Country Inn & Suites by Radisson, Meridian, MS

Room service never cleaned our room, and we had to keep asking for fresh linen. We didn't hear any vacuuming during our two nights and three days, which might explain the dog hair all over our socks. One of our rooms had a bed bug, and its smoke detector wasn't on the ceiling. Paint was falling off the ceiling in the pool area, the elevator stank, and the couches looked like they'd been found in an alley by a house of prostitutes. One star only because I couldn't rate it lower.

We felt safe and the hotel was quiet, but this year's stay was bad enough that we won't return. We've come once a year since it opened, except in 2016, while traveling to see family in Georgia. For our 2017 trip, we booked a month ahead for a suite with two queen beds and a sofa bed, then got a king room with a sofa bed instead. The desk clerk said the hotel was full and couldn't help. The chair was stained, and the sofa bed had no linens, just two pillows without cases. When I asked at the desk, I got two sheets, two pillowcases, one with what looked like blood on it, and a duvet, the decorative red one from the foot of the bed, to use as a blanket. We had to clean hair out of the tub before using it, and there was no toilet seat lid. Breakfast was mediocre, a clear step down from past visits.

The breakfast was good, but what really stood out was the service. We arrived late, and both the night clerk and the woman working in the morning were fantastic. My five-year-old felt so at ease with her that she went back toward the kitchen to give her a hug before we left. This is a must-stay hotel.

We paid $73 for a room with two queen beds, and hot breakfast was included. The pool was very warm, and we also used the indoor pool and exercise room. Everything was clean, and the staff were really helpful. The hot tub wasn't working, though, and it looked as if it had been out of order for quite a while. I don't know when they plan to fix it. We enjoyed our stay and will keep this place in mind for overnight stops on future trips.