American INN of Orangeburg

The owner and his wife are very nice, and if something needs fixing, he'll take care of it. The bathroom, though, is awful. The toilet was a problem, and the tub is so high. There's also a lot of noise, so getting enough sleep is hard, even with the very reasonable price.

I haven't had issues with bugs or dirty bedding, and the rooms have been decent on the nights I've stayed. The tub could use some work, and the chairs in the room should be updated. That's why my rating is three stars, but my bigger concern is the housekeeper. I think there may be more than one, but I mean the African American lady. The last few times I've stayed, including today, she's been rude. She knocked, said who she was, then used her key to open the door. My boyfriend and I weren't dressed for someone to walk in, and luckily the extra lock was on. She shut the door after seeing us, then shouted, “Are y’all staying another night or leaving?” I said we were leaving, and she told us to hurry up and get dressed. It was around 10:40, and checkout is 11, so we still had time to get ready and go. Other hotels I've stayed at wait for guests to leave, or ask from outside after knocking, then move on depending on the answer. I've let this go the second or third time I've dealt with her, but not this time. I understand she wants to finish her work, but coming around well before checkout and interrupting people is not okay. She needs to respect our privacy and give us time to get ready.

The one good part was the pizza place across the street. We got takeout, and it was excellent. The motel itself was a terrible experience. The room was old and falling apart, with daylight visible along the side of the door. We were both so uneasy that neither of us slept, and my husband was too worried and tired in the morning to shower. He just wanted to leave. We started using Motel 6 because dogs stay free and many locations have been updated and are fairly nice. This one wasn't. The area felt extremely sketchy, and someone asked my husband for a dollar while he was walking the dogs. The empty parking lot when we arrived should have been a warning. At 3 in the afternoon, they wouldn't let me into the lobby and passed my key through a small window. We didn't feel safe at all.

We needed a last-minute place to stop. The clerk was really kind, and we did get some rest, but the room wasn't very clean. The bathroom door kept sticking, the tub was cracked, and the fridge wasn't cold. We booked for four but got just two towels and two washcloths, and had to bring our own hygiene products since there was no shampoo, conditioner, or body soap. The beds could fit two people, but there wasn't much room to get comfortable. We also had to leave the TV on all night to drown out noise from another room.