Dear Manager M,
Thanks for taking the time to address my review. Let me clear up some things:
1) I understand and support policies that protect your employees. When my husband asked for an extra towel 10 minutes after our check in after midnight the clerk shared none of the reasons you stated, only saying that it was "the manager's policy not to give out extra towels." He went back to the front desk in the morning after 7am and was told by the clerk that they "are not allowed to give out extra towels." When he asked why, he was told that it was the "...manager's rule." He came back to the room and 10 minutes later my son went to ask at the front desk for an extra towel. He was told that they had to wait for housekeeping to get there to unlock the towels and, since it was the weekend, they wouldn't be there until 9:30 or 10 am.
2) The only things available for breakfast were the cold cereals. No bagels, toast, croissants, muffins, doughnuts, dainish or any other bread products, neither was there any fruit. Your own website tells me you offer eggs, waffles, bagels, grits and more.
3) I don't have high standards for a moderately-priced hotel. I expect a towel for the maximum number of people the room will sleep. I expect the room to be clean including behind the doors and under the beds. I expect a toilet that doesn't rock when you sit on it. If you advertise a continental breakfast, I expect a variety of pastries, fruits, cereals, juices, and hot beverages. At the very least, I expect what YOUR website told me to expect.
4) I paid $79 for a room that wasn't clean, 2 towels and cold cereal. I ended up spending another $25 at Wafflehouse for breakfast. I could have gotten a room at the Hampton Inn for $95 that had 4 towels, a nice breakfast and a manager who embraced humility and accountability, empowered his employees to take care of the guests, and valued the opportunity to make things right.
As a manager, I understand you can't be there 24/7 making sure your standards and the Econolodge name are being supported by your staff. Sometimes, no matter what you train them to do or how you coach them, employees do what they want. But, sometimes, they do exactly as they have been instructed to do. Unfortunately, this was one of those times. I sincerely hope you are working just as hard to improve the experiences of your future visitors as you are working to make excuses for my negative experience at your establishment, and make this accurate review disappear. read more