Econo Lodge Salina Scenic Route 89 & I-70 — Hotel in Salina

I arrived at 1:50 pm on Saturday. I've included a picture of the parking lot when I arrived to show how busy they were. I parked and went inside to check in. A man came out of the back and asked what I wanted. I told him I had a reservation. He pointed at the clock and said check in was at 2 and I needed to leave until then. It wasn't a friendly encounter. He repeatedly told me to leave until after 2. I could understand if, as a matter of policy, didn't do check ins until after that, but telling a customer to leave? How about saying something like, Sir, have a seat and we'll get you taken care of in a few minutes. There were some couches right across from the desk. He insisted that I leave the lobby. As rude as he was, I called Choice Hotels number while I was waiting to see about cancelling my second night. I accepted I was within 24 hours so I couldn't cancel my first night. They said I would have to deal with the hotel directly to cancel the second night. During my phone call, it struck 2 and the man stuck his head out the door and told me to come in now. I pointed at my phone. He again told me I needed to come inside to check in. I told him I was on the phone. He went back inside, slamming the door. I hung up and went inside. He asked for my identification. As he was looking up my reservation, I said I wanted to cancel my second night. He told me I couldn't at it was 2:03 and I was required to give 24 hours notice, which ended at 2. I said you wouldn't talk to me prior to 2. He told me that was none of his concern. When he went to run my card, he asked if the amount (the full 2 day cost) was acceptable. I asked if I had a choice. He said he could call his manager. I said call him. After a protracted conversation in a foreign language, he hung up and presented me with a refund request form. I filled it out and he still charged me the full amount.

The wi-fi didn't work the first day. Another gentleman came in complaining about it while I was checking in and he was told the wi-fi was working fine, it must be him.

The room was dated. The attached photos say enough. Moldy corrosion around the facet. Electrical outlet coming out of the wall. Nasty drapes. The deadbolt on the door didn't work.

The grounds were atrocious. Weeds growing up through every crack in the sidewalks and parking lot. Sprinklers were running when we arrived, watering the parking lot and the one car there, not the grass. Paint peeling. Trash. They have a coin operated washer and dryer with out of order signs on them.

The breakfast is a joke. The area is filthy as shown in the photos. A waffle machine. A coffee pump pot and a juice dispenser. Some mini muffins and some cold cereal with a Luke warm gallon of milk left on the counter.

The pool opens at 10. My wife called at 10:10 and asked if they were going to open the pool. She was asked why we wanted to the pool open as check out was 11 and we were leaving. She told him he charged us for two days. I went to the office and the same man told me I was to leave. I said I was charged for 2 nights. He said I would be getting a refund. I said if he didn't give me something in writing stating that, I was staying. He refused to do a credit or any kind of documentation of a refund.

I've included photos of the pool. I wasn't about to get in the water. The paint peeling on the deck. Weeds growing up through the cracks. All th chairs are zip tied to the fence. Ants everywhere.

As we were leaving for the day, I checked to make sure my key would still work. It didn't. My wife tried to go in the office with it, but she was stopped at the door by the same man. She told him the key didn't work. He took it and told her she had to wait outside. He returned it and shut the door in her face.

The next morning as we were leaving, two men had spilled some water on the floor in the breakfast area. They were apologizing, but the same staff member was yelling at them there was no excuse for spilling.

I'll never stay...

So ... I've been here an hour and already regret it. I read the reviews on the national Choice hotels website and not here ... A mistake I won't repeat.

When we drove in at 6:15, there was one car -- one -- in the entire lot. First clue. Second clue was the closed sign on the pool gate, the eight-inch weeds coming out of the concrete and the water so thick with algae you couldn't see more than eight inches below the deep-green surface. But ... My card was already going to be charged, because it was after 4 pm, so ... I went in and asked to see the room. First room had a 1970s era carpet, saggy mattresses and a bathroom with a distinct urine smell. Nope.

Next door we got the same carpet, which is dingy and in need of a cleaning, but apparently new mattresses and no urine smell. The bathroom has mold in the caulking, the paint was done by a friend of Tom Sawyer's who got talked into helping out and started whitewashing like he was working on Grandma's fence, and the parking lot vibe feels like a final-season episode of Breaking Bad.

But ... Didn't want to deal with the fight over trying to cancel and get payment reimbursed on my credit card, so my daughter and I are giving it a shot. If it gets much better -- or worse? -- I'll update.

P.s. Oh ... then I found two bugs on the bed. Not bedbugs, however, and I was hiking the Narrows earlier today in Zion, so maybe they hitched a ride.

UPDATE: Air conditioner rattled and wheezed all night like a third-rate actor trying to win an Emmy Award for an overwrought death scene in a cheesy made-for-TV Hallmark special. Mattress was new but so hard I thought I was sleeping on the roof of my car.

And the breakfast was a joke -- apples I didn't trust to have been washed, oatmeal packets, a waffle maker that looked sketchy, and the bagel I was going to try was wet to the touch on one side.

And the breakfast room itself was scary. Chipped paint, stains on the walls and counters, just ... icky.

I just grabbed coffee and OJ and left ... never to return.

This place needs a major overhaul ... If you have to stay in Salina, check out the Super 8 a couple of hundred yards away. Thirty bucks more per night, but much...

SHAMEFUL on how dirty and in disrepair our room was. Choice Hotels should be ashamed that this Econo Lodge is in their network! Too bad we can't give negative stars.

Checking in was easy, clerk at front desk was friendly. Then we got into our room. What a huge disappointment. We did stay the night only because of no refund and mainly because we were both so tired from traveling all day. Floor was filthy! It's called a broom followed up with a mop. Had to move the night stand to plug their outlet bar in and it was obvious that the floor hadn't been cleaned in a very long time Lights and working outlets were hit and miss in working. Shower curtain was dirty and in really bad shape. Obviously the so called hotel is too cheap to even buy a new shower curtain. Took one look at the chair in the room and never used it. Filty! Reserved a room with 2 queen beds which can sleep 4 and hotel was too cheap to supply enough shampoo or soap for more than 1 guest. No conditioner AFTER I had to clean the bathtub, I stepped in it and thought I was standing on a water bed. Tub bottom moved up and down, while hearing water underneath it. Red bed covering on 1 bed has strange dark stains. Owner or manager of this hotel either is a "cheap skate" or really doesn't have pride in ownership. Even the sign for the hotel looked bad. The complimentary breakfast was something we weren't going to chance after seeing the condition of our room.

Planning on sending an email to Choice Hotels over this Econo Lodge. This hotel should be paying customers to stay instead of the customer. Don't stay here! Hotel should shut down until a complete renovation...