London, Kentucky: Fairfield Inn & Suites

August 2023, one night, king guestrom 226

Sharing photos and a bit of information from our stay in London, Kentucky a few weeks ago!

Guestroom 226 in Fairfield Inn & Suites, London Kentucky

Guestroom 226

The guestroom was comfortable, spacious, and clean. I do not know how old this hotel is; it appeared to be fairly new.

Guestroom 226 in Fairfield Inn & Suites, London Kentucky

I like that the guestroom was at the end of the hall where it is usually quieter. I almost always request this in my reservation comments. Staff at this hotel had read my requests before we arrived.

Breakfast at Fairfield Inn & Suites, London Kentucky

Cumberland Maryland: Fairfield Inn & Suites, Area Trails, Dining, Brewery

May 2022, weekdays, 2 nights, Fairfield Inn extended king guestroom 419

It has been a few weeks since my stay at this hotel, so I am sharing only minimal info that I recall clearly. If I had been traveling alone, I would have chosen the new Hampton Inn at the next exit north of town. I chose this hotel because it is in a good location with businesses nearby that my husband would enjoy.  

Back of Fairfield Inn & Suites in Cumberland, Maryland from bicycle path

Arrival and check-in

We had not eaten before we arrived at the hotel in the late afternoon. Since it was before check-in time, I went inside to ask the front desk clerk for nearby dining recommendations within walking distance. She provided a printed sheet and verbal recommendations. See the dining section at the bottom of this post for more information about that. I had not received a notification via the app before we returned to the hotel, even though it was almost check-in time. The agent assigned our room when I asked if we could check-in.

Guestroom 419 in Fairfield Inn & Suites in Cumberland, Maryland 

Fairfield Inn standard and extended king guestrooms

We were initially assigned a standard king guestroom on the top floor. I believe it was guestroom 400. This basic room was extremely small, and I wish I had taken a photo before I returned to the front desk. The one small cushioned chair in the room was so tight in the corner, it was up against the bed and wall. It did not look like there was room to walk behind the [second] desk chair if I had been sitting at the desk. Again, if I had been by myself, I would have just let it go. However, since there were two of us staying two nights, I returned to the front desk to ask about a larger room. The agent reassigned us guestroom 419, which met our needs much better.

Guestroom 419 in Fairfield Inn & Suites in Cumberland, Maryland 

Guestroom 419 was similar to most Fairfield Inn rooms I have stayed in before. The bathroom was near the entrance. The beverage center was located in the entry between the bathroom and sitting area. The sitting area was next, and the bed was at the end of the room near the window. The complimentary enhanced internet (for elite members) did not work worth a crap, and would barely load anything the second evening when the hotel was more full. I probably would have requested a refund, if I had paid for this.

Orlando, Florida: Fairfield Inn Orlando Airport, MCO, public transportation

 February 2022, weekday/weekend, 1-night

Arrival and check-in

We arrived at MCO in the evening, and called for the shuttle bus to the hotel. The airport was extremely chaotic, and we waited about 30 minutes for the shuttle. We observed other passengers waiting longer than us for shuttles from other hotels, so our experience was apparently not unusual. Our son arrived about an hour after us and had the same experience when he arrived. Check-in was quick, although as a gold member, I did not receive an upgraded room or even the guestroom floor location I had requested.

Above: actual photo taken of our guestroom 310 with tiny single chair only
Two photos below: from Marriott website of guestrooms with two queen beds

Two queen beds, guestroom 310

This is a basic guestroom with two queen beds. We did not have a sofa in our room, as pictured on the Marriott website. We paid for three adults when making this reservation, and only received amenities in the guestroom for two: 2 washcloths, 2 coffees, etc. You would think that an elite guest paying for three adults would at least receive the bare minimum, if not also, a larger room with sofa.

Guestroom 310 at Fairfield Inn Orland Airport
View from tiny chair next to beds

Springfield, Ohio: Fairfield Inn & Suites

November 2021, weekday, 1-night, king guestroom 220

Check-in and gold perks

I had checked in on the app, and my room was ready when I arrived, even though it was before check-in time. I was surprised and impressed when I received a snack bag with bottled water and two snacks from this hotel. My status with Marriott is only gold, whereas, I have diamond status with Hilton. I always have great experiences with Marriott properties in regards to recognition and upgrades; however, it is more difficult to reach higher status levels with Marriott.

View from guestroom 220 in Fairfield Inn & Suites Springfield, Ohio

Guestroom 220

This is a basic king guestroom near the end of the hall. It looked just like the king guestroom photos on the Marriott website. It was comfortable, although it did not smell very fresh. The perfume scent was rather strong, as if trying to mask a different odor.

Guestroom 220 in Fairfield Inn & Suites Springfield, Ohio

Berea, Kentucky: Fairfield Inn & Suites Lexington Berea

December 2019, Weekend, 1-night, King guestroom 219

Arrival and platinum perks

The hotel seemed quite empty when we arrived after 5:00 PM. The front desk agent did not mention my status, or say anything about a room upgrade. In fact, I did not receive my welcome amenity points for this stay until after I contacted the hotel over two weeks later.

Guestroom diagram on back of door at Fairfield Inn Berea room 219

King guestroom 219

This guestroom may have been an extended king upgrade from what I had originally booked, because the room is longer on the guestroom diagram than some of the guestrooms. It is not on the top floor, as I had requested in my reservation notes, and I did not ask about this during check-in. Since the hotel appeared to be mostly empty, I was not as concerned about overhead noise. Also, I thought maybe this would be a nicer room and upgrade, as that sometimes happens when I end up on a lower floor. In hindsight, I should have asked during check-in.

The guestroom was spacious, and the bed was comfortable. The layout was a bit odd, as the bathroom is located by the entrance door, rather than next to the sleeping area or between the sleeping and sitting area.

Bathroom in guestroom 219

Refreshment area between bathroom and living area

The spacious bathroom contained a tub/shower combination, and bathing amenities. A small fridge, microwave, and coffeemaker were located outside the bathroom. There was no closet at the entrance.

Columbus, Ohio / Fairfield Inn & Suites Columbus Airport

September 2018, Weeday, 1-night, King guestroom 319

Gold perks and check-in

Check-in went smoothly. The agent asked my preference for room location (yes, I had entered my requests online when I made the reservation). I told her I usually prefer a top floor corner room in a quiet area. I did not receive any extras for having Gold status, other than the automatic 250 bonus points.

Guestroom 319

This guestroom is located fairly close to the elevator on the third floor of this 4-floor hotel. If you enlarge the floor diagram farther down in this post, you can see the exact room location. During check-in, the agent had used positive words to tell me she had the perfect room for me, so I was surprised to see my room so close to the elevator. Fortunately, hallway noise was not a problem.

Bathroom in guestroom 319

This guestroom has a long entrance hall with a large bathroom off the hall. The bathroom is tile, it has a large vanity, and nice large shower with glass doors. I loved the bathroom in this guestroom! Bath amenities, good quality towels, and a hair dryer were provided.

Virginia / Dulles airport Fairfield Inn & Suites by Marriott

May 2018, Weekday, 1-night, Extended king guestroom 323

Gold perks and check-in

I checked in using the Marriott app, which was a first for me. I went to the front desk when I arrived, because I did not see my room number, or how to choose a room on the app. The guestroom number did not show because I needed to complete one more step after I checked in online. I think it was the "get key" step, which I mistakenly assumed I did not need to do until I was ready to enter the room. I had been pre-assigned a guestroom on the top floor, which was also an upgrade. No one told me the room was an upgrade; I realized when I entered the guestroom and saw that it is an extend king guestroom. I had booked a basic room when making my reservation. You can see the guestroom size difference in the guestroom diagram photo farther down in this post.

Guestroom 323

Guestroom 323

This is a spacious guestroom, which looked like it had been recently remodeled. The bathroom and beverage area were located at the entrance. The beverage area contained a single serve coffeemaker with supplies, an ice bucket, microwave, and small fridge.

Guestroom 323

Bismarck, North Dakota / Fairfield Inn & Suites South

April 2013, Weekend, 1-night, King guestroom #316

Status perks and check-in

I had reserved a smaller queen guestroom because the king guestroom rates were higher. The Marriott website does not have a place to add comments when making a reservation online, so I called a couple of days before my arrival to ask if a king upgrade and top floor request could be added to my reservation. 

At check-in, the front desk agent said that I had been upgraded to a king guestroom. I also received the standard Platinum bonus points.

Guestroom 316

This guestroom is a smaller king guestroom on the top floor. We probably would have been better off to keep the queen bed guestroom, since there would have been more room in the guestroom with a slightly smaller bed. This hotel also has larger king guestrooms for only $20 more than the guestroom type I had booked. I was seriously disappointed that this hotel would not automatically upgrade a Platinum level guest to that room type when there were not very many guests in this hotel. If our stay had been for any longer than it was, I would have went back to the front desk and paid the difference for the larger room.

Other than the fact that the guestroom was quite small, it looked similar to other Fairfield Inn hotels I have stayed in. There was a small vanity outside the shower area by the door. The shower room contained a tub/shower combination with a shower curtain on a curved rod, the toilet, and bath towels. The towels were good quality.

The bath amenities on the vanity were good quality--Pantene hair products and Vaseline lotion. The vanity overhead light was very dim. I later learned that it was dim because the bulbs were no good. Shortly after we had checked in, the light above the vanity went completely out. I called the front desk, and an employee brought a bulb up. My husband had to climb up to replace the bulb because the employee could not do it. She had only brought one bulb with her, and after my husband removed the cover, we discovered that there were two burned out bulbs. One must have been burned out before we arrived, and the other one went out after we checked in. We did not have her bring another bulb back, although we probably should have. I would guess that the second bulb has not been replaced, unless another guest complained after our stay. As dim as the light was before it went completely out, I do not see how it could be possible for housekeeping not to know that it had not been right before our stay.

There was a very small closet across from the vanity. There was no full length mirror in the guestroom, and the closet door was wood. A folding luggage rack was in the closet; however, there was not really any room for it in the guestroom. We set it up next to the armoire at the foot of the bed, which did not leave us much room to get through. I did not take a photo showing the inside wall and corner like I often do. There was not very much room between the bed and the inside wall, so the corner of the wall came out where the luggage rack was. This also did not leave enough room for the luggage rack along the wall next to the bed.

The armoire at the foot of the bed held a single serve coffee maker with supplies, the ice bucket, and a flatscreen TV. A small fridge and microwave were located between the armoire and work desk. We did not use the microwave, although I wondered how well it would work after I noticed that it was not sitting level. It does not look unlevel from the angle in the photo in this blog; however, we noticed that it was after we sat down across from it. 

There was a desk chair at the desk, and one small chair and a footstool crunched in beside the king bed. There was a nightstand and lamp on each side of the bed. A generic welcome letter was on the bed with a small milk chocolate.

The guestroom was clean for the most part, although I observed a couple of black stains on the sheets.

Food & Beverage

Breakfast the next morning included: imitation scrambled eggs, sausage, hard boiled eggs, Yoplait yogurt, instant oatmeal, cold cereal, breads, cut fruit, whole  fruits--apples, very ripe bananas, and a couple of very sad looking oranges, juices, coffee and tea. I tried a couple of items that I did not think were very good. The hard boiled eggs had been overcooked and were dry. I liked that the bread items included whole wheat bagels until I tried one, and it tasted very sweet. My husband had the eggs, sausage, and toast. We both thought that this breakfast was not as good as the others we had had this week.

Business center
I reprinted one of our boarding passes with no problem. There was a computer and printer in the lobby sitting area across from the front desk.

Overall

We chose this hotel for our last night in North Dakota because it is close to the airport, and I did not see any other hotels in this area. We were not able to return our car the day before, because this hotel does not have shuttle service. We still liked the idea of not having to drive through town to the airport on a Monday morning though.

I do not know why this hotel is called a Fairfield Inn & Suites. There did not appear to be any suites in the hotel. I did not see any on the room diagrams in the guestroom, and I could not find any available when I tried a search for several future dates.

There are several restaurants nearby: McDonalds, Perkins, TGI Fridays, Famous Daves, Applebees, and probably more that I do not recall.

Fort Myers Florida / Fairfield Inn

January 2013, Weekday, 1-night, King sofa bed #338

Staus perks

I had reserved a basic guestroom, and received an upgrade to a king sofa bed guestroom at check-in. It did not sound like this was automatic; I asked the agent what kind of room he was assigning me, and he then said something like, "Oh, you're platinum. I'll see if I can give you an upgrade." I also received the  platinum arrival gift bonus of 200 points.

Guestroom #338

 

This is a slightly larger guestroom on the top floor with a small fridge and microwave. It is spacious and contained the following furnishings: king bed, night stands, desk and chair, soft chair, sofa bed, coffee table, and flatscreen TV on a low armoire. The microwave and fridge were located across from the sofa. These furnishings were similar to what I have seen in most Fairfield Inns that I have stayed in.

Coffee was set up on the vanity outside the toilet and shower area. The coffee was decent quality, although the condiments included powder creamer. I was able to get liquid creamer in the breakfast room. The bathroom amenities were good quality (Pantene shampoo and conditioner); however, the wall mounted hairdryer was low quality.

The closet across from the vanity contained a folding luggage rack, and a safe large enough for a laptop. 

Everything in the guestroom was well maintained, and the sleep quality was good. The wireless Internet signal was not very strong. I did not get disconnected, although the pages loaded slowly.

Food & Beverage

Breakfast is included, as it is at all Fairfield Inns. I left early, so I can not comment on the breakfast quality. I observed a waffle maker and Jimmy Dean breakfast sandwiches (locked in a refrigerated case) in the room the night before. Cookies were available at the front desk in the afternoon.

Business center

One computer and a printer were located in the breakfast area. Apparently, the printer is not used much because I had to turn it on to print my boarding pass.

Fitness center

The fitness center contained a couple of basic cardio machines and a working TV. None of the machines had cardio theater. It was located on the ground floor at the end of the hall.

Pool area

The outside pool and whirlpool tub were located outside the breakfast room. The area was landscaped and secluded fairly well considering this hotel is located is on a busy road. 

Misc.

There are not any restaurants within walking distance of this hotel, although there are several nearby. There is a BP gas station located in the same parking lot as the hotel. The drive to the airport (RSW) is not too far, and it was a fairly easy drive early in the morning.

Sacramento, California / Fairfield Inn & Suites Sacramento Airport Natomas

August 2012, One-night, Weekday, King suite #318

Status perks

As a Platinum member, the agent at check-in asked if I wanted bonus points or an item from the gift shop. I did not initially receive an upgraded room, or even my preferred guestroom type. I was assigned a guestroom with two double beds, which I did not realize until after I arrived at the room. I then returned to the front desk to ask if a king room was available. My profile preferences are for a king room on a high floor; however, I had booked the least expensive room type at the last minute. I had checked out of the nearby Homewood Suites with the hopes of catching an early flight home. That did not work out, and I had a room reserved at this hotel, just in case.

view from entrance hall

Guestroom #318

This king suite is located next to the elevator, and the head of the bed was against the same wall. I was worried that the elevator noise might be bothersome; however, I did not hear any noise from the elevator or from the hallway at any time during my stay.

dry bar

There was a short hallway into the guestroom where the dry bar items were located: microwave, mini-fridge, and single serve coffee maker with dry condiments. The spacious bathroom was also located off this hall, next to the entrance door. The heavy bathroom door would not stay open. Fortunately, there was a footpad on the door, so I could prop it open. This may have also helped block out any hallway noise, since the door opened across the front of the entrance door.

The living room area included a couch, soft chair, desk and chair, end and coffee tables, lamps, a flatscreen TV, and plenty of storage cupboards. There was an ethernet cord and telephone on the desk. A second telephone was on a nightstand in the bedroom.

The bedroom area contained a second flatsceen TV in a stand with more storage,  a suitcase bench, nightstands with lamps and an alarm clock, a closet, and king size bed. There were plenty of outlets in the living room; however, there were not any visible outlets in the bedroom. There was one available outlet behind the nightstand, although it was not easy to reach.

The guestroom was clean, and the bedding and amenities were satisfactory.

Food & Beverage

I checked out of this hotel before breakfast was setup in the morning. In the dining area, I observed fresh apples in a bowl,  and the locked beverage and sandwich cooler had been unlocked, although there were not any breakfast sandwiches out yet at 4 AM. Since I live in the eastern time zone, 4 AM is not really that early for me.

I had returned my rental car when I tried to catch a flight home the day before, so my evening dining choices were limited. I saw three choices within walking distance: a truck stop type restaurant across the expressway on/off road, Burger King, and Black Bear Diner. Employees at the hotel had told me that the Black Bear Diner was fantastic. It was acceptable, although I would not classify it as fantastic or even good. I guess it depends what you like. I think if I had ordered a burger, I would have liked the food better. I should have followed my instincts and ordered a burger after seeing the many burger choices on the menu. Other than the plethora of burger choices, this restaurant was just like Cracker Barrel (not a restaurant I would normally choose to dine in), right down to the corn muffins, and the "pay at the register on your way out" setup. I do think that this restaurant was probably the best choice of the three located near this hotel.

Fitness center
The fitness center contained a couple of cardio machines, and a working TV on the wall. It overlooked the outside pool. The room smelled kind of musty, and it was extremely hot. I observed an air freshener on the drinking fountain in the fitness center. Another drinking fountain was located in the hallway outside the fitness center.

Business center
Two computers and a printer were located on a counter in the lobby across from the front desk. I observed tape and paper clips in the area, although other business supplies were not provided. I used a stapler and scissors at the front desk.

Shuttle

I had to wait until 3 AM the morning of my departure to find out if I would be able to get on the first flight out of SMF for no charge (the flight I had booked was not until afternoon). Before I went to bed the night before, I told the front desk agent that I might want to get on the first airport shuttle at 4 AM, and that I would not know until morning. I asked if this would be a problem, and I was told no. It almost did turn out to be a problem, and there were other guests that did encounter a problem trying to get on this shuttle.

After I confirmed that I could get on the early flight that morning, I called the front desk, and asked to get on the 4 AM shuttle. I went to the lobby 10 to 15 minutes early so I could print my boarding pass (and, because when I called, the employee had said that the shuttle leaves right on time!). Since the business center is located in the lobby, I overheard other guests trying to get on the same shuttle. One guest came to the lobby, and another one called. I heard the employee tell both guests that the shuttle was full, and that the next one did not leave until 4:30. The guest in the lobby hung around just in case. After we were all on the bus (8 of us and our luggage), they squeezed the guest waiting in the lobby on board too. During this time, the employees kept saying that the shuttle holds nine, and that it was full.

It was a good thing that the airport was not too far away, because the bus barely held nine. We were packed in that bus, and all of the guests were of average size; we did not have any oversized passengers on board.

Grand Rapids, Michigan -- GRR airport / Fairfield Inn

April 2012, Weekday, 1-night, 2-Queen guestroom #305

Status perks

I did not receive anything as a Gold member; not even an acknowledgement or thank you for my business. Since the following Marriott Gold perk was touted to me with an offer to upgrade to Gold: Room Upgrade: At no additional charge, we’ll do our best to upgrade you to our best-available guest room in the next room category level. Suites are excluded. I had hoped to receive a King guestroom, or at least an acknowledgment, if one was not available.

Check-in

This was one of the worst check-in experiences I have ever had. The employee did not cofirm my room type or rate, and he did not ask if I had been to the hotel before, or mention any amenities. He did not smile, and he mumbled so I had to ask him to repeat himself more than once. After he set my key packet on the counter, I asked if my room was just a basic King guestroom. He then told me that it was a double Queen room, and that the hotel was full.

Guestroom

Room 305 is located on the top floor near the end of the hall facing the back parking lot. The guestroom was a basic hotel room in fair condition. The carpet in the guestroom, and in the halls looked new, although the guestroom did not smell fresh. One of the bed throws was badly stained, and when I pulled back the sheets on the second bed, it had not been made up well. I had to tuck the sheets down around the mattress, so they wouldn't come off during the night.

The guestroom contained two beds, a desk and chair, and flatscreen TV placed on a low armoire. There was no seat except the desk chair, which was not very comfortable. I was surprised that there was not a luggage rack or place to set my suitcase. I had a medium size suitcase, which almost fit on the armoire beside the TV; however, there was no room to open it there. Two pleasant surprises were the coffee quality--Bold Beginnings by Royal Cup Coffee, and the bathroom amenities--Pantene shampoo and conditioner, and Vaseline lotion.

bed throw stains

The large window in the guestroom had a screen and opened fully. The bed and pillows were comfortable. I heard quite a bit of guest noise, as if someone was walking around overhead, which surprised me because this guestroom is on the top floor.

Food & Beverage
We stayed at this hotel because we had an early flight the next morning. We needed to leave at 4:30 AM, and did not expect any breakfast items to be ready at this time. I was surprised to find that an employee was already setting things up, and many food items were already available. The last time I stayed at a Fairfield Inn, the only breakfast sandwich was the unhealthy Jimmy Dean biscuit sandwich. Another pleasant surprise for me this stay, was the addition of a healthy Santa Fe whole grain pita egg sandwich.

Misc.   

I thought the public halls and stairways were clean, and they smelled fresh. This stay was acceptable, although I thought the AAA rate of $99 was high for the quality and type of guestroom. The entrance doors at this hotel are not power operated for easy entrance with a suitcase.

There are a few restaurants within walking distance of this hotel: Carrabba's, Hooters, Olive Garden, and Wendy's. This hotel is fairly close to the airport; however, they do not provide shuttle service.