Clarion Inn and Conference Center Sacramento

This is the old Red Lion, and it definitely didn't feel family-oriented. My son and I can't handle cigarette smell. I specifically asked the person on the phone for a non-smoking room and was told that wouldn't be a problem. Instead, when we arrived, my husband waited 30 minutes to get the key. They kept $100 cash and charged his bank card $164. As soon as we entered, my son and I could smell cigarettes. We were given two double beds, even though we'd been told by phone we'd have a 2 Queen room. We stayed five minutes before deciding to check out and go to La Quinta Inn on Richards Blvd. The desk gave us a receipt saying we'd been refunded that Friday night, May 3, 2014. By Thursday, May 8, I still couldn't get hold of the manager and kept getting the runaround. The $164 still hadn't been returned to our account. I wouldn't recommend this for a family or a business traveler. Even my four-year-old was disgusted and couldn't stop coughing in the room.

Thank God for the new owners who took over this once-trashy Red Lion Inn/Hotel. I used to know it as the Red Lion Inn/Hotel, and honestly thought the building ought to be burned to the ground. The staff seemed stuck-up, a few were super rude, and the manager was never on site or seemed to be hiding. Crime was so bad I felt I was putting my family in danger, and security was a joke. When Clarion Inn moved in, they gave the place a great new look and rebuild, and got rid of the slack, rude staff. Huge thanks to them. The new staff really care and will bend over backward to make your stay enjoyable. I've stayed at a few Clarion Inn/Hotels in my time, and this place is worth visiting again. The improvements are huge.

The check-in was a mess: I waited over an hour in a muggy lobby full of flies, repeatedly asking about my room while the desk attendant kept telling me to wait so he could help new arrivals. When I asked for a manager or another employee, I was brushed off. I finally went upstairs myself and found a clean room, with no maid in sight. My cat had been crying the whole time, and I still don’t know why I was kept waiting. The room was in rough shape. The old two-pipe air system meant the whole building was set to AC, so at 2 a.m. I was freezing and couldn’t get heat. The only control was a rusty knob that made a ridiculous racket. The TV was ancient and often too dim to see, the shower pressure was awful, and the floor was peeling and torn up. There was no tub, fridge, microwave, toaster, or tableware beyond two coffee cups. My room was also missing a recliner, and although the front desk said they’d replace it, they never followed up. Service felt poorly trained and inattentive. This might suit people who want to drink and party all night, but I wouldn’t call it comfortable or relaxing. It’s not worth anything close to the price. Go to Quality Inn, Double Tree, or the Holiday Inn instead.

Quality Inn sent me here after they overbooked. The room smelled bad and looked nothing like the website photos, and the AC never worked. The techs who came to inspect it blamed me, but it still didn’t work. Breakfast was lousy, and the whole place felt shady. Check out the YELP reviews.