Sugar's Inn — Hotel in Galveston

We rarely write negative reviews, but we believe in always sharing an honest experience when we travel. Our recent stay at Room 6 Sugars Inn Galveston over the Public Holiday Weekend was a mix of charming and disappointing moments.

First, the positive aspects. The restoration of Sugars Inn is amazing. The historic building has been brought to life with a chic, stylish boutique B&B feel. We couldn't fault the room; the vintage furniture, while not always practical, added to the charm and gave that authentic Galveston vintage vibe. However, some pieces were broken, which made us cautious about where to place our belongings to avoid causing any damage.

Now, for the negative feedback. The communication with the hosts was below average, bordering on poor, from the beginning. We booked Room 6 several months before our stay but didn’t note the booking price. As our vacation approached, we tried contacting Sugars Inn multiple times via email to reconfirm the rate. Despite several attempts, we received no response until we sent a message on Instagram. This was odd, but we finally received a short, rather curt confirmation email.

A week before check-in, there was an issue with the payment as the card we used had since changed. Sugars Inn was quick to contact us, and we promptly corrected the card details. We received helpful check-in information a few days before arrival and on the day of check-in, explaining how to collect keys and where to park.

However, upon checking in, we couldn’t get WiFi (which was necessary to use the TV). The suggested network did not show up. I emailed the host about this issue but received no reply. On the day of our arrival, we also received an email stating not to contact them outside certain hours unless it was an emergency, and if it was an emergency, to contact 911. This email was abrupt and not welcoming, making me reluctant to contact them about the WiFi issue. After another unanswered email, we asked the restaurant downstairs for help. They reluctantly gave us some numbers to try, warning us that the hosts wouldn’t be happy to be contacted. We called and texted all three numbers but received no response.

On day four, we checked out and sent an email explaining we left early and thanked them for our stay, but noted the poor communication. We finally received a reply stating they thought our WiFi issue was resolved and didn’t think they needed to check in or respond.

Overall, it’s a peculiar review to leave, and I’ve taken some time to contemplate it. The lack of communication was very disappointing and quite honestly rude. While I could add more about the odd behavior we experienced around the multiple related properties, I’ll refrain from extending...

I booked a room at Sugar Inn a few weeks ago to have a pleasant evening out in Galveston with my wife. It was a terrible experience for us that ruined our evening plans as a result.

Upon entering our room, we were greeted with a very noticeable amount of unwelcome noise – especially bass – in the room. It took us several minutes to figure out where it was coming from. It was the speakers in the restaurant downstairs. While I was aware the hotel was located above a restaurant, I also expected some measures had been taken to dampen the noise creeping into the room. If something had been done to reduce noise, it didn’t seem to do a good job. You could feel the sound coming from downstairs. It was almost like you were sitting next to a subwoofer.

We reached out to the owner to ask when the noise from downstairs was likely to stop or whether it would be possible to turn the music down as it was unpleasantly loud in our room. The response from the owner was both curt and unempathetic. No response on when the noise from downstairs might end. We were dismissively told “it’s not loud in the restaurant” – ok, but it is loud in our room. We were also told that their website described the hotel as having a “New Orleans vibe” so we should have expected the room to be loud. Having since revisited the website, I haven’t seen the hotel described this way on any of the booking pages I went to. The closest reference I have found states “Sugar's Inn offers charming accommodations in a renovated 1840s building, reminiscent of iconic southern cities like New Orleans, Charleston, and Savannah.” which doesn’t suggest loud rooms. Furthermore, if I did miss the part where it is described as “New Orleans vibe”, that does not scream “by the way, your room is going to be loud af”.

With the persistent noise and bass in the room being unbearable, the curt communication with the owner that gave vibes of “you’ll just have to suck it up”, plus the apparent lack of action the owner could or would take to address things, we decided to just check out early and head home not long after we arrived. Evening out in Galveston ruined as a result – extremely disappointing. I will not stay at this hotel again. I will also avoid staying at any of the owners’ other locations on Galveston due to the poor level of help, support, or even empathy we received...

Horrible booking experience. We didn’t get any confirmation… About a week prior to when we were supposed to check in, I realize this and reached out to the number that was on their website. This was on last Saturday. I finally heard back today on a Tuesday. In the meantime, we had booked another hotel. I told her that that we would try to cancel that other hotel and instead she says, okay, I just canceled you guys. When I told her there’s been a misunderstanding…I’m trying to cancel the other hotel she says oops sorry I misunderstood and that was it no offer to rebook us. Then she said the number I am contacting her on isn’t the inn number so That’s why it took so long to hear from them then I showed her a screenshot from her website showing that it was the same number. Anyway, they seem to be a hot mess and I’m glad...