Category Archives: Friends & Family

For mom and dad, that is. :>>

Grandpa Mike and Grandma Linda were here for a few days, and Linda offered to take the night shift…and since there is no way I would get any sleep if I was in the same house and could hear him, we decided to get a hotel.

We wanted something close to home with an in-room jacuzzi for less than our monthly grocery budget (LOL). Seriously, most rooms I called about were upwards of $140! 88| So when we saw the marquee at Knights Inn saying a jacuzzi room was $69.95, we were in. We needed some “alone time,” some muscle relaxation, AND a full night’s sleep—so this place seemed perfect.

Unfortunately, it was much less than perfect.

It started with them not having our reservation—they mistakenly made the reservation for the night Tom called, not the night we requested. (The place was nearly empty, though, so it was no big deal. They also assured us they hadn’t charged us for that night. Um, good thing.) Then, I asked Tom how much it was (we got a military discount) and when he told me I said WHAT? They had quoted me less on the phone and charged him more than that. Ugh. But we were just excited to be out so we let it slide.

We could tell from the first moment entering the room that it was old and run down: the main light switch had a burned out bulb, there was an old room smell, and it just looked, well, cheap. Which is not what we wanted since we were paying almost $100. We had brought beverages for later, and were surprised to see no refrigerator—something we didn’t think to ask about since every jacuzzi room we’ve ever had has had a refrigerator (hell, most hotel rooms these days regardless of price have refrigerators). So we thought well we will just get ice and put everything in the sink. It’s a one-story drive-up-to-your-room hotel so we wondered where the ice machine was. I had to call the front desk. Oh, it’s IN the lobby. So Tom got in the car (yes, the car, it was quite a distance from our room) to get ice. The jacuzzi seemed just fine, and that was my major concern. We were going out to dinner so didn’t look much beyond that.

When we got back, we went to brush our teeth, the first thing I noticed was the splash of something (god knows what) on the wall. Ketchup? Blood? Soy Sauce? Egads. |-| But I figured as long as I didn’t have to touch it or go near it, I could live with it.

Then I noticed the sad state of the lights in the bathroom area—the plastic panels were bowing and coming out, and the support beams were rusty. Ick. But I could still live with it (see pics).

Then we went to brush our teeth and I noticed…no cups. Hmmm. Okay. I can’t say as if I’ve ever been in a hotel that didn’t have at least plastic cups, but whatever. We then went to spit in the toilet (since the sink was full of ice and beverages) and…lifted the lid…and…YUCK. Dirty. It looked like cigarette ash (it was a non-smoking room, though, so who knows—I didn’t want to get that close to check it out).

Okay, I was getting more upset, but still, not too bad. I hate to complain and/or make waves, so I can overlook a lot. That is, until I pulled back the shower curtain to use that faucet. There were pubic hairs in the tub. And not just one, like oops, I happened to miss that one in a far corner…but multiple hairs. GAG ME. It was at this point that I said no way am I staying in this room. Tom was out the door within moments, and back with a new room key.

In a totally different section of the hotel now, we entered our second room. And what a world of difference. Different smell. A mini fridge AND microwave! All light bulbs worked. No hanging and rusty light panels. No splashes of any unidentifiable substances on the walls. And no dirty toilet or pubic hairs. THANK GOD.

The room still wasn’t perfect—the wallpaper was bubbling in one area by the jacuzzi tub and the bathroom counters were a little sketchy, but no sanitary issues. So we stayed.

Unfortunately, the beds were extremely uncomfortable and the pillows were laughable (there were only two flat pillows for a king bed)—had we not been exhausted when we were ready for bed, we would have called for more pillows… And lastly, the room did not seem designed for a jacuzzi…meaning that there was no fan (aside from the small fan in the separate bathroom) so basically the entire surface of the room—walls, doors, windows, tile floor, etc.—were covered in condensation…even through to when we got up in the morning!

So, we didn’t sleep great, but at least we did get to sleep. The next time, we definitely get a nicer hotel…