Manitowoc Inn

They cancelled my reservation less than a week before the stay, giving no reason beyond saying they were closed. The website says “temporarily closed,” and calls to the actual hotel number only reached voicemail. I guess the negative reviews may have had something to do with it, or maybe it was shut down for a health or building code violation. Good. Stay closed. Nobody wants to do business with a run-down, dirty hotel anyway.

We usually stay here, and we'd come back. It's in a quiet older part of downtown, across from the police department, with easy access to the lake and plenty of places to eat. The guy running the place was nice, and the rooms were clean, though a bit more general housekeeping would help. We liked last year's bigger breakfast spread better, but there was still a decent selection: juice, coffee, milk, cereal, waffles, rolls, bananas, apples, donuts, and bread. During our three nights, it wasn't cleaned or swept.

We booked six weeks ahead for an out-of-state trip and even got a check-in text the morning we were due to arrive. Then, while boarding our flight, we got a call saying the hotel had closed and was no longer in business. That was 4.5 hours before arrival, and I honestly thought it was a prank. The operator claimed a cancellation message had been sent that morning and that I couldn't have checked in, but the cancellation email actually arrived two minutes before the call. She said she was “unable to help” and showed no empathy. I have so many confirmation messages. Bad business, argumentative, unreliable, rude. I won't stay at another hotel in the brand, and you shouldn't either.

The price and location were good, but the room smelled of smoke, and there were cigarette butts in the hallways. The beds sat on sheet metal bases that sounded like thunder whenever you moved. In the bathroom, the shower was moldy and dirty, the vent was falling apart, and toilet paper covered the peephole. Sunlight and hot outdoor air came straight through the hallway vents, with no proper HVAC.