Super 8 Urbandale/Des Moines Area

The police in the area are the only reason I'd give this a 2 star rating. Otherwise, it would be 3 stars.

This was one of the nicer Super 8s I've stayed at. The room and common areas had updated decor, and the place was clean with no funky smells. The woman who checked us in was friendly, breakfast was decent, and it's easy to reach from the freeway with restaurants nearby. I couldn't find a blow dryer in the room, though I'm sure I could have asked for one if I really needed it. I'd stay again.

The bed was nice, and the staff were nice too. The carpet was filthy and looked like it hadn't been vacuumed in a long time. The refrigerator smelled and was dirty, though keeping its door shut helped. There was also a broken prong stuck in the accessory outlet on the bedside lamp, from a two prong 120VAC plug. It was the smaller, 'hot' prong, which was an extreme safety hazard. It could have been hard for housekeeping to notice, and maybe the guest who caused it didn't tell anyone. When I reported it, the manager was very concerned, and I'm sure he dealt with it right away. (Room 107.) It was unfortunate that there was no breakfast option. Most Super 8s offer a breakfast bag, which usually helps get you down the road to the first gas stop, but this one didn't.

The pool was difficult to get in and out of because its ladder had only one step, and I nearly hurt myself trying. We were told parking our truck and trailer would be fine, but the hotel rents its lot to the dealership next door, whose employees had taken all the spaces. Breakfast was disappointing too. The first morning there was no waffle batter or eggs, and the next there was no oatmeal. Mostly they had coffee, yogurt, cereal and donuts. The room was fairly comfortable, but our bathtub was missing a stopper, which was a letdown since I wanted a bath. The beds were a bit too hard for me, and service was just okay, with nobody seeming to be behind the counter. There are better places to stay in Des Moines, and we won't return.