AC Hotel by Marriott New Orleans French Quarter

Taylor was wonderful at check-in and remembered my name when I returned at 4 pm, after dropping my bags at noon. The team at the AC Hotel was professional and friendly, even though reading reviews after booking had made me second-guess the choice. My flight from MSY to PHL was canceled due to weather, and since I was already near New Orleans I booked here at the last minute instead of my usual Marriott in Metairie. The room was clean, the bedding comfortable, the shower great, and the 8th floor was quiet. I’ve stayed at many AC Hotels in Europe, including the original in Madrid, and in the US, and this one compared well. It’s two blocks from the start of Bourbon Street, close enough to enjoy it and far enough away for some quiet. I think the streetcar to the Garden District runs right past. Breakfast was a pretty good, typical AC euro-style buffet. Running a hotel in the Quarter can’t be easy, but the manager responds to positive and negative reviews, and I feel they’re addressing issues and doing a good job.

There’s been no meaningful follow-up from Marriott nearly two weeks after I reported the sanitation issue and posted this review. The only response was a request through Expedia for a one-night refund. At checkout from Room 407 at the AC Hotel New Orleans French Quarter, my wife moved the beds to check for belongings and found a significant build-up of dirt, debris, and residue underneath both. It clearly hadn’t been cleaned for a long time, which raises real concerns about housekeeping and sanitation at a Marriott-branded property. We took photos and video and reported it right away to the front desk. I also contacted hotel management and Marriott Customer Care directly, but the response has been limited to a partial refund, with responsibility pushed to Expedia and no real acknowledgment of the issue. I gave the hotel a chance to resolve it directly before posting. I hope management addresses the cause, not just surface fixes.

The room looked nice, but on day two the TV was still out, despite being told the outage would be fixed by morning. When we went to the front desk, the large man just stood texting and ignored us, so I walked away. Later, when we came back, he was still on his phone, swiping, with no greeting before he looked at us and went back to it. Not very professional. We booked three days. I called a week ahead to confirm and ask about a deposit, and was told there wasn’t one, but check-in required $50 per night. I also called on landing and was told we could come at 3. When we arrived to drop our bags, they repeated that, then changed check-in to 4 and said there was no room available. After I explained I’d been told 3 multiple times, a man checked the system and suddenly a room was available. There was a dead bug in the bathroom and hair on the sink. I wish I’d chosen a different hotel closer to the square. This place has been extremely mid and not worth the price.

The room AC barely cooled anything. Even turned down as low as it would go, it felt like 75 degrees, and maintenance said that was the coldest it could get. I paid $13 for one snack, even though the hotel sign says candy and snacks cost $3-$10. When I asked the front desk for a trash bag, they said a janitor would bring one to my room, but nobody came. I found out there were no janitors working, then was told they couldn’t give me a bag because the janitors weren’t there and they weren’t allowed to. Can someone explain that rule? Terrible experience, wouldn’t recommend.