Global Luxury Suites at The Arches

The building code worked, but it wouldn't open my room. I was left outside the door for more than half an hour with my two young children, trying repeatedly to reach customer service and getting no answer. When someone finally spoke to me the next day, they told me to return to the property, but by then I'd checked into another hotel. I want a full refund. The place claims to be smoke-free, but it isn't. DO NOT BOOK THIS HOTEL, it was a complete scam.

The room smelled strongly of marijuana, and parking cost me $25. Getting inside had already been a mess. I arrived at 7, although my booking was for 4, and found nobody at the front desk. I called the number they provided, answered their questions about my reservation, and got instructions, but the code still wouldn't open the door. I ended up asking the doorman at the next building for help, and he had the key. I gave him a $20 tip before heading to my room. I've stayed in plenty of hotels, but this was the worst experience I've had.

At checkout I stripped the bed, as I usually do since I'm a housekeeper, and found a horrible spread of stains underneath. I felt sick thinking about what, or who, they might have come from, and realizing I'd slept on them with only a thin sheet between us. The whole place was noisy all night, and the 24-hour storage complex beside our room was brightly lit. The blinds were nearly see-through and didn't cover the windows properly, so light kept shining in. The smoke detector was dangling from a wire, detached from the wall, and I couldn't tell if it was even powered since there was no light. Getting into the room was a struggle too: they'd changed our room, so we first tried the PIN on someone else's reservation. The person on the phone said it should work for our new room, but it didn't. She reset it six times before we got in, while we stood waiting in the hallway, barely awake. Absolutely filthy. This is disgusting and shameful.

My door code never arrived. The person on the Emergency Line said someone on site would come help, but nobody showed up even after 30 minutes. I only had a one-night booking, so I ended up staying across the way in Harlem. It's a shame, since I'll be coming to this area often for work, but I won't stay at this hotel.