Days Inn & Suites by Wyndham Tampa/Raymond James Stadium

The room was mostly clean, but the stove wasn’t, some of the fire sprinklers looked like they could fall out of the ceiling, and there was no doorknob. When I got there, they handed me a real key and warned me it was the only one, so I shouldn’t lose it. The heat didn’t work that evening when it got down to 40. I texted back to their welcome message three times and waited 40 minutes before they replied in all caps, basically telling me to come get a blanket. The next day the hotel smelled smoky. The front desk said there was no issue and it had been checked, but I felt nauseated and had to open my window. Then the smoke alarm went off and they finally called the fire department. I won’t stay here again.

The shower was clogged, and the water never got even a little warm. When I went to the desk, the worker said he could check the temperature but that in Florida they don’t let the water get too hot. He said he’d see what he could do, then came back less than 20 seconds later to say nothing could be done. The bathroom looked like it was built in the early 1950s, with plaster caked around the shower, and there were gross, questionable marks on the walls. A cleaning worker came out of the elevator with her shirt up, exposing her stomach, and slammed down a dustpan while trying to get the desk worker’s attention as he spoke with me. The photos looked great when I booked, but even our Uber driver questioned dropping my family and me here. I knew I’d booked a mid-range hotel, but they could at least try to maintain it. Absolutely disgusting. I’d give it minus ten stars if I could.

The next morning, breakfast at 7:30 had no coffee and almost nothing to eat, just a couple of small stale muffins that looked days old. Sleep wasn’t any better: the walls were paper-thin, so I could hear the next guest sneeze and people in the hallway, along with a toilet that ran all night. One outlet sparked and wouldn’t hold our phone chargers because the sockets were so loose. The blanket had what looked like a blood stain, so I slept fully dressed. The replacement room had a wobbly toilet that felt like it might tip or break and kept running, plus the same musty smell as the first room. It was a little better for bed comfort, but still not clean. In the first room, the mattress was so worn and firm I thought plywood might be more comfortable, and the walls were dirty with a stale, musty odor. The photos on the booking site had given me a very different impression. I asked the manager for a refund so we could move to another nearby hotel, but he said he couldn’t refund us and offered a room change instead. The lobby was clean, and the manager was friendly once he appeared, but when we arrived he was missing from the front desk, which had a sign saying he’d be back in 10 minutes. The parking lot was dark and dingy, with two large storage containers blocking several spaces. The elevator made loud thunks and creaks on the way to our third-floor room. I’m writing this long review to warn people away. Spend about $20 more for a Holiday Inn Express and get a clean, professional place to sleep.

The checkout employee was a lovely woman, and the front desk eventually refunded the $20 I’d paid for early check-in after I explained that they only confirmed it 40 minutes before regular check-in. I had to encourage the person at check-in a little before he agreed. Outside, the building looked old and run down. Since I use a scooter, it was disappointing that there were no electric doors for accessibility and nobody offered to help open them; another guest helped me instead. It was okay for one night, but loud, very run down, and the elevator was small. I also had to fix the toilet.