Budget Inn By OYO San Augustine

We were in town for a wedding after a 10-hour drive, and the hotel had no rooms for us, despite us booking two rooms through hotels.com two months ahead. They only agreed to refund me after I pulled up the receipt. Two other couples in our family had the same thing happen. I wouldn't count on a room here if you've paid in advance. It seemed like they may sell it to someone paying more and then say they're full. Luckily, hotels.com made sure I got my money back.

After we checked in, they said our room had been canceled and we had to leave unless we booked it again. Calls to OYO corporate led to a lot of back and forth, and nobody could tell us who had canceled it. We were stuck rebooking, with a promise that the first prepaid room would be refunded. Even after they supposedly escalated it, they said there'd be no refund. This hotel chain is a SCAM. Stay away.

The room was okay and the beds were clean, but there were dead bugs along the bed base, so it didn't seem like they cleaned thoroughly. Towels had stains and the replacement set still had brown marks. There was writing on the wall, a loose bathroom doorknob, a partly detached towel rack, and a tub that drained so slowly we stood in water while showering. The lamp between the beds was unplugged with no socket nearby, and the tissue holder was empty. At check-in I showed my debit card, ID, and ESA certification for my dog. The clerk at the hotel/Gas station said she didn't need to see the certification and it was fine. I paid, then learned they didn't have the first-floor smoking room I wanted. I asked politely for a refund so I could stay around the corner with my family, but they told me to wait 30 minutes for the manager. I'd just driven four hours from Fort Worth, Tx and still had somewhere to be, so I couldn't wait and kept the room. Later that night we were locked out and had to speak to the front desk staff at the gas station next door. The manager told my wife we couldn't get in because an employee had said I was rude, and because we had a dog, we owed another $30. He said no pets were allowed and she couldn't enter until she paid. When I came down, his attitude toward me was completely different from how he'd treated her. He asked if I hadn't seen the online no-pets policy. A family member had reserved the room for me, as they do every year for our reunion, when we book 9 rooms at the hotel of our choosing. I hadn't known about the policy. I told him his staff should know it and explain it before taking payment, instead of saying they didn't need to see my ESA documents. I could have taken my business elsewhere. He then said it was okay this time and called my wife rude, even though he'd been smart-mouthing her. He also said he doesn't like pets in their hotel because they leave hair everywhere. I told him my dog gets weekly baths, is up to date on all his shots, and I have records to prove it.

I paid online for a night at the motel, and when I checked my email the next morning, the site said management had declined the refund for a different night I hadn't meant to book. The owner had promised, less than five minutes after I paid, to approve that refund. I'd booked the wrong date by mistake because I didn't know those sites might insert a random future date. I was four hours away on that date, and the refund depended on the motel agreeing. The owner said he'd accept the refund request if I booked that night's stay directly with him at his price, so I did. I even asked if he promised, since I only had his word, and he looked at me and said, "yes, of course." When I went back to the office, which is a gas station counter, nobody knew who he was or how to reach him. They wouldn't share an email, phone number, or any manager or owner's name, just the gas station number. I found that kind of dishonesty hard to believe in America. Small business owners usually have at least a little integrity, but this guy didn't seem to care about reviews or whether people come back. Apparently, getting his percentage of that $47 mattered more. In short, the motel's owners will look you in the eye, promise to return your $47, then immediately deny the request. Their integrity is worth less than $47, which is sad. I know extremely dishonest people who'd still return a wallet with $47 in it, since with inflation that's only two days' lunch. When I arrived to book on the day of my stay, I asked one of the owners to match the online rate or tell me if I needed to use a booking site. He said it would cost the same. I had checked and seen $47 online, but his version of the same price was $78, so I left the line and booked online instead. I also had my 2-year-old daughter with me. The bathroom door wouldn't shut, and when I couldn't get anyone to fix it, I repaired it myself. I wish I could have put it back the way it was before I left. I wouldn't recommend this place to anyone, and I hope it goes out of business soon.