Monday, August 21, 2017
Just waiting for the train
Thursday, August 10, 2017
Review-Lodging-Michigan, Flint-Rodeway Inn
Background:
After
a long day of traveling we were hoping for a decent place to stay. We would
have stayed in Ann Arbor instead to make our drive a little shorter but the
prices in Ann Arbor were two to three times higher than those in Flint. We
either needed a room with two beds and a sofa or two separate rooms but could
not find any rooms with a sofa so we decided on two rooms instead.
Reservations:
After
looking at the various hotel sights I found the best prices to be at Orbitz so
I booked the rooms from them.
I
was a little nervous about reserving at Rodeway Inn after a bad experience at
one in Baker City, Oregon back in 2015. The Red Roof Inn, Super 8, and Knights
Inn were a few dollars more per night and seemed to be good options. We decided
on the Rodeway Inn.
The
Facility:
The
motel is three stories tall and connected to a Quality Inn next door with both
motels sharing the indoor swimming pool. The exterior of the Rodeway Inn portion looks like it has seen a recent remodel but once you walk inside you are thrown back in time. The facility appears to have been built in the late 1970’s or early 1980’s. Sleep Inns didn’t start until 1989 so I am not sure if it was once some other type of motel before this date or it just looked dated from the start.
Check
In:
Walking
into the motel the front desk is on the right with a staircase to the left and
the main lobby straight ahead. The lady running the front desk was friendly but
check in was a little slow. In addition there was no mention that we would need
to have wristbands to swim in the swimming pool. She also failed to direct us
where our rooms were or how we could get to them.
The
Room:
Looking
at our room numbers I figured we were probably toward the back of the Rodeway
Inn section of the motel. The back entrance did have a key card access but at
the time of our arrival the door was open. Sometime after 10pm they locked the
door but as it turned out the key cards would not work in the door.
When
we walked into the building itself there was a strange smell that I could not
put my finger on. The stairway area looked like it had seen a lot of use over
the years and needed some refurbishing and we would soon learn that it was not
the only part of the building in desperate need of change.
As
you enter the room, to the right were a sink and a room separated with a
sliding door that held the toilet and shower. As you continued into the main
part of the room there was a desk/dresser to the left with a 25” television on
top of it. Next to the window was the open closet that had a luggage rack. On
the right were two queen beds with a nightstand in the middle.
Like
the stairway area the room was in bad need of refurbishing. The carpets were
torn and ripped in several spots, the door to the bathroom was damaged and
dirty, in our second room the handle for the sliding door was completely
missing, and the television was an older tube television.
Surrounding
Area:
Within
what should be walking distance there is a Fuddruckers, Qdoba, Sonic, Arby’s,
Popeye’s and McDonald’s however, there are no sidewalks to reach any of those places.
Within a bit longer walking distance there are a large number of chains
including Golden Corral, IHOP, Applebee’s, and many others. For those like me
who would rather go to a locally owned independent restaurant there is the West
Side Dinner located a block to the northwest. For shopping there is a mall just
over two miles away and many other shopping opportunities within a short drive.
Pool:
As
mentioned earlier there is an enclosed pool which sits between the Rodeway Inn
and the Quality Inn sections of the facility. The pool was large and appeared
to be clean but you must have a wristband if you want to swim. The original
sign next to the door said that you had to be 14 years or older to be in the
pool without an adult but there was a hand written sign on the window next to
the other sign saying you have to have a wristband and that all children under
17 have to have an adult with them. There is also a hot tub but it was drained
and had a wood cap on top of it.
Breakfast:
With
the condition of the rest of facility was I was not expecting much when it came
to the breakfast and I was not disappointed. The breakfast room was large,
probably originally a meeting room but the choices were slim. There were a
couple of cereal choices, coffee, and milk but little else. After seeing the
lack of selection we headed over the IHOP for breakfast at it was a better option
that what was offered here.
Check
Out:
Once
again the person working the counter was friendly although the service was
slow.
Final
Thoughts:
We
noticed that there was a sign on the Quality Inn that said that there was
refurbishing on that side of the motel so maybe the Rodeway Inn side would see
some work soon. Walking into the hotel you feel that you have been transported
back to the 1970’s and that is a problem with the motel. According to some
signage the motel was once a Sleep Inn that apparently had been downgraded by
Choice Hotels to a Rodeway Inn.
The
workers were friendly but not very efficient or experienced and checking in and
out took longer than it should have.
The
pool was in good shape but that is about the only part of the building that
was. Once again you get what you pay for as it would only have been a couple
more dollars per room to stay at a place that would have probably been in a lot
better shape.
The
staff being friendly is the only thing that kept this place from getting an F
grade, but it still is a D- at the most.
This
was an opportunity for Rodeway Inn to redeem them from our last experience but
failed to do so and I would have a hard time choosing them again.
Saturday, August 5, 2017
Review-Motel-Indiana-Merrillville-America's Best Value Inn
Sometimes you get what you paid for…
Background:
I have stayed at several America’s Best Value Inn’s in the past and they seem to be hit and miss on the quality front. Like all chains the motel’s locations are mostly franchised but unlike the majors they are not formalistic cookie cutters that all look and feel the same. Many times this can be a good thing but as you will soon read at the America’s Best Value Inn Merrillville, IN it was not.
Reservations:
We were traveling from Iowa to Michigan and the Gary, Indiana area seemed to be a good stopping off point for our trip. However, there appeared to be very few options in the area and most of them looked like they were not in the best areas. As it turned out we were planning on traveling east on US Highway 30 and the town of Merrillville, Indiana seemed to have several hotels to choose from. Because there were 5 of us traveling we either had to find a motel room with two beds and a sofa bed or get two separate rooms depending on the price. Some motels also offer family suites with 3 beds but they can be few and far between.
Exterior:
The motel feels very out of place as it is a single level, spread out motel in an area that is mostly made up of more modern multi-level buildings that you typically find in an area near a mall. The motel is made up of multiple single family buildings that are spread out.
Check In:
Upon pulling in there was not a place that was obviously an office, or it was hard to see because there were no lights in the front of the complex, but I finally found a glass door with the word office on it. I walked in and found myself in a room with tourist brochures and a drink machine. To the right was a late night window in a small room before opening up into the so-called lobby. There was one lady standing and a guy sitting on the couch. The room had almost no lights on but the lady that was standing walked behind the window to check me in.
The Room:
I was not expecting much from the room and I was not disappointed but there were two pleasant surprises in the room: first there was a flat panel television, although I would guess it was around 27”, and second the room had a mini-fridge and microwave which I would not expect from this room. Otherwise the room was your basic economy room with a table and two chairs next to the window, two queen beds on one wall with a short dresser, television and the previously mentioned fridge with a microwave on top of it. In the back of the room from right to left there was a small closet area, a counter with the bathroom sink, and in a separate room the bathtub and toilet.
There were several problems with the room from the get go. When we walked into the room there was a strange smell in the room. It smelled like someone had smoked pot in the room and the motel tried to cover up the smell by spraying some type of air freshener in the room that when combined with the other smell gave it a very funky smell. A more important issue with the room was that the room was showing wear especially in the bathroom and to top it off it appeared that the room had not had a good cleaning in some time. The main room was a little cleaner but felt dingy because the lighting fixtures were very outdated and did not give off much light. The combination of having a dark red wall on one side and the dim lighting gave the feeling of being in an old dingy hotel you would see in the movies. While I love places with character and older furniture usually doesn’t bother me, it was the lack of cleaning and basic maintenance as a real turn off here.
Area around motel:
For restaurants there is a Bob Evans, Red Lobster, Jimmy John’s, and Popeye’s within walking distance of the motel. The Southlake mall is just a couple of blocks away, however the area is not walkable at all. There is also every chain restaurant imaginable either a few blocks to the east or across Interstate 65 to the west. If you’re like us and like to go to independent restaurants they are few and far between in this area. I only had a short time as we left early the next morning but what little driving around I did there was no independent restaurants to be found.
Checking Out:
The owner/manager checked us out and was not really friendly but it only took a moment to hand him the keys. I did check out their so-called continental breakfast which consisted of a few Danishes and coffee.
Final Thoughts:
This is one of those difficult places to rate because it does well in some areas but does poorly in some other fields. First it is well located a block from a mall and having a couple of restaurants nearby. It is also directly off Interstate 65 and US Highway 30. In addition the rates for the motel were very reasonable. While the motel cannot control if someone smokes in the room when they are not supposed to, they do have control over the condition of the room and the cleanliness at which they did a poor job.
For those arriving after dark the place needs to ensure their lighting makes the place look inviting and tiny pastries do not make a breakfast. The cost for our two rooms was just under a $100.00 so the price was right but that didn’t make up for the problems.
My grade for the America’s Best Value Inn Merrillville: D
Background:
I have stayed at several America’s Best Value Inn’s in the past and they seem to be hit and miss on the quality front. Like all chains the motel’s locations are mostly franchised but unlike the majors they are not formalistic cookie cutters that all look and feel the same. Many times this can be a good thing but as you will soon read at the America’s Best Value Inn Merrillville, IN it was not.
Reservations:
We were traveling from Iowa to Michigan and the Gary, Indiana area seemed to be a good stopping off point for our trip. However, there appeared to be very few options in the area and most of them looked like they were not in the best areas. As it turned out we were planning on traveling east on US Highway 30 and the town of Merrillville, Indiana seemed to have several hotels to choose from. Because there were 5 of us traveling we either had to find a motel room with two beds and a sofa bed or get two separate rooms depending on the price. Some motels also offer family suites with 3 beds but they can be few and far between.
Exterior:
The motel feels very out of place as it is a single level, spread out motel in an area that is mostly made up of more modern multi-level buildings that you typically find in an area near a mall. The motel is made up of multiple single family buildings that are spread out.
Check In:
Upon pulling in there was not a place that was obviously an office, or it was hard to see because there were no lights in the front of the complex, but I finally found a glass door with the word office on it. I walked in and found myself in a room with tourist brochures and a drink machine. To the right was a late night window in a small room before opening up into the so-called lobby. There was one lady standing and a guy sitting on the couch. The room had almost no lights on but the lady that was standing walked behind the window to check me in.
The Room:
I was not expecting much from the room and I was not disappointed but there were two pleasant surprises in the room: first there was a flat panel television, although I would guess it was around 27”, and second the room had a mini-fridge and microwave which I would not expect from this room. Otherwise the room was your basic economy room with a table and two chairs next to the window, two queen beds on one wall with a short dresser, television and the previously mentioned fridge with a microwave on top of it. In the back of the room from right to left there was a small closet area, a counter with the bathroom sink, and in a separate room the bathtub and toilet.
There were several problems with the room from the get go. When we walked into the room there was a strange smell in the room. It smelled like someone had smoked pot in the room and the motel tried to cover up the smell by spraying some type of air freshener in the room that when combined with the other smell gave it a very funky smell. A more important issue with the room was that the room was showing wear especially in the bathroom and to top it off it appeared that the room had not had a good cleaning in some time. The main room was a little cleaner but felt dingy because the lighting fixtures were very outdated and did not give off much light. The combination of having a dark red wall on one side and the dim lighting gave the feeling of being in an old dingy hotel you would see in the movies. While I love places with character and older furniture usually doesn’t bother me, it was the lack of cleaning and basic maintenance as a real turn off here.
Area around motel:
For restaurants there is a Bob Evans, Red Lobster, Jimmy John’s, and Popeye’s within walking distance of the motel. The Southlake mall is just a couple of blocks away, however the area is not walkable at all. There is also every chain restaurant imaginable either a few blocks to the east or across Interstate 65 to the west. If you’re like us and like to go to independent restaurants they are few and far between in this area. I only had a short time as we left early the next morning but what little driving around I did there was no independent restaurants to be found.
Checking Out:
The owner/manager checked us out and was not really friendly but it only took a moment to hand him the keys. I did check out their so-called continental breakfast which consisted of a few Danishes and coffee.
Final Thoughts:
This is one of those difficult places to rate because it does well in some areas but does poorly in some other fields. First it is well located a block from a mall and having a couple of restaurants nearby. It is also directly off Interstate 65 and US Highway 30. In addition the rates for the motel were very reasonable. While the motel cannot control if someone smokes in the room when they are not supposed to, they do have control over the condition of the room and the cleanliness at which they did a poor job.
For those arriving after dark the place needs to ensure their lighting makes the place look inviting and tiny pastries do not make a breakfast. The cost for our two rooms was just under a $100.00 so the price was right but that didn’t make up for the problems.
My grade for the America’s Best Value Inn Merrillville: D
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