Rodeway Inn near Venice Beach

The manager lives on site and meets guests at the check-in window, since security has taken over the original lobby. He was dressed in dirty clothes. The place is a dump, with decor like a pay-by-the-hour motor lodge. There’s a fridge and microwave, but no coffee maker.

It looks okay at first, but I was really upset by how management treated people. They’re extremely rude, and called security and police on visitors who were trying to encourage people struggling with depression and homelessness. I was told I could visit, then security came yelling and screaming at me and threatening to call the police. There are roaches in the rooms, and it felt like management was spying on visitors. Don’t go there.

The rooms smelled horrible, and there were cockroaches and mold in the bathrooms. I stayed two nights, but on the second day they locked me out, saying I hadn’t paid for night two. I had to show that they’d charged over $300 to my card before they let me back in. I paid the $100 deposit in cash, yet they still tried to charge it to my card several times.

The room was okay, with clean sheets, working TV and A/C, and a usable shower. The person checking guests in was nice. Still, the place feels creepy, old, and rusty. I didn’t trust leaving my car in the tiny lot, especially since there might not be any space. My new job is paying for the room, so I can’t make too much of it.