The Smell Alone Still Haunts Me
Unfortunately, as my luck would have it, I managed to get stuck at one of the worst hotels I have stayed at in quite some time during my brief stay in Murfreesboro, TN.
The guest room that I booked wasn't cheap, either.
I did my best to research the property before booking it. The pictures on their website and several third-party sites showed clean, straightforward, studio-style guest rooms. I wish I had read more of the guest reviews before making my decision.
What I got instead was an experience that I wish I could forget, and deeply regret!
The smell of the hotel, ESPECIALLY on the third floor, where my room was located, was ABSOLUTELY NAUSEATING! Even the parking lot smelled beyond belief.
That alone was enough for me to walk straight back out of the door.
The problem was, I was unable to get a hold of the front desk, which was a common theme throughout my whole stay. There was one employee working, and before I even arrived at the property, I called at least 5 times to get some answers to a few questions that I had. No one answered. When I got to the property and tried to check in, there was no one at the desk. A sign on the wall next to the locked office had instructions on what to do if this was the case. It said to pick up the phone next to it that appeared to be an antique from the 1800's and dial a phone number. I tried this about 10 times. No answer. In fact, I got a voicemail that was full and unable to take anymore messages. All of the doors were locked throughout the hotel, so I was trapped in a closet-sized entryway next to the office, but couldn't enter the hotel unless I had a room key. There were no chairs, no bathroom, nowhere to go. Just the phone on the wall.
I went to the parking lot to try to see if I could find a guest who was staying there to see if they could give me advice on what to do, or check to see if anyone was working inside the hotel where I was unable to go.
I found a truck full of guys smoking cigarettes, and found the employee in their backseat. She overheated me asking them for help, and actually looked irritated as she got out and lead me to the office.
Another reason that I wanted to cancel, complain, and ask for a refund was because there was a puddle of urine in the elevator
when I first went up to my room.
Luckily for me, theurine continued when I got off onto the third floor. It was literally a line of pee that lead from the elevator down the hall, all the way to the room directly across from mine.
I had to pick up my suitcases and jump around it as I made the disgusting journey to my room. I am still in absolute shock.
I understand that this is a pet friendly hotel, but I could not have guessed that some of the guests would have untrained, dirty, and smelly animals in their rooms and public areas. On top of that, it is crazy that they allowed their untrained animals to be unmonitored and/or not clean up after them.
It is so rude to subject other guests to these conditions. It's disrespectful, gross, and totally unfair to the rest of the people who paid money to stay there. Why the hotel does not regulate this and enforce fines for these situations, I will never understand.
In addition to ALL of that, the following are also reasons for my unbelievable discomfort and desire to run from the building:
▪️Used, stained, unmade sheets/bed
▪️Dirt/cigarette ashes/filth all over the floor & under the bed
▪️Disgusting smell
▪️Dirty sink, microwave, fridge, furniture, & shower
▪️A layer of dust over everything
▪️Employee gave me a broom & one sheet when I finally found her, again, to tell her about the room (no pillows, pillowcases, blanket, dustpan, cleaning spray, towels, etc)
Just to reiterate that last part: She HANDED these things to me, to do myself, and provided no apology or even an attempt at a solution. Beyond me cleaning the room and hallway myself.
Because she was the only one "working" at the hotel, and she continued to not answer the phone and was MIA from the office, there was no one else to help me or talk to about this. I looked for phone numbers, email addresses, names...ANYONE else in charge that I could reach out to.
I came up with nothing, and so I paid for a room that has me permanently scarred.
(I am trying to add humor to the situation, but, no. For real, though.)
I highly suggest exploring other options if you are in need of a hotel in Murfreesboro, and probably anywhere else where Woodspring Suites has a location.
The smell alone will haunt you.
