Bay Inn

We’ve stayed here twice on separate trips, and both times went well. The rooms are simple but clean, and the front desk has always been helpful and accommodating. It’s a budget hotel, but I think it’s great for the price. This is our usual place when we’re in the Tampa area.

We needed a room at the last minute, and the price was good. We arrived at midnight, and the parking lot felt a bit sketchy. It was also hard to understand the man at the desk through the bulletproof window. The bed was really comfortable, and at least the AC worked great and blew ice-cold air. The shower, though, barely trickled.

The only good part was the front desk gentleman, who really tried to help when things went wrong. I checked in around 11 p.m. and the room was disgusting: holes in the wall, a paper-thin blanket with cigarette burns, red marks on both sides of the sheets, and filthy pillows and cases. Giant roaches were in the room and bathroom. He moved me to another room, but there were roaches on the bed, bathtub, and desk as soon as I walked in. I checked out and left right away. The price doesn’t reflect how poorly this place is maintained. I would never recommend it.

I stayed a week in room 229. It was decent, with a nice desk and chair, a good bedspread, and AC that worked well without a weird smell. The bed has iron parts sticking up that can hurt your legs or knees if you bump into them, and there’s a gap between the headboard and pillows, so they kept falling through. The floor was relatively clean compared with other hotels at that intersection. I like walking barefoot indoors, so I noticed. The marble counter was handy for opening tiny coffee packets, which I can never just tear open. There was one bed, $85 per day, and an ice dispenser by the pool. My deposit came back quickly without hassle. I don’t like the tax and $50 deposit, though other places charge them too. In my opinion, paying cash may be better since card refunds always take too long. Traffic noise does spoil the stay. The location works for me because it’s near bus routes 12 and 39, Dollar General, a gluten free bakery, Asharma food truck, a tire shop, and a corner hood store that sells gas. That really helps because I can’t see well enough to drive.