and they’d put screws in random spots that didn’t even hold it together. The floors were dirty, and the lounge chair was a tattered old booth seat from a closed restaurant, with most of its fabric gone. My dog didn’t mind, but I did.

I came to the area from out of state for business. There were cockroaches, and the staff wouldn’t refund the room, so I demanded one and contacted police to report the infestation. Since it wasn’t a weekday, I couldn’t report it to the CDC or health and human services that day. This morning staff also opened the door and looked into my room while I was naked. That felt very weird and, to me, like sexually abusive behavior.

I stayed here starting in April because I was homeless. The price was okay, but some staff, especially the maintenance man, had no customer service skills. My son was also stabbed without provocation by another guest, which made a bad experience worse. I saw a few roaches in the first months and dealt with them using Raid and Combat gel. Then someone moved into the next room over the summer and the roaches multiplied. Management basically blamed the number of belongings in my room, even though there was no more than when I first moved in. I cleaned the room myself to make sure it was done properly. I wouldn’t recommend this place for even a two-day stay or as a respite if you’re in my situation.

My previous stay a month earlier was much the same. The rooms were okay, but my experience left me alarmed. There was constant banging from the ceiling, and staff intruded at 3 a.m. while I was away. A suspicious trailer was in the parking lot, my mattress sat so high my body was above the window line, and neighbors were present and making comments whenever I left the room. I don’t scare easily, but whatever premeditated attack was directed at me happened on the property. Telling staff didn’t resolve anything.