Target Hospitality-Watford City Lodge

Some of the longtime staff are great, and I know they try with what they have. The orange juice machine is also a favorite of mine, as long as it’s kept clean. But corporate decisions and poor maintenance have let these camps slide from decent service to terrible. In my experience, after complaints things improve for a month or two, then go back to the same problems. I’ve dealt with Target camps since 2011, and based on that experience I wouldn’t place my crew in one again. The comparison with Williams county target logistics/resources is also rough, especially when guys in Jack and Jill rooms are assigned opposite shifts. The food is awful, and I can’t see the kitchen meeting health code standards. Guests aren’t allowed to cook or store their own food, so people end up filling coolers with ice and cooking outside. That’s manageable in summer, but miserable below zero. The rooms and ventilation systems in many places seem to have mold. A lot of the crew get congested or sick within a day or two. On the first floor, don’t leave bags or gear on the floor. If it rains, leaks in the halls can soak them overnight. Laundry is unreliable too, with about a fifty-fifty chance a washer or dryer works. For washers, unplugging and reconnecting a flashing machine often fixes it, and the soap dispenser can be rebooted with the button at the bottom left. I haven’t figured out a trick for the dryers, so I wait and try another one. They’re moving check-in and other things to QR codes and phone apps, which takes up space and is annoying without speeding up check-in or dining. Negative app reviews get deleted. I’d love to see inspectors check the room ventilation, behind the wall panels, the first-floor flooring, the kitchen, and the food. Mold and food conditions need attention. The staff who’ve been there for years are good people, and I’d hate for this review to hurt them. The larger problem is the lack of maintenance and the decisions above them.

The room had no windows, which made it feel like a tomb or a fire trap. You can’t control the heat or AC in your room, so it’s either too hot or too cold. It was clean and not bad overall, just not right for me. The front desk staff were really helpful. Breakfast is about what you’d expect for this kind of place, but it’s cooked too far ahead. The sausage was like dried-out bricks with an aftertaste, and the hash browns had soft middles with crunchy edges. Dinner looked good, though it was heavy, and the staff do try.

The rooms are decent, and the food is average, except for Jan’s bread pudding. That’s a 10/10. Jan is always friendly and greets everyone with a smile. I’ve never had a bad interaction with Jan, or seen anyone else have one.

The fruit, salad, and sandwich bars are good, but the chef-cooked food misses on flavor more often than it hits. Rooms are clean, though comfort varies. Some beds are fine, but the thin twin mattress can hurt your back if you already have back problems. There are plenty of washers and dryers. It’s okay for me, just my opinion.