SpringHill Suites Tuscaloosa by Marriott

We’re Marriott Bonvoy members, and our reservation was made through the Marriott mobile app, but the welcome screen in room #225 greeted someone else. It’s a small detail, but it adds to the impression that management isn’t keeping up Marriott’s standards. I’ll be checking that our points went to our account and not to the person shown on the TV. We’ll stay with Marriott in the future, just not at this property. There were also several problems the staff could have addressed. The barn style bathroom door in room 225 wouldn’t stay closed, and its latch didn’t work. The front desk said they’d pass the door issue along to maintenance. In the shower, there were three dispensers but two had shampoo and none had body wash. When I raised this, the desk blamed housekeeping not being fluent in English. That doesn’t explain how the second shampoo dispenser got installed, or where the oversight was. Please don’t use COVID as an excuse. We also found a live ladybug on the pillow. Those can be hard to manage, so I understand that this can happen. The building itself has a couple of issues the current staff can’t easily fix: there’s no covered entrance for loading or unloading in the rain, and highway noise is a concern, especially for light sleepers. We won’t be returning.

The staff were polite, professional, and nice, and the complimentary breakfast was fresh and nicely presented, though pretty standard. Rooms were modern, clean, and well stocked. The beds could be a bit more comfortable, but they were still nice. There are restaurants nearby, and Doordash and Lyft are available in the area. I’d definitely stay again.

We arrived with nowhere to get ready for an event and no room, despite still having proof of the reservation and of my call the night before. We’d booked two nights five months ago, and when we couldn’t make the first night, I called to confirm we could check in the next day. They said that was fine. At the desk, we were told the total would be $1943.37. My husband questioned it but was prepared to pay. Then Justin said there was no room because we’d been marked as a no-show. He admitted that if my husband had paid, we would have gotten a room, but someone else wouldn’t have had one. I’ve asked for a manager and was told I can only email, which is inconvenient when we’re out of town and stuck without a room. I was also left on hold for over 30 minutes while he repeatedly picked up and put me back on hold. These people were no help.

There was lots of parking for my work truck and trailer, and plenty of places to walk to for dinner. The room was super clean, service was amazing, and the location worked perfectly while I was driving east. I’ll stop here again on my way back west.