Residence Inn by Marriott Arlington — Hotel in Arlington

We stayed at this place July 23-27, 2018.

WARNING: Dated decor, lazy staff, hidden fees, dishonest people, and NOT PET FRIENDLY as claimed.

First day was uneventful. Place was quiet, carpet was damp, but place is clean.

Second day around 9am, housekeeper knocked twice and came into the room. I had told her that we do not need cleaning today and asked for a trash bag only.

Then around noon, we heard 2 rapid knocks and before we could even answer the door, the manager has already UNLOCKED AND WALKED into our room and she yelled "oh the cleaning lady isn't here? Oh she isn't here?"......Ummm Okay...that was rude, but you know what, it happens.

Then again around 330-4, OF THE SAME DAY, no knocking or any warning this time, another cleaning lady unlocked our door and walked right in.... We (my boyfriend and I) all stared at her and she muttered "oh oh" and left ....

Our third day, I took my dog to the baseball park and I cleaned his paws before we got into my car. Somehow, I didn't realize his belly has dirt too and he jumped on the bed. Mind you, all the towels and all the sheets and super thin blanket are WHITE. You would think that it is for easy cleaning - any stains whatever can be bleached away. NOOOO. Apparently, these white towels are precious. And cannot be cleaned.

Got a call from the manager the next day that housekeeping HAD TO throw away all the bedding, towels, etc. To which I replied "it's  just dirt!!!" The dirt came right off my towels that I wiped my dog's paws with. I was told "oh they were pretty bad" I was warned that if this happens again, I will be charged.

Trust me, after that, I didn't wipe my cheeto fingers on their precious white towels. I have stayed at worse hotels and better hotels than Residence Inn, and never had the staff been so LAZY that they just throw the towels away and threaten to charge it to me.

Oh, and mind you, after they "cleaned" the room, some trash were not taken out; bathroom shampoos/soaps... none of them were replaced.

When we booked the hotel through the phone, we have told the operator we need a dog friendly hotel. And we were told by the operator that this was a dog friendly hotel. We were never told that there would be a charge. They charged us $100 NON-REFUNDABLE pet fee. When we checked in at the hotel with the manager, she has never mentioned about the pet fee. I don't know how on earth they can claim to be pet friendly when they are not. I stayed at ALoft before and they are truly pet friendly - no fees, staff welcomed my dog, no issues whatsoever.

I found out that they had charged me $100 for the pet fee a week after we have checked out. I called the hotel and whoever picked up the phone was extremely unhelpful. His responses were mostly silence and "well, other hotels charge a pet fee too". When questioned why I was not warned of the pet fee during check in, he gave me a matter of fact response as if I work at that crappy place and should have known all the rules.

I will never ever stay with Residence Inn again, especially at this location. If any of you are looking for a true pet friendly hotel with modern design, I highly recommend Aloft. It cost about half as much, but it...

I've been staying here for over 3 weeks now and have minor complaints until this week. They are currently renovating and needed to switch my rooms this week so they could start renovations where I was originally staying. I informed them on several occasions that I work night shift and needed my sleep. They tried accomodating my move but didn't have the common sense or decency to think of putting me in a room away from the noise from renovations since they work during the day and that's when I sleep. I am a registered nurse that works 12 hour night shifts. I take care of patients and need to be well rested to ensure that I am able to give my patients the best possible care. When I called to complain about the noise, I got minor attitude from the general manager and front desk stating that they could move me back to where I was staying, but then would have to move me back to the same place again. I had already worked the night before and needed sleep for my next shift that same evening and didnt want to have to move back and forth especially since I had already unpacked and needed to sleep for work. Of course I was not able to sleep but maybe an hour on and off so I called again and spoke with stephanie the general manager. She told me the same thing from my earlier conversation and was not understanding of my frustration. Once she realized that I was getting more upset she the said she could move me to the floor above to avoid the noise and originally wanted me to move asap instead of letting me wait until after I got off work. She did finally hold the room for me but did not offer to help me with moving my belongings or apologizing for her inconsiderate attitude. I retrieved my new keys for the new room after work and asked for a cart to help my move go smoother, I was not offered any assistance but almost being treated my staff like I was a nuisance. Not all staff were unpleasant, there are many there that uphold their professionalism and have excellent customer service. I am not a needy resident, I only have my room serviced once a week and only have called to have my AC checked out since it was not blowing cold air. For these particular people to be in the service industry and lack competency in their jobs brings me great disappointment. They need to be retrained on customer service and empathy especially the GM. UPDATE: I changed my rating to a 3 because of the excellent care I have received from everyone else. I stayed here for over a month and I would still recommend this place for others, but I do not retract what I said...

Making sure that credit is due to the correct person. This morning 12/12/21 @ 05:58, Marriott Staff member Sarah was super helpful in extending our stay! My wife is a service member who had an extra day of training added on which required us to stay an additional night, booking agent online was no help but Sarah took care of our issue in just 5 minutes! She’s very knowledgeable and knows what she is doing, polite and excellent customer service, an asset to your team!!

Now for the review on the hotel itself..still 5 stars for families and military friendly! We booked a studio room with a queen bed and a couch that converts into a bed . Room was spacious enough to accommodate my family of 4. Room was very clean and came with a lot of goodies.

Room we booked came with a small kitchen: sink with a garbage disposal, dishwasher, microwave, coffee maker, refrigerator, stove top you can cook on. Kitchen also had dishes you can use!

Room has “blackout” curtains that you can use if you are a day sleeper and want to block out that daylight.

Pets

This place is pet friendly and they have a decent sized area where you can take your pet out to do their stuff.

Military

If you are a service member this studio room with queen bed will have everything you need, as I mentioned it has a complete kitchen (except for oven) so if you want to save money and cook yourself it’s a good deal. They also have a small gym complete with weights and a cardio machine. There’s a small basketball court, swimming pool, and a gas bbq grill if you want to cook outside. Breakfast is a grab and go with varieties: yogurt, cereals, egg/cheese bagels, chorizo burritos, milk etc… Coffee is available 24/7 in their dining area.

If you’ve seen the pictures for the Marriott Residence Inn at Arlington on their site, it’s pretty much what they have here.

Six Flags

Six flags is just a drive or 10 minute walk from this hotel, great location!

Apologies I’m all over the place with this review but the price you pay for staying here is a bargain! I also like their staff being professional and excellent customer service.

Again, thank you Sarah for taking care of our booking issue, you are an asset...