Budgetel Inn & Suites — Hotel in Hearne

I tried to stay at the Budgetel in Hearne on July 27, 2025. I had driven in from a funeral in Houston and was returning to San Angelo and stopped in Hearne for the night to rest. I checked in at 10 to a nicely appointed room in a convenient part of town. I started to sleep but kept getting awakened repeatedly by a tapping and gnawing. It was behind the TV and fridge. I finally turned on the lights in desperation at 1 am and saw a rat dart behind the refrigerator. It was at that point I packed my things and hit the road. I told the front desk clerk, who should have immediately issued a refund without question. However, he told me he could not do so, that only the manager could do that. I called the next afternoon and was told the manager, Mike, works 9-1. I called again this morning and spoke to Mike. He told me "no refund" and that "we check the room for rat and it was not there, so no refund." Of course they will say "it's not there." They want their money. It's extremely unfair to me since I still had to find a rat-free hotel and pay again. To be fair, the motel is undergoing renovations and is improving the facility, and there is construction under way. This could have provided the pathway for the rat. I do not know, but have not received such terrible service before. I get it, hotels have to be careful about people trying to rent "by the hour" but I was traveling alone and just needed a place to rest my head. They do have a sign up front which states, among many things, "absolutely no refunds." Well played, sir. Well played. Sign: 1, Weary traveler: 0. The Rat King rules.

I will add that my grandparents used to own and run a small grocery store in Hearne in the 1940s. For them to have succeeded, they needed repeat business. Therefore they were kind and respectful to their customers, and made amends when customers were upset. Do not expect that at the Budgetel in Hearne--only Draconian rules and policies that do not encourage return visits. Furthermore, they simply lie about the pest problem, saying they "found no rats on the property." In this case, an absence of evidence is not evidence of absence. I have a biology degree from Rice University, and even if I did not, I know a rat when I see one. Apparently they want me to have "photographic evidence" of the rat. They assume I do not, but again--absence of evidence is not evidence of absence. This Rat King or may have to make his debut on social media soon. It may not have been found because snakes...

We booked a room this past April. The day before check-in, I called to verify that we still had our reservation. They said yes and even gave us details about what amenities were included in our room. Check in time the next day was at 2:00pm and my family drove to this hotel, arriving at 2:20pm. Upon arrival we learned that the front desk ran our credit card on file early in the morning without verifying our identification card, canceled our reservation without our permission, and immediately claimed to have sold our room to someone else. We were completely in shock because we told them we were going to pay with our be same card when we arrived, it had the funds to cover our room but they refused to run our card again. They kept claiming that we arrived “last minute” to check in (we were only 20 minutes behind the initial check in time). Needless to say we caught on to what was going on. Hotels because of the George Strait concert were going up to $950 per night. This hotel clearly showed that they did not care if you booked early. They were trying to see who they could cancel so they could upsell your room at triple or quadruple the price than what you booked it for. Please do...

Our car broke down in Franklin just north of Hearne, while going on a trip from Longview to Round Rock, and nearly every hotel in the area was booked out for the night, except this one, so it was our obvious choice. From the outside, it looks like what you’d expect from a motel; nothing flashy and maybe just a touch run down. My biggest concern was the safety of my wife and children, but upon coming onto the site, I found that I never felt unsafe or uncomfortable. I was able to book a room in moments, and the man at the front desk was helpful and prompt with getting us into our room. The rooms were clean and spacious and the AC worked almost too well! The beds were comfy and my girls were so happy that they were able to watch cartoons on the tv. Only reason I didn’t give it 5 stars is that they advertised free breakfast and when we went to grab some, the offices where the breakfast area is was locked and no one was around. Overall, I’m very thankful we ended up here while we tried to figure out our...