Flat Creek Lodge — Hotel in Hayward

There must be better options...

Front desk staff (older male) was incredibly rude to multiple parents - especially when it came to bringing in hockey sticks to unthaw (it was -40C) and they were becoming brittle. He advised that, "You can bring in whatever firearms you want, just no hockey sticks."

The pool area was adequate - hot tub very small. The pool closes at 10pm with adults only from 9-10. A bit early.

The room was dated, that's the only nice way to say it. Small, cheap flatscreens in the room. Old lamps, furniture, fittings in the shower/bathroom. The heater worked, but was quite noisy compared to most we've used. The room was clean and reasonably well kept.

The biggest issue our group had was with the restaurant. It badly lacks management and direction. They had one waitress with a helper on for a Friday night, with multiple teams staying in the restaurant. Poor girl couldn't keep up with the orders. Bartender was LESS than helpful with anything.

Some of the food was excellent - the fish, pizza's, calzones, soup. Some was awful - gravy, prime rib.

The free breakfast was comical - I included a picture below. The waffle was just that. A waffle. Or a scrambled egg and toast. I'm surprised when one morning I had jam on the plate. Oh, you can buy any extra add on you wanted - over $3 for a small order of hashbrowns.

They also overcharged our team - we were given a price of $139 a night for rooms, while another hockey team from Minnesota was given a nightly rate of $119. Interesting.

There must be nicer places in Hayward - I will never voluntarily...

Not sure who's giving this place 5-stars. The staff is definitely friendly, and it is incredibly cute and quaint looking. But if you're there to sleep soundly, look elsewhere.

Rooms offer zero sound insulation. Someone talking outside in the parking lot? You'll hear them through your closed window. Someone snoring in the room next to you? You'll hear them crystal clear. The room above you have children running around all night? You'll hear and feel them racing around. Someone gets a text message in the room next door? You'll hear it.

The showers have what are quite possibly the most flow-restrictive heads I've ever used. A parched weasel could probably spit more water than these shower heads do. Our bathroom door wouldn't close; it was warped/swollen too much to close completely. Bathrooms do have vent fans, but they don't seem to work too well. Even with a brief, lukewarm shower, the entire bathroom was covered in steam.

Beds... oh my god. Terrible. Coil-spring mattresses with zero cushioning between the springs and the sheets. It was like lying on a mass of springs. And noisy! Trying to roll over in the middle the night without making noise was impossible.

So. Yes. It's cute. It's quaint. But there's a TON of room for...

We stayed here during LWC. I am less than impressed. The room is so humid, we have to keep it at 65° just so it sort of doesn’t feel sticky- but it’s cold. The floors are very dirty in our room, our feet are black from them. We didn’t receive any housekeeping or a refill of towels. I went to the front desk before bed when we returned and was told they are out of towels and it would take 2 hours to supply us with clean ones. I told him I would come back in the morning and also informed him that on this day in the morning, many guests were told they were out of towels. He didn’t ask what room we stayed in or anything, just said it is policy to have housekeeping and towels. The beds are so uncomfortable and rickety. We both woke up with back pain. You cannot even get up without the bed making a ton of noise and squeaking. The breakfast was subpar at best for continental. The packed danish was disgusting and tasted old. The room also had crumbs and chunks of old food left from previous guests in the cabinets. The bathroom door does not stay open so the bathroom is always humid. I would not go back here unless...