Sonesta Simply Suites Phoenix Scottsdale

The room smell was awful. Even after I bought an expensive deodorizer, the dog-friendly suite smelled strongly of pee, and there were stains in the bedrooms. I reported it, but don't think anything was done. The other big nuisance was a $5 daily charge for unsecured parking. On our last day, we got an earlier doctor appointment and decided to leave for home. The desk clerk said they couldn't adjust the reservation because we'd booked through Algotels. My advice to future guests is to book directly with the hotel you choose, since hotels want your business and third parties don't care. Be cautious with pet-friendly hotels too. We were traveling with family for Mayo Clinic appointments, so it was already stressful when we arrived to find a room that didn't match our emailed reservation. Apparently Algotels hadn't described the room we thought we booked accurately. The clerk tried to find us a room that fit our needs, but we'd have had to move back to a smaller one on the sixth night because the double bedroom was booked for the weekend. After we got clarity about that switch, the clerk was very nice and offered to move our luggage. They also said we could ignore the usual 11 a.m. checkout and 4 p.m. arrival restrictions that day. The hotel staff were kind, understood the issues, and tried to help.

The queen bed was comfortable, according to my traveling companion, and the room was clean enough. But the sofa bed mattress was worn out and felt like a bag of sticks, with things poking into my back. You also have to request its bedding from the front desk. The curved shower rod sagged because its wall mounts were loose. The sofa cushions had cigarette burns and the room smelled faintly of stale smoke. There was no latch on the hallway door leading outside, so anyone could walk in. We also had construction workers staying there who sat in the parking lot drinking beer and playing music most nights. We arrived after dark and couldn't find the main office because there are several buildings and its sign wasn't lit. If you're only using the bedroom bed, the room might be fine, but I can't recommend it if you plan to use the sofa bed.

This was the worst place I've ever stayed. The room reeked of marijuana and cigarettes, and there was hair on the bed and what looked like pee stains on the couch. There were five of us, but when I asked for more towels, they said we could only have three at a time. Staff said there was a gym, but it had just two treadmills. The outside doors that were supposed to lock stayed unlocked the whole time. We were told checkout was at 11 a.m., but our keys stopped working at 10.

After a 92-degree day in the desert, I checked in late and was told the room's AC compressor was out. The room sat at a stuffy 84 degrees. They could have aired it out as the evening cooled down, but didn't. We sweltered all night and barely slept. Nobody should have to put up with that, let alone pay for it. They offered no accommodation. Avoid this place. Pathetic.