Residence Inn by Marriott Nashville at Opryland

The rooms were big and clean, the breakfast was good, and the staff were polite and friendly. Kids had a great pool, about 3 feet deep. Getting into our rooms took until 30 minutes after the 4 p.m. check-in time. It was busy, so maybe they were short-staffed. The TVs were almost unusable in both rooms: the system was painfully slow, often froze, and could take 10 seconds between button presses. Also, the connecting room doors closed by themselves and there were no doorstops, so we had to wedge bags on the floor to keep from being shut away from the kids.

Our stay felt like one long wait. At night, the only attendant couldn't be found while the phones kept ringing. After we'd waited and waited, she came out from the back and just carried on with her work, without an apology. Check-in was awful. She then put us in a room even though the room history showed the keys hadn't been working properly, which she should have known. The next morning we went down for a quick breakfast before driving home in time for our kids' dance recital. When we came back, none of our keys worked, including the hotel's main keys. We had to wait again at this Marriott Residence Inn, and our trip was delayed, so we won't get home on time. We spent most of our stay waiting on incompetence and threatening maintenance staff. Don't bring your family here. It's the worst Residence Inn I've stayed at, and it gives Opryland a bad name. Once I use my points, I'm done with Bonvoy Marriott.

I stayed one night while passing through, and the staff were friendly and accommodating. The hotel was full during a concert weekend, but when they learned I was traveling with an infant, they went out of their way to put us in a quiet corner room with less foot traffic. Those little unexpected gestures make travel so much easier. Our room was clean, fresh-smelling, and roomy enough for the family. Breakfast was a pleasant surprise and hit the spot. A great hotel close to Nashville's hot spots.

I chose this hotel because of its reviews, but my stay was nowhere near great. The place feels neglected, especially when it comes to cleaning and maintenance. At check-in I wasn't welcomed with a hello or a smile, only asked for my first and last name. That was my first red flag, since I've always felt welcomed at Marriott hotels. From a distance the lobby looked clean, but up close it wasn't. There were scratches all down the hall and on almost every door, plus debris and Cheetos on the floor. It looked like housekeeping carts were being pushed into the walls and doors, and the hall hadn't been vacuumed in a while. The room had hairs in the corners, pink mold in the shower, chipped ceiling paint, an outlet hanging out of the wall, and oily marks left on the desk by someone before us. I filed a complaint and received an email response with a resolution from the hotel. I'm also posting here in hopes someone who can address these problems sees it. I wouldn't recommend staying here. There are cleaner hotels with better customer service.