Hampton Inn & Suites St. Louis/South I-55

We spent $500 for two nights at this place for our boys' mom to spend Mother's Day with them. It looked really nice when we dropped them off and checked the space, and the people at the desk were sweet. But all the kids and their mom could talk about was the roaches. Their mom said she was surprised because everything had looked so clean. Such a bummer.

I've been here for work, and I'm so glad this is where I'm staying while away from home. The service has been the standout. Everyone I've met has been friendly and helpful, and Jackie, Patty at the front desk, and whoever was working there at 10 pm on 2/18 were absolute saints. I had booking problems, and they fixed them right away. The rooms are clean, the beds are comfortable, and the bathroom is nice. They clean rooms every morning, too. Breakfast has great choices and tastes great. 5/5.

TRAVELER BEWARE I've stayed at many HILTON properties over the years and usually had positive experiences, so this was shocking and deeply unsettling. Within minutes of checking in, the front desk called and asked us to come to the lobby because of a tornado warning. We went down because it sounded serious. Only a handful of guests were there, not the whole hotel. There were no announcements, no sense of urgency, and nothing that looked like an emergency procedure. That was our first red flag. The next morning, the same front desk employee called again and asked me to leave the room so pest control could treat it. I said no, I was working and didn't want the room filled with chemicals. She said they'd do it another day. Something felt wrong, so I went down and asked her directly. She admitted she'd made up the pest control story and said she only wanted to find out whether we were in the room. I asked why it mattered whether we were there when we'd paid for the room. She shrugged and said she didn't know. No explanation or apology, just a shrug. It didn't feel right or safe, so we left. We reported it to the front desk manager and contacted Hampton Inn corporate headquarters. The hotel refunded the unused nights without dispute and apologized. A formal corporate complaint is on file. It was a very odd experience, and it makes you wonder how often staff might target guests by calling the room phone to see whether the coast is clear.

The stay was fine until breakfast. I see why they call it free: there was almost no food left on the counter. All the hot items were gone, even the dry cereal was running out, and there was no yogurt or milk. Just two muffins left.