Best Western Plus Oak Mountain Inn — Hotel in Pelham

We have stayed at this hotel for the last four years while attending football games and functions at the college where our son goes to school. We have always had exemplary customer service and prefer this property to others that are in the area. Today, we were not so happy with our choice. We arrived at 2:05pm and attempted to check-in. We were met with a woman who informed us that check-in was at 3pm. We explained to her that we had been to this property multiple times and are also Best Western Rewards members and, in the past, we had been allowed to check-in early if the rooms were ready. Granted, we understood the timeline for the facility...we have been here before, after all. However, we have always been allowed to check-in early. She was adamant that the rooms were '...not ready. I'll see you at 3pm'. We were not happy, obviously, since the banquet we were attending started at 4:30 and we had a little travel time to account for to the facility. We returned to the car where, upon looking around, we noticed that there were NO cars in the parking lot on one side and two cars on the other side. There were no housekeeping carts in sight and no active 'cleaning' taking place. We sat in the car for a about 15 more minutes (by then, it was about 2:30pm) and then went back inside to have her pull up our account to show that we had been there multiple times and ask if, by chance, she could let us check-in early. She looked...and said that she only saw where we had been there one other time and that, in fact, we do NOT come stay there all the time. I know, rude, right?? And, once again, she continued to say...over and over again...'I'll see you at 3pm' or 'Check-in is at 3pm' or 'Your rooms are not ready. They will be ready at 3pm'. By this time, we were not very...polite. I asked for her name (she refused to give it to me)...I asked to speak to the manager (of which she informed me she was the Manager on Duty). And, of course, she refused to speak to us again about anything other than to say...yep..."Check-in is at 3pm'. Finally, at 2:47pm, she came out to the car and brought the check-in papers and room keys and said that 'The elevator has been out and they just got it fixed. I put you on the first floor'. (While we were in the lobby earlier, we saw a guest come down the elevator...lol) Anyway, we were very disappointed with our check-in experience today. I don't have her name...as she still refused to give it to us...but I hope we never have to deal with her again. Thankfully, our son graduates in May (which we will come back one last time to Birmingham...but will most likely NOT stay at this hotel). It is sad because this property is always clean and friendly and near to our college student. Do better, Best Western. You employees make or break your customer base. **For those that say we acted like we were entitled, sure we did. We are Best Western rewards members and we had always been treated special and with respect in the past. Today, we did not have that experience. I think, had the facility been busy or the parking lot had been full (or even partially so), we would have been more...

If you're looking for a very pleasant stay OVERALL, you will NOT find one here. Yeah, go ahead and bypass all the positive reviews because there's just no way. CATHY, the hotel manager for some reason, has been ducking and dodging responding to my complaint that I made JUNE 6th and after filing a ticket with the customer service center. Let me tell you potential customers, our room was not cleaned to a decent standard there was: fingernails near the nightstand by the beds, EWW ( there's pictures available) only one piece of toilet tissue on the rolling dispenser before I had to replace it myself The hotel room telephone DID NOT work, I suppose it was only for decor purposes, thank you Best Western for the safety hazard ): The remote was so incredibly dusty and sticky Pubic hair in the shower ( there's pictures available) Not the hotel room, but the elevator is janky as all get out. I thought it was going to plummet several times.

Aside from the room, the initial Black Lady receptionist when we checked in on June 6th verbally expressed upon check in that my card that I would be using for payment was only going to be "kept on file" and not charged the full amount and until we checked out which was two days later...

Then come to find out, my card had been charged the full amount and to my dismay, when I called to address the hotel what had happened, I was met with disdain and disregard... tsk tsk tsk, YES this threw my bank account in the negative and incurred several overdraft fees of a total of $32 each. The charge then went away on my bank account and then re-appeared days later. Essentially, I had been charged, uncharged, and then charged again like someone blonde Cathy with glasses/hotel manager was playing hot potato with my debit card.

Customer service has only tried to "compensate" me with useless reward points because I will never stay in this motel-eque hotel again, utterly embarrassing to repeat that same mistake.

I demand a full refund for holding my money hostage when I was less than satisfied with my stay since Cathy wants to avoid giving me a response and customer service has nothing to do with refunding money, essentially just a complaint center.

DON'T STAY HERE GO TO THE MARRIOTT! Oh and by the way, you can check out after 8 am without paying for a full additional, night's stay- RUN! I wish someone had told me be better than to select this...

A Thoughtful and Peaceful Stay During a Stressful Time

We stayed at the Best Western Plus Oak Mountain Inn on our way to Louisiana from Ontario, and again on the way home. We don’t have a single complaint for either stay. The hotel is easy to get to, welcoming, and clean. They offer a great breakfast with a ton of options. On the way home, we were towing a boat, and they allowed us to park in a well-lit and safe area on the street. We ended up checking out very early in the morning and then ended up having unexpected truck trouble and could not get in to have the truck looked at until later in the day. We went back to the hotel and explained our situation to the front desk and that we had a long 15-hour drive home, and asked if it was possible to get the room back until check out time. What really stood out, though, was the kindness and flexibility of the staff. When we explained our situation, they were incredibly understanding and allowed us back in the room (even though it had already been cleaned) and some extra time to stay past check-out, giving us a safe and comfortable place to rest while we waited for help.

It’s rare to find such genuine hospitality, especially when you're in a tough spot. We’re so grateful for how accommodating they were—it truly made a difference in our trip.

Highly recommend this hotel to anyone looking for a calm, clean, and caring...