Hampton Inn by Hilton Odessa

After a 10 hour drive in a huge U-Haul towing a car, we found half the parking lot closed for major renovations. The website hadn’t mentioned this when I booked. At the desk, I was told to “just park out back,” so I had to insist that the employee come outside and see the problem. She spoke with the manager, but the manager never came out of the office to discuss it with us. The only person who helped was the construction foreman, who moved equipment and got his boss’s permission for us to park amid the construction machinery. We’ve stayed with Hampton Inn for years, and management’s lack of concern was astounding. They need to do better.

There’s construction going on, and the place looks like a mess. The lobby and breakfast area are gone, with three tables set up in a converted room instead. When we came in, there wasn’t food like at the other places we stay, just cereal and coffee.

The staff were great. Renovations are underway, so it’s a little messy, but that wasn’t a problem. The neighborhood around the hotel is pretty noisy, though.

Breakfast was pretty good, the coffee was good, and the hotel’s location worked well. Parking was just so-so since construction had taken a dozen or so spaces out of use. The room was typical, though it smelled musty and the broken bathroom sink drain cover had a sewage odor. At check-in, the employee said our room was on the third floor and mentioned the elevator was broken, asking if that was okay. We were in town for a track meet with carts of equipment to move in and out, so it wasn’t. I asked for a first floor room. She said the website listed the elevator outage. I don’t remember seeing that, and when I booked a few weeks earlier, I’d only been told the renovation affected the fire panel system. She eventually “found” a first floor room for us. I’m surprised Hilton has its name on this hotel. I probably wouldn’t stay at this location again, and would look for another nearby place.