Hilton Garden Inn Tampa/Riverview/Brandon — Hotel in Riverview

Avoid This Hotel – Unworthy of the Hilton Name

I stayed at this hotel for three nights, and it was easily the most disappointing, stressful, and uncomfortable experience I’ve ever had at any Hilton property. From shocking room conditions and safety lapses to internet failures and disrespectful management, this property does not meet basic expectations, especially for business travelers.

Endless Room Changes Due to Serious Issues

Within just over 24 hours, I went throuhh four different rooms—each with significant problems:

Room 1: Overwhelming dampness, a pungent bleach odor, and visible mold inside the air vents. Room 2: Same heavy bleach stench and moisture. Room 3: Seemed better at first, until I woke up the next day with bites all over my arm, plus visible water damage on the closet ceiling. Room 4: Still damp, with plumbing that didn’t drain, a broken blackout shade, and a blaring AC unit that made sleep impossible.

On top of this, every room I encountered had dirty, dusty AC vents, rusted metal fixtures, peeling pain/water damage, and a pervasive, unsettling humidity. This hotel simply does not uphold basic maintenance standards.

Security and Cleanliness: Major Red Flags

One of the most alarming things I experienced was the room doors not shutting or latching automatically. Unless you manually pull the door that last 1/16 inch, it stays partially open—presenting a real security risk.

Room maintenance overall is abysmal: AC vents are caked with dirt, and you’ll find rust on metal surfaces throughout the rooms. These deficiencies, on top of the persistent damp, leave a constant feeling of neglect and discomfort.

Building-Wide Dampness and Water Damage

Problems go far beyond individual rooms. The hotel is still suffering after last year’s hurricane, but hasn’t recovered:

Six industrial-sized dehumidifiers run constantly in the lobby, with trays emptied hourly. Puddles of water are scattered throughout hallways. Water drips from ceiling vents—on the head and my computer was splashed while working in the lobby lounge. Cracked elevator buttons, damaged interior signage, non-functional outlets in public seating, and general musty odors signal total neglect.

Unusable Internet – I Had to Cancel Vital Work Meetings

For any business traveler, the demolished internet connectivity is a dealbreaker. The property puts up signs about possible tech visits “to improve speed,” but fails to mention the Hilton Honors WiFi and Meeting Network were almost totally unusable my entire stay. Even when a tech swapped out my room’s internet box, the fix only lasted a few hours before failing again.

There was close to zero cell reception in my room or public spaces. Hotspotting didn’t work. Because of this, I had to cancel numerous work meetings and could not attend video calls that were vital for my job—causing real professional fallout. This is a business hotel in name only, and their advertised services are misleading.

Staff Tried Their Best—Management Did Not

While the front desk and technical staff were generally sympathetic, repeated issues meant they simply could not solve the underlying problems.

What hurt most, though, was my treatment by the general manager. When I finally expressed everything—my health concerns from bites, the mounting problems, and the internet failures—she outright dismissed my concerns, saying no one else had complained, and minimized all of my experiences. After days of chaos and frustration, I retreated back to my room feeling totally helpless and in tears. I have never been made to feel so unheard and unsupported at a Hilton before.

Other Guests Felt the Same

This isn’t just my experience. I overheard and spoke with other guests in the bar and public areas—most were complaining about the same overwhelming dampness, discomfort, and sense of disappointment. These problems are widespread and ongoing.

Final Thoughts: This Hotel Is Not Ready for Guests—especially those...

My recent stay at this hotel was deeply disappointing and uncomfortable due to several issues that I feel need to be addressed for the safety and comfort of future guests.

When we first arrived, the room we were assigned had a strong, unpleasant odor, it smelled as though dogs had been in the room prior to our arrival. The smell was overwhelming enough that we immediately went back to the front desk to request a new room. Thankfully, we were given a different room without hesitation.

Unfortunately, the situation worsened. The next day, I noticed two small bumps on my ankle but didn’t think much of it. However, by the following day, I became very itchy, and multiple small bumps began appearing on my legs, ankles, back, and buttocks. I had been wearing a short two-piece pajama set to bed, and the bites were in the exposed areas—suggesting something in the bed or room was responsible.

I informed my husband, who immediately reported the issue to the front desk. The staff said they would notify the next shift so that we could switch rooms when we returned later that night. However, by the time we got back to the hotel, well after midnight, we were exhausted and didn’t follow up until the next morning.

That morning, I woke up covered in more than 30 bites, concentrated mostly on the bed where I had been sleeping. We believe the room, and specifically one of the queen beds, was infested with fleas. These bites caused me significant discomfort, itching, and skin irritation for days following our stay.

My husband once again reported the issue to the front desk. While the staff was polite, I was shocked by the lack of urgency or follow-up from hotel management regarding what I consider to be a serious health and cleanliness concern.

I’ve stayed at many hotels over the years, and I’ve never had an experience quite like this. A room that smells strongly of animals and a flea infestation are completely unacceptable. I sincerely hope management investigates this incident thoroughly and takes immediate steps to improve the hotel’s cleanliness standards and pest control procedures.

If hotel management would like to follow up with me directly, I am open to being contacted via email. I also have photo documentation of the numerous bites I sustained and am happy to share them upon request. This experience should not be repeated by any future guest.

Added in response to owners response - Thank you for taking the time to respond. However, I would like to clarify that the issue regarding the flea bites was reported to the front desk during our stay. For this very reason I document everything. We have phone records confirming a call was made on July 19th at 3:19 PM specifically to report this concern. At that time, we were told the matter would be documented and addressed. It’s unfortunate and disappointing to now be told that no such report exists in your records.

Additionally, another call was made today, August 3rd at 4:40 PM, during which I left my name and number to be passed along directly to you, the owner. I have yet to receive a response.

I am requesting that you please reach out to me directly so we can discuss this matter further. I am happy to provide documentation, including call logs and photos, to support our experience.

Thank you for your attention, and I hope to hear...

Please read in full for your own safety ! I stayed here for a wedding , flew in from nyc . Upon arrival the front desk seemed annoyed that they had to work and actually check us in . We stated we were part of the wedding block and the lady seemed confused. There were multiple rooms and a large group staying here , how are you confused . Later finding out she gave only 1 wedding gift bag to one guest and not the others. ‼️OK NOW TO THE SAFETY ISSUES ‼️ There was a group of people going around and getting into peoples rooms with an extra key or just using the door handle. The problem here is the doors don’t automatically close you have to push them shut. Second why are random people having access to rooms that they didn’t book( definitely an inside job) . On the weekend we stayed here 9/14-9/16 there happened to also be a large group of teenage girls {about 50 young ladies} as well. So imagine finding out men were getting into their rooms. EXTREMELY DISTURBING 😳 These young ladies were there for a horse show and also a soccer game. Second unsafe situation was the number of cars that were burglarized. One car was the bride on the day of her wedding . Can you imagine having to go through that on your special day? The hooligans were apparently looking for guns and happened to steal 2 from cars . The cops stated this has happened before at this location and the hotel refuses to do anything to protect their guest. There aren’t any cameras or security on the property. The staff seemed so annoyed by this situation like as if it was too much to deal with . They didn’t want to take a report or help in anyone. No accommodation ZILCH! The floor I stayed on had the smell of marijuana , this is a smoke free facility . Why did I have to smell that horrible crap. The room smelled of mildew . Someone did try to get into my room even so much as knocking at 2am saying maintenance.. I’m a female . I was so scared I screamed “GET AWAY”! The bar if you want to call it that was an embarrassment. The food is tasteless. The drinks are overwhelming strong but not good . I want to enjoy a drink not burn my insides . I would never stay here again . The location is very remote so an easy target . Please do not book here .

In response to the hotel response. You are flat out liars . We booked under the wedding block and didn’t receive anything as many of the other guest . So you must have kept the bags. The parents had no involvement in the wedding or gift bags . Second we were there when people complained about someone trying to get into their rooms and some successful. This was also reported to the cops that were on site for the car burglaries that you also didn’t address. The safety of your guest is not a priority because if it was THERE WOULD BE CAMERAS AND SECURITY. This isn’t the first time cars have been burglarized and nothing was changed . People can freely walk in and nothing is done . There are numerous reviews about what I said … please do better . This is embarrassing for the...