Super 8 By Wyndham Strongsville/Cleveland

We couldn’t get a good night’s sleep because the room felt so dirty. We’d stopped here on a long road trip, and should have paid a few extra dollars for a more reliable place. Even though we’d requested non-smoking, the stale, heavy smell was like a smoking room. Hair clippings were scattered around the sink, and long and short hairs were embedded in and under the sheets. The sheets and blankets had lots of cigarette burn holes. It seemed as if the bed had been made up from the previous stay without the room being cleaned or the sheets changed. Gross, like I was in Dallas Buyers Club or something. There were yellow stains on the toilet seat and basin, dust everywhere, an uncleaned fridge, and holes and gunk on the walls. With a non-refundable online booking and a day’s wages at stake, we didn’t leave, but I wish we had.

I checked in and put my children to bed, then spotted a roach in the shower in room 147 when I went to the bathroom. I called the front desk right away, and they said I’d have to wait until morning for Saleem the manager. They offered another room, but I couldn’t move all our things and the kids by myself, so I declined. After taking pictures, I killed the roach, and nobody came from the desk to look at it. In the morning I went downstairs, but the manager denied being the manager, said “no refunds,” and offered 10% off a future visit. This motel is a damn joke. I warned the people next door because they had lots of luggage. My non-smoking room had burn holes everywhere, and I couldn’t sleep because I could hear people breaking down pills all night.

The hotel has gone downhill since our last stay years ago. We’d hoped to stay again because the ice skating rink is practically next door, and I wanted to skate after checkout during our long road trip. The first room had no bedding, so we were moved. In the second room, the toilet wouldn’t flush, and there were used towels and trash on the floor. I might have given the hotel a chance if the toilet had been fixed, but the room was unappealing. Check-in was behind a locked area, which made the place feel unsafe. The lot was full of cigarette butts and potholes. The gym is shut, and the advertised breakfast was just coffee and pastries to go. I won’t stay at or book another Super 8.

There were spiders in the bathroom, and cleaning the walls and clearing out the cobwebs might have helped. The room had 1970s comforters and blinds, including a comforter with burn holes in a non-smoking room. I’ve stayed here before, and the rooms just seem to get worse each time.