Northside Motel

I never actually stayed, so I can't say what the rooms are like, and I won't be coming back. I booked by phone for my mom, my 9-month-old, and me because we needed somewhere to stay while looking for an apartment, and it cost a shocking $211 a night. Ten minutes later, a kind woman found us a place to stay, so I called to cancel. They said they'd refund everything except $75, but almost a month later nothing had come back. Their policy was something else: booked June 30, but apparently I needed to cancel by June 23 for a full refund. The man on the phone was unfriendly, and it felt awful to lose money when we live paycheck to paycheck and desperately needed it back. I'd tell people to call any other motel nearby. I wish I had. Businesses should go to people who deserve it and treat others kindly. I'd give them zero stars if I could.

The location was convenient, with shops and restaurants easy to reach on foot. That was the one real plus. We stayed over Labor Day weekend in 2023, and bed bugs were confirmed in rooms 101 and 102. There were also spiders, beetles, flies, and other bugs, and the rooms were filthy. The smell was awful, like dead bodies, dirty feet, rotten corn, mold, and must all at once. After traveling across the country, I opened my suitcase at home and the room's stench had clung to everything I owned. It was bog-of-eternal-stench bad, like the old Henson film “The Labyrinth.” There was a borderline domestic violence fight, someone staying there got arrested by the cops, and a person was sleeping in a trash-filled car in the parking lot. The pool was broken, which may have been for the best since it seemed like it could be brewing Legionnaires' disease. You could offer me a free beach mansion in Ibiza and I still wouldn't stay here again.

The room itself was a pleasant surprise: tidy and clean, with a firm but comfortable bed, a new A/C unit, a deltoid shower spray, and hot water. The manager seemed nice, too. Still, this is an emergency-stay sort of place for me. The pool was closed without warning, which was a real disappointment because I needed it, and the rate was way too high, double the usual listing because it was a busy Saturday. Outside, things looked dirty and run-down. The stairs and balcony felt cramped, the screen door latch jammed and was hard to open, and the sink handles were clunky. There were no room-darkening blinds, so the porch light came in at night and the dawn light woke us up.

Northside Motel made for a really restful weekend. The bed was comfortable and the linens were clean, and I loved the look of the room, lobby, and shared spaces. Everything felt elegant and spacious without being stuffy. We enjoyed our stay and plan to return.