Hotel Madison & Shenandoah Valley Conference Center — Hotel in Harrisonburg

Visually appealing hotel and conference center with a lot to love, but missing some functionality in basic bathroom features. This lack of good User Experience design seems to be a trend with hotels right now, and one that I hope will end soon.

Pros: detached free garage with ample parking and covered walkway to hotel; fantastic mattress (one of the best I’ve slept on); a large room with plenty of space for suitcases and gear; nice lobby area; pool and restaurant. Sound proofing is good: despite having rooms on the street side of the hotel, it was pretty quiet except for some trucks at 4 am. If you’re a light sleeper, be sure to ask for a room on the garage-facing side of the hotel, but we didn’t have too many problems street-side.

Cons: This is nitpicking, but I’m hoping maybe someone will read this and help stop the following trends in modern hotel bathroom design. It’s the little things that make the difference between a Red Roof stay and a really nice stay. This hotel could be in the “really nice” category but isn’t for the following small but obnoxious reasons: -A large sink with a tiny faucet, so my hands end up brushing against the back of the sink while I wash. Touching the sink while washing my hands always makes me feel like my hands are still dirty, especially if this is after I’ve brushed my teeth. Gross. -Shower curtain too short for tub wall. Be prepared for water to go everywhere if you take a hot shower. -No vent in the shower, so steam buildup is pretty bad. I’d expect a red mold problem here in a few years. Weirdly, the vent is located over the toilet, but there doesn’t seem to be an on/off switch for it- maybe it’s hidden? -Toilet is child-sized. Since I’m very short, that’s fine, but the 6 ft husband was not happy with it. -No back-lit bathroom light switches. Hope you memorized switch locations before getting up to go at 3am. -Speaking of late night bathroom visits: in our room, the sink was located in the bedroom, not the very spacious bathroom, so there is no way to wash my hands without waking the husband. Adding another door in front of the sink, or moving the sink inside the bathroom space would have fixed this problem. -Sheets were rough. It felt like the same material as the comforter/duvet/cover. Maybe they ran out of regular sheets? Really weird. They were clean, though.

Based on the windows (floor to ceiling for the entire wall, which I really love), I’m wondering if this room used to be part of a conference room that got converted to a suite. It would explain some of the weird use-of-space decisions.

Conclusion: I would sleep here again just for the mattress (we both bring our own pillows, so I can’t speak to the comfort of their pillows). Husband has back problems and this is one of the few hotels with a mattress that doesn’t hurt. It feels a bit firm, but we both slept really well. That’s worth overlooking...

After driving over 12 hours to stay at this hotel for a national pageant, I arrived and my reservation had been cancelled. Moments before arriving, I received an alert from my bank that my card had been charged $129. Upon arriving around 4 am, I went to check in only to be told that my reservation had been cancelled due to me not showing up in time. Nowhere in a confirmation email or on the site under check in time does it specify that one must be there before 3 am. I went ahead and paid the additional amount, because we needed a place to stay and our pageant was being hosted there as well as our hair and makeup team staying on site. It is beyond frustrating to have a reservation cancelled that was under a group rate and booked well in advance. I went ahead and told the lady I needed to have a room until Sunday. On Saturday, during a brief 45 minute break, I get a call that I am supposed to be checked out but my things are still in the room. Again, frustrating that the lady that checked us in did not listen and I had to rush back to get the room for another night while trying to rush to get my daughter where she needed to be. I should not have had to take time out of my day to deal with this, it should have been booked correctly the first time. I did not check, but verbally verified with the lady that it was through Sunday. I should have checked and could have avoided this, but after that long of a drive I was exhausted and just trying to go to bed. Honestly, it wasn't the lack of attention of the check in staff or the mishap of my room and rate being cancelled that was the problem. It was the manager that told me it was "common knowledge" that hotels ran their reports between 2 and 4 am. Once I told her that I worked for an attorney and not a hotel so I would not know that information, she proceeded to tell me that she did not know it either until she began working for one. But I thought it was "COMMON KNOWLEDGE"?? In a condescending manner, she told me that she could let the marketing team know and if they wanted to add that one should be checked in by 3 am they could add that. Is it her fault that I was not made aware of the 3 am check in rule? No, however, in her position she should know that at the very least an apology goes a long way. Not once did she apologize or even have the slightest amount of understanding, rather she stayed condescending and inconsiderate. It is an absolutely beautiful hotel, but if you put your card on file in advance and purchase a night ahead of when you will be there so that you have a place to rest your head after a long drive, just know that they will cancel and ensure you have to pay for a more expensive room with zero apology that their "marketing team" has not made you aware of...

I've stayed at a number of hotels in the Harrisonburg area. In general, Hotel Madison is very nice; definitely meets the 3-star hotel mark there. Appearance-wise, you might even mistake it for a 4-star hotel. Overall, though, I'm less likely to stay there again and I'd rate it 3/5 stars. Even of the price was an acceptable rate, I'd still have to convince my wife. Upon arriving, I felt the customer service was fine. My wife's first experience, and some of my later ones, though, were not as much; so, in general, service was lackluster. They were keen to point out to my wife that there are two sets of elevators -- one for guests with luggage and one without -- as she was apparently heading for the wrong set, with our kids in tow. This is where tone and attitude count for customer service. As we found out the next morning, in another serving of customer service, the hotel also abides by a very strict 11am checkout (not 'ish' like other hotels do), even for Stash point members (which Hotel Madison is an associated property), which is just outdated and annoying this day in age. We weren't charged for checking out at 11:15 so I guess I should be grateful. Still, this is the first hotel that I've ever been pestered about at "checkout time", on the dot, by someone who looked and dressed more like a casual security guard than hotel staff. As for cleanliness, everything in the room looked very clean except the air vents, located right above the bed in the room, were dirty with dust piling up (see photo). The rooms are updated, as would be expected from a newer hotel. There is no free breakfast; rather, there is a cafe that operates like a restaurant. When I visited Sunday morning, I felt terrible for the cafe staff who were clearly overwhelmed trying to handle a Sunday morning breakfast rush. It took almost 30 mins to get food and drinks, which were on par with what you'd get from another coffee shop (minimal prep, heat & serve). Parking is $5/day too! In Harrisonburg! For the hotel's dedicated lot. Why?? Just factor it into the room price. Those items aside, the room amenities, the pool and workout rooms, the common areas, outside, and restaurants were nice and clean. They use Bath & Body Works toiletries which was a pleasant surprise. They are dog-friendly, which we needed this trip ($50 + $5/day). Being located on campus made for a nice morning run too, and walking distance from downtown. In conclusion, if I were given a deal competitive with other hotels in the area, I might consider staying again...if I can convince my better half. Otherwise, I'd sooner consider the local Marriott or Hilton hotels based on my experience, for the price, customer service, and the...