Jackson, Michigan: Hampton Inn & Suites

 March 2023, weeknight, one night, king guestroom 315

We stayed in the Tru by Hilton in this area in November 2022; however, I neglected to write a blog post after that stay. I am disappointed I did not complete one, because I could not remember the details of that hotel when I was trying to decide which property to choose. The Hampton Inn was $5 more a night than Tru by Hilton. Tru by Hilton is a newer building; however, that type of property does not provide in room coffee, or a seating area in the guestroom (only a desk work area and desk chair). I figured I would have remembered if there had been anything exceptional or horrific at the other hotel, so we decided to go with the Hampton Inn. 

Arrival and diamond perks

As usual, the app did not show me any available upgrade options when checking in. I looked again after we got on the road, and it showed that there were no rooms available. We were not going to be arriving until after 7:00 PM, so I decided to call the hotel. It took me four tries to reach someone in the hotel. Every time I chose the option to speak with someone at the front desk, the phone rang 10 times, and then no one answered. The fourth time I called, I chose the option for sales. This time, that call was picked up after one ring. When I asked the person who had answered, if I had the front desk, she said yes. 😲 Hmm... I am not sure if their phone routing program had issues, or if calls were only being answered if they thought it might be important. Anyway, I asked the person I spoke with if she could help pick out a room for me to get checked in, since we were not going to be arriving until late. (I did not want to be worried, if rooms were not showing as available because the hotel was going to be full). She told me to just come to the front desk when we arrived. She had asked my name before this, and apparently, she then gave us an upgrade and checked us in after my call. A short time after I hung up, I received a text saying my credit card had been authorized, and then I received a Hilton notification saying we had been assigned guestroom 315. This is a king bed study with sofabed, which is an upgrade from what I had booked. When we arrived, I received bottled water and trail mix snacks.

View from guestroom 315 in Hampton Inn Jackson, Michigan

King study 315

This spacious guestroom is on the top floor at the center of the hall. We appreciated the extra space, and the field view from the window was much nicer than the parking lot view. 

Guestroom 315 in Hampton Inn Jackson, Michigan

The guestroom looked clean; however, it did not smell fresh. It had a damp musty odor. The bed is messed in the photo above, because we checked the cleanliness of the bed right away, before I took any photos. The bed mattress in this guestroom was hard, and the pillows were low quality.

Bathroom in guestroom 315 in Hampton Inn Jackson, Michigan

The guestroom is not well soundproofed. We observed only one other guest on our floor a few doors down. I could hear a TV while in our room in the morning, and the noise was coming from down the hall, rather than a room right next to ours. Usually, I only hear TV noise when it is from a room next door. 

Food and beverage

Coffee was available across from the front desk 24 hours. The breakfast food in the morning looked kind of dismal. Selections included: powder scrambled eggs, greasy pork sausage patties, hard boiled eggs, waffle maker with two batter flavors, Yoplait yogurt, oatmeal, and cold cereals. The 2% milk in the decanter by the cereal was not cold. Fresh oranges, bananas, and apples were also available; however, the fruit did not look very fresh. The breakfast host was friendly.

Housekeeping cart and supplies on floor 3 in Hampton Inn Jackson, Michigan

Misc. and overall

This hotel was nearly empty the night of our stay. We only observed one other guest during our stay, and there were only a couple of vehicles in the parking lot. I am not sure why guestrooms were not available when I looked at the app, unless it was because housekeeping had walked out. A housekeeping cart was at the end of our hall when we arrived and overnight. At least three guestrooms had the doors propped open during our entire stay, as if someone had started cleaning them.   

Guestroom diagrams for Hampton Inn Jackson, Michigan
Diagram below is accurate; photo from the Hilton app above is incorrect

The guestroom diagram on the app does not match the diagram on back of the guestroom door. Guestroom 318 looks like an oversized suite on the app. In reality, it is a king study guestroom just like we had, located next to the ice machine and elevator. This is the same situation we experienced at the Jacksonville airport Hilton Garden Inn when I chose my room based on the app diagram.

Overall, this was a disappointing stay, and I would not choose this hotel again. Nearby hotel choices include: Towneplace Suites and Courtyard by Marriott on the other side of US-127, and Holiday Inn and Holiday Inn Express a mile farther west, just off I-94.

Let me know if you have any questions!