This was my first time staying at Ameristar and will also be my last. I came here for my birthday…read moreexpecting to have a relaxing and fun night, but instead, I ended up spending about an hour dealing with issues with our room before I could even settle in. It was honestly a very disappointing way to start a birthday stay.
When we first walked into our room, I was immediately shocked by how dirty it was. There was dirt on the bed, crumbs everywhere, and the room just did not feel like it had been properly cleaned before we arrived. I understand that hotels can occasionally miss something during housekeeping, but this was more than just one small oversight. When you're paying to stay at a hotel, especially for a birthday celebration, you expect the room to be clean and ready when you arrive.
We ended up getting switched to another room, but unfortunately, that room had cleanliness issues too. The tub and toilet were dirty, which was extremely frustrating after we had already gone through the trouble of changing rooms. At that point, I was just hoping we could finally settle in and enjoy the night without having to deal with another issue.
Then, the next morning, I woke up with bug bites on my legs and abdomen. I obviously can't say for certain what caused the bites or that there are bedbugs at the hotel, but given everything else that had already happened with the cleanliness of the rooms, it was definitely concerning and made me question the cleanliness of the room even more. That was not exactly how I wanted to wake up after coming here for my birthday.
Unfortunately, even the actual casino came with its own issue because the craps machine ended up taking my money, and a formal investigation had to be done on the machine. I understand that technical issues can happen, but when you're already dealing with multiple problems during your stay, having another unexpected issue just adds to the frustration.
I really wanted this to be a fun and relaxing birthday stay, but instead, I spent a significant amount of time dealing with problems that I shouldn't have had to deal with in the first place. Having to switch rooms because the first one was dirty, finding cleanliness issues in the second room, waking up with unexplained bites, and then having an issue with the casino machine made the entire experience feel like more hassle than it was worth.
The pool, hot tub, and casino had some positives, but unfortunately, those things weren't enough to make up for everything else.
This was my first time staying at Ameristar, and based on this experience, I don't think I'll be rushing back. I usually stay at the Monarch, and after this trip, I think I'll be keeping it that way. For what I expected to be a relaxing birthday getaway, it was way more stressful than it needed to be.