Half Moon Motel & Cottages — Hotel in Laconia

We stayed here for 2 nights. Our first night getting there it was raining (pouring actually) I was told by the first desk at check-in that since my sister had already arrived and taken the parking spot near our cottage I would have to park by the pool, I asked if I could pull up to where our cottage was, unload then move our car. She said yes and she would call security to let him know we were coming. He was outside and once we pulled up and told us you have 5 minutes to get your stuff in your cottage then you need to move. 5 minutes? It was absolutely pouring and where he had us park was in another tenant spot that he told us was gone for the evening so I do think he could have let us wait out the rain since it was going to be stopping within 30 minutes then we could unpack but no we 5 minutes and we got soaked while he stood in the rain watching us. The room was cute and clean but they have issues with small ants. They got all over the box of muffins we had and they were crawling on the walls as well. Then the second night as we are walking back to our cottage security stops us to ask if we had a nice evening, we are 4 women just talking and laughing we tell him yes we just came from the fireworks he then proceeds to say well remember quiet time is at 10 pm. Yes, we knew that hence why we were going back to our room, the dude had zero personality and was just looking to be a drill, Sargent he would just watch everything everyone did. To top off our stay when checking out (you must be out by 10 am.) We packed up my sister's car, then she was going to move out of the parked spot I would pull my car in and pack up my car. Where you park is a very narrow lane only one car at a time can get up or down it. My sister was trying to get out but security has their white pickup truck blocking the road the driver was talking to someone. I pulled up behind him because I am going to the spot my sister had. You would think when I pulled up behind him he would have moved, no he proceeds to keep talking then gets out of his truck to finish his cigarette and continues talking. There was a couple sitting on the porch of one of the cottages and she said I can not believe what I am seeing right now, this guy is so rude. He kept looking back at me and just kept on talking could have cared less that my sister was pulled off to the side to let him go by so she could get out and that I was behind him. These are the employees of the place. Rude and could care-less for the customers that come and pay to say at their establishment. You could not pay me enough to...

I arrived here mid-week at the end of the season (mid-October), so it was fairly quiet and somewhat deserted. The motel room was adequate, though dated, and there were a few amenities that were nice to have (a small fridge/freezer and a microwave, both of which came in handy, and a coffee maker, iron, and hairdryer, none of which I used). There was tons of storage space in the room. A few minor annoyances included the lack of a wall switch for the lights (when entering the room at night), no table, numerous pieces of furniture with very hard and protruding corners that I kept bumping into (the exposed bed frame, the nightstand, etc.), and a lot of hard surfaces in general (cement walls, hardwood floor, the aforementioned furniture) that made it lack warmth. While the room had lots of pillows, I didn't find any of them comfortable to sleep on, and therefore didn't sleep well. The mattress I found overly soft, and if you got too close to the side you would kind of slide off. There was a sign saying the rooms were serviced twice a week, but I don't know which days those were. During my four-night stay, I didn't notice that anyone had been in the room to service it. This, however, was fine with me as I had plenty of towels and such (and you can put them outside for replacements). The place was a bit noisy in the morning (adjacent guests talking loudly, plumbing noises) for those who like to sleep in a bit (forget it!) The view was very nice, and there are chairs and a table outside in front of each unit. There is an air conditioner and a baseboard heater. There is a Cumberland Farms within walking distance (if you can make it up that massive hill, which had me huffing and puffing pretty severely). The location is pretty convenient overall to main routes, and the nearby town of Meredith has a large grocery store, a Dunkin', restaurants, etc. It wasn't until my last day that I realized the Weirs Beach boardwalk was right around the corner within walking distance, but, as it turned out, there really wasn't anything there to excite me much. Parking was no problem for me, but I can see how it might be in-season, though they say there is a spot for each person. Oh, another annoyance was that it rained two of the days I was there, and the rain came down hard right outside my door (gutter problem apparently) so loudly that I thought it was coming in the room. Would I stay here again? Maybe. But I would also probably look around and explore other...

This place is the best in New England for anyone looking for an affordable vacation, especially with the kids. The view is my number one reason! I don't think there's a better view of winnipesaukee from any angle or from any other location. Seriously, this place has the best view! The second reason is that from the moment apoun arrival, you feel at home, either in a squeaky clean cabin or a convenient hotel room. My third reason and probably the most important, it's the staff. You can tell that each and every person employed by half moon is happy to work there as they all possess an ownership mentality and treat customers with the utmost respect. The maintenence manager steve goes above and beyond to keep this place in top shape. The giant pool is always crystal clear and refreshing as can be, The rooms are spotless, the flowers are watered every day, the grass is mowed and well kept. There's full-time security. They take their job very seriously, but also ask if you need anything when running to the store like a neighbor would. I could go on and on about it really. I guess I found my perfect vacation spot. The only negative thing about this post is that more people will have a chance to rent my favorite cabin on my...