Cedar Cove

For the price, this one-night stay was about what we expected: a clean bed and a hot shower that only dribbled. There were fruit flies, and the door didn’t quite seal shut. The floor may not have been swept and could use a mop, so we kept our socks on. We also listened to the pleasant sound of a train all night. It looked better than most of the other places at the same price.

The pool was clean and clear, and the beds were reasonably comfortable, though not great. The rooms felt old and dingy. Most of the lights didn’t work, the TV only had about seven channels, and I’m pretty sure the phone was dead too. No one was around when I checked out. Cedar Point was the whole reason for the trip, and the hotel was so close that I put up with it. Otherwise, I’d have taken the loss and found somewhere nicer. 2/5, 3/10.

We had plenty of towels, easy parking, a comfortable bed, a good location for Cedar Point, and a nice view from what looks like a new deck. The bathroom mirror, sink, and counter were nice too. We didn’t die. The rest of the stay was a long list of problems. The connecting doors are a big issue. Nobody was in the adjoining room the first night, but on the second night I could hear every word and movement as if they were with us. The drain made a glugging noise for about an hour after a shower, and I had to unplug the noisy fridge. Trains were audible, but I’m used to that at home. I was concerned about the electrical work. The outlet beneath the table was loose in the wall, the one behind the nightstand clicked rhythmically, and there was a gap around the bathroom outlet’s cover plate. I couldn’t check with my plug tester because I hadn’t brought it. The cover plates were Bakelite, which alone wouldn’t have worried me. I also had to unplug the TV and microwave and cover the constantly flashing smoke alarm with earmuffs to make the room dark enough to sleep. Its flash reflected in the mirror. The curtain might be blackout material, but it was barely wide enough for the window, didn’t reach far enough around the straight rod or down to block all the light, and there was no liner curtain for daylight and privacy. When the in-wall HVAC was aimed up, as it was when we arrived, it blew the curtain around. The HVAC felt cold even close by and ran most of the night, stopping for two seconds every few minutes. We had to set it to 75 to stay warm because the bedding was inadequate. It was sheets, a thin brown poly blanket, and another flat sheet, with no real comforter or bedspread. When we asked for extra blankets, staff said there weren’t any, then found one more thin one. The vinyl floor was disgusting, and wearing only my hand-knitted socks was a mistake. The toilet was too tall for my 5'2" frame, making it hard to go number two. It had two buttons, but I had to hold the number one button down to flush. The hair dryer’s lint catcher needs cleaning. There are ice machines and buckets, but no cups or mugs. I’d seen a room photo online with a coffee maker, but ours didn’t have one. The sign says “Vending,” but there’s only a Coke machine. There’s coin laundry. We’d planned to try the continental breakfast, but the small lobby had only a few tables and the sugary cereal and doughnut smell was overwhelming. Hard-boiled eggs and maybe Activia yogurt seemed like the healthiest choices. Checkout was listed as 11 a.m., but when my partner went to put bags in the car at 9, the keycards had already stopped working. Mine had too. When we checked out at 9:30, the person behind us had the same problem and had to get their cards rekeyed because they weren’t ready to leave. Wi-Fi wouldn’t stay connected.

I needed somewhere to sleep at the last minute, and this was a good stay. The outside looks dated and a little sketchy, but inside it was decent and my room was clean. Check-in was easy. There weren’t many cable channels, though I didn’t need much else. They offered free bottled water at check-in, and even the toilet paper was great. Breakfast was filling and had a decent spread. It’s family-owned, and I like supporting small businesses. I enjoyed my stay and hope they keep making updates.