Fairfield by Marriott Inn & Suites Palm Desert Coachella Valley — Hotel in Palm Desert

Supposedly a technical error occurred, changing the king room I booked (for valentine's day) to a 2 queen room. I have my confirmation email for the king, but the one employee working couldn't honor my original booking because the hotel was sold out. Why were there no employees? I had been on the road calling for 30mins, was hung up on 6 times, and when I used the hotel messaging system I was told to call the hotel. I arrived to the hotel before I was able to speak to anyone. The employee assured me that I would be charged the original price of the king (come to find out they were the same prices, so what compensation for the deception did I actually receive?), but that was beside the point. I booked this hotel because I wanted a king, and I liked the bathroom in the king room photos. Then I was charged the price for a king and instead stayedin 2 queen with dirty faded wallpaper in the bathroom and a tiny standing tub. My partner suggested we could push the beds together, but nope, they were mounted to the walls. So here we were on valentine's day, stuck inside because the sandstorm in that area was so intense (again I was initially looking at other places where the storm didn't hit in the area) and the two of us spent the whole night on a queen bed.

A few other things, why was the hotel lobby bathroom not sanitized? After figuring out why I was bumped out of my room without receiving a call or notification of change, I asked the employee where the bathroom was. He said around the corner, but it wasn't clean. "Well, clean, but not sanitized." He said as he keep pulling the thin fabric he was passing off as a mask over his mouth and nose. Marriott, your corporation is easily worth billions, provide your employees with real masks and schedule more people to work on one of the busiest hotel holidays. Even with how upset and disappointed I was, I could tell that poor man was struggling to do his job efficiently all by his lonesome. The room bumping alone was a major upset, but everything considered I doubt ill be staying at any other Marriott chain...

We also stayed at the Fairfield Inn in 29 Palms. The service was like night and day between your facility and yours. First of all there was never a person at the front desk to greet you. They were always in the back and you had to call out for someone to appear. At 29 Palms there was always a person at the front desk even if they were sitting on a stool reading a book. There was no coffee in the lobby. At 29 Palms they had coffee 24/7 for their guests. They put out tissue paper for the guest to use to pump the coffee/tea out so no fingers would touch the surface. The last time we were there you had grab and go breakfast but the week before that there was nothing for your guests. We stayed at 29 Palms in June,August,and December. They had partial help yourself breakfast laid out again using tissue paper as a guard for touching any surface. It worked great. The gym was closed at both facilities, however the pool was opened and limited during the warmer months. We know things vary from state to state and county to county but we felt like we had to seek your staff out. My husband and I for the last 7 months had been coming out to California to search for our missing daughter and her remains were found and identified in the 8th month of searching. In the evening we would retreat to our hotel room to regroup and rest. Things like being greeted by the front desk person, coffee and lime infused iced water in the lobby were simple gestures of hospitality that were nice to come back to after being in the desert all day. We choose Fairfield Inn because of the standards you hold high. Palm Desert needs to step up and improve. Covid or no...

We were there on Saturday, August 19th. Check-in was smooth, agent was most welcoming and friendly. She was unable to upgrade me however, and I was not offered the usual two bottles of water, which I requested. The hotel is small, well situated although the views can be mundane (parking lot, green sand lot next door). The lobby was very attractive, as was the dining area. The hotel pool was small and completely shaded, so that was disappointing - not being able to suntan in the desert was surprising. The room was beautiful, but petite in many ways. Yes, king bed, but no easy chair, tiniest closet I've ever seen (even dorm closets bigger), and the bathroom, though quite chic, lacked an essential - the bathtub. Overall we enjoyed our stay. The breakfast was a disappointment in some ways - oatmeal and eggs watery. Out of omelettes and slow to replenish. Burned out waffle drippings left in the maker, making it unusable. Fruit was okay, some bagels and muffins, and the Canadian bacon was good. But definitely not delicious. Soon after breakfast, around 10A, all the power went out and we were left with emergency lighting in the hallway. The hotel did not have the courtesy to inform all guests of what to do in this situation - we checked out as we weren't able to do any work in the room with no power, nor enjoy the amenities. I will return to this property again, as I found the property very attractive and convenient to the freeway. But I would make note to travel light and not expect much sun by the pool, and perhaps even have breakfast at the...