March 2015, Weekend, 1-night, King study guestroom with sofa bed #433
I was a bit uncertain about our choice to stay at this Hampton Inn because of the reviews I had read online. There were many comments about noise, small rooms, and that this hotel does not live up to the Hampton Inn standards. I needed one more night's stay to keep my Gold status, and I had found a great rate, so we made the reservation and hoped for the best.
Gold perks and check-in
We had reserved a king guestroom and received a king study. The agent did not say this was an upgrade because of my status, although I tend to think it was. I had written in my reservation comments that we would like a study upgrade, if available. I have bonus points selected as my on-property perk, and I also received my choice of a beverage and snack. Guestroom 433
This guestroom is located on the top floor near the south end of the hall, and the window faces west.
Before our stay, I read a review from a guest who had checked in online and chosen room 436 at the end of the hall on the top floor--a choice I would have made, too! That guest was unhappy because the king guestroom was extremely tiny.
Looking at the guestroom diagram on the back of the door, it does not look like the rooms are different in size; however, there are four rooms at the end of the hall that are smaller. If this is the same diagram that guest had looked at when choosing the room, I can understand the disappointment.
I have included a photo of the guestroom diagram, and photos showing how much smaller the four end guestrooms are from the hallway. Click on the photo to enlarge it, if the labeling I added is not clear.
I did not walk to the north end of the hall to see if there were four similar smaller rooms at that end, although I imagine there is. The following guestroom types are available online at this hotel: 1 king bed, 1 queen bed, 2 queen beds, and 1 king study with sofa bed. I assume that the smaller rooms at the end of each hall are the 1 king and 1 queen guestrooms.
Our guestroom was much smaller than most of the Hampton Inn study guestrooms I have stayed in, although we were very happy with it. I am not sure if I would feel the same way, if we had ended up in a room at the end of the hall, like 436!
Guestroom 433 was clean and comfortable. The bathroom near the entrance contained a walk in tile shower with a sliding glass door, which we prefer. There was sufficient space to move around in the bathroom, although the vanity was extremely small. Fortunately, there were a couple of shelves under the sink.
Neutrogena bath amenities and a hairdryer were provided. The provided towels and tissue products (facial and toilet paper) were not high quality, although the items were acceptable. A plastic ice bucket was on a shelf under the vanity, which is where the hairdryer was located.
A large full length mirror was hung on the wall outside of the bathroom.
The sleeping area contained a sofa sleeper, two ottomans, king size bed, nightstands, lamps, very large flatscreen TV on an armoire, a soft chair, and a desk/work area and chair. A wardrobe closet next to the desk work area contained hangers, an iron, and ironing board. A single serve coffeemaker with supplies was on the armoire next to the TV.
The sofa was comfortable. Since there was not an end or coffee table in the guestroom, I would have preferred a small table that slides under the sofa rather than the second ottoman.
The bed sheets and pillows were good quality, although I thought the bed mattress was not in very good shape.
There was not much room on the side of the bed by the desk and closet. I could barely sit in the desk chair without hitting the bed, and there was barely enough room to get to the closet when the desk chair was pushed in and not in use.
Nice wooden shades, which could be opened, covered the window. There was a screen in the window, and the window could be fully opened. The lake was just barely visible from the guestroom window.
Although the guestroom door was very heavy, we still heard a bit of noise from guests in the hall. We were not bothered too much, as this guestroom is near the end of the hall. We did not hear any noise from other guestrooms. I always request a top floor guestroom, because depending on the quality of the building, I can sometimes hear people overhead. I definitely suggest a top floor guestroom in this hotel. When I was waiting to check-in, I could hear guests walking around overhead on the second floor.
Breakfast the next morning included: cold cereals, instant oatmeal, Yoplait yogurt, cut fruit and fresh fruit (which did not look very fresh), breads, bagels, western fold-over omelets, potatoes, a waffle maker, milk, and juices. The breads included sweet breads, and the bagels included whole-wheat bagels.
Both of the elevators needed cleaning. There was quite a bit of debris on the floors, and dust buildup in the corners.
Overall, this stay was a good value, and met our needs.
Before our stay, I read a review from a guest who had checked in online and chosen room 436 at the end of the hall on the top floor--a choice I would have made, too! That guest was unhappy because the king guestroom was extremely tiny.
Looking at the guestroom diagram on the back of the door, it does not look like the rooms are different in size; however, there are four rooms at the end of the hall that are smaller. If this is the same diagram that guest had looked at when choosing the room, I can understand the disappointment.I have included a photo of the guestroom diagram, and photos showing how much smaller the four end guestrooms are from the hallway. Click on the photo to enlarge it, if the labeling I added is not clear.Our guestroom was much smaller than most of the Hampton Inn study guestrooms I have stayed in, although we were very happy with it. I am not sure if I would feel the same way, if we had ended up in a room at the end of the hall, like 436!
Guestroom 433 was clean and comfortable. The bathroom near the entrance contained a walk in tile shower with a sliding glass door, which we prefer. There was sufficient space to move around in the bathroom, although the vanity was extremely small. Fortunately, there were a couple of shelves under the sink.
Neutrogena bath amenities and a hairdryer were provided. The provided towels and tissue products (facial and toilet paper) were not high quality, although the items were acceptable. A plastic ice bucket was on a shelf under the vanity, which is where the hairdryer was located.
A large full length mirror was hung on the wall outside of the bathroom.The sleeping area contained a sofa sleeper, two ottomans, king size bed, nightstands, lamps, very large flatscreen TV on an armoire, a soft chair, and a desk/work area and chair. A wardrobe closet next to the desk work area contained hangers, an iron, and ironing board. A single serve coffeemaker with supplies was on the armoire next to the TV.
The sofa was comfortable. Since there was not an end or coffee table in the guestroom, I would have preferred a small table that slides under the sofa rather than the second ottoman.
The bed sheets and pillows were good quality, although I thought the bed mattress was not in very good shape.There was not much room on the side of the bed by the desk and closet. I could barely sit in the desk chair without hitting the bed, and there was barely enough room to get to the closet when the desk chair was pushed in and not in use.
Nice wooden shades, which could be opened, covered the window. There was a screen in the window, and the window could be fully opened. The lake was just barely visible from the guestroom window.Although the guestroom door was very heavy, we still heard a bit of noise from guests in the hall. We were not bothered too much, as this guestroom is near the end of the hall. We did not hear any noise from other guestrooms. I always request a top floor guestroom, because depending on the quality of the building, I can sometimes hear people overhead. I definitely suggest a top floor guestroom in this hotel. When I was waiting to check-in, I could hear guests walking around overhead on the second floor.
Food & Beverage
Coffee and hot water for tea and hot chocolate were set up by the front desk 24 hours. Apples were accessible in the fruit bowl in the breakfast area 24 hours. The vending machines contained Pepsi products. I overheard a guest inquire about Coke products at the front desk. When the clerk had offered me a beverage during check-in, Coke had been one of the options. The agent working offered the guest one of those Cokes; however, he declined since it was not cold. |
| view from breakfast table |
Pool area
This hotel has an inside pool and hot tub. The water temperature in the whirlpool tub felt like it was hot, although we did not use the tub or pool. There were a few tables with chairs in the pool area.Misc. and overall
This hotel is close to the airport, and we did not hear any airplane noise. It is across the street from the beach, and almost next to Traverse City State Park. There is not a crosswalk in front of the hotel, and we did not have any trouble crossing the busy road in March to walk on the beach. There is an overhead crosswalk from the state park less than ½ mile down the road. |
| Elevator floor |
Overall, this stay was a good value, and met our needs.
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