La Quinta Inn & Suites by Wyndham Winston-Salem — Hotel in Winston-Salem

Walking into the hotel, at first it seemed OK. Then, a "surprise" $100 deposit was sprung on me. I was tired from the road, and we all just needed to sleep, so I paid it.

I headed to our room to open the side door for my wife, but as I hit the hallway it STUNK of weed. North Carolina doesn't have medical/recreational MJ so I don't know how it was THAT strong.

My wife and daughter come in, and give me a look. Whatever, we're tired. So we head to the room. It was June and NC so it was 90+ degrees outside, and when we opened the room, the AC was completely off so it's musty; really, really musty. There as also no responsiveness to temperature controls on the unit nor the wall unit so it was 60 degrees all night long (it was an icebox by the wee hours of the morning).

Additionally, when we turned on the lights to the bathroom, we saw a small brown bug IMMEDIATELY scurry off the bare floor and into the bathroom door frame. I tried to get my camera to see it, but I wasn't fast enough. Then, we also noticed a used (?) q-tip laying in the middle of the bathroom floor as well as a dark, curly hair on the floor. It was "clean" otherwise, but those things stuck out.

But by morning THAT'S when things really were fun.

I had no desire to shower given the frigid night of sleep, the things in the bathroom, so we all just packed up our things, and grabbed the continental breakfast. My wife and daughter left the room before me, but I followed a couple moments after.

The lobby looked nice enough, and the smells of waffles cooking had replaced the smell of weed, but it was otherwise OK. A teenager and a tween were making waffles, and a man who I assume was their father walked by them a couple times to talk to them. Another lady was LOUDLY talking on her phone in the lounge area of the lobby. My wife and daughter picked a table in the center of the room, but the elephant in the room was the problem.

Seated at one table, his bag at his side, a bottle of orange crush on the table was a man leaning over with his elbow on the corner of the table. Just. Leaning. Like he was looking at his shoes, but he was not that active. I was honestly worried he wasn't breathing at first so I had to focus on him gently doing so. He was FAST asleep like this.

I got some food. The waffles were tasty. The bread was dry as a bone even before toasting it. There was a few dried husks of either bacon or sausage (I can't recall which, I only remember signs stating both, but only seeing one). The section marked "eggs" was completely empty. It was still over an hour before breakfast was to end.

The employee attending the breakfast area gave sidelong looks to the man passed out several times. She finally walked over to him and poked his foot. He barely stirred. She started asking other employees, "Where's George? I need him." She tried to wake the guy again, and he perked up, only to put his head back down and lean on the edge of the table again.

I finished my food while "George" was still sought. Eventually, a rather sizeable gentleman comes in, takes one look at Mr. Sleepy and said, "Aw lawd. When they lean like that, it's no good." He laid a hand on the guy and said, "Dude, you gots to go, NOW!"

The guy roused a bit, and George helped him stand. His basketball shorts fell as he bent over to pick up his hat that had fallen off his head. He grabbed his bag, his hat, and his bottle of Orange Crush, and shambled out of the lobby.

We collected our things. Checked out of the hotel, and vowed to never stay at this hotel again, and to warn anyone else to never stay...

The review I wish I would have read before staying:

If you're in the area, and in desperate need of a one night's stay, this place is bearable. We often look for La Quinta when traveling, as they are usually very clean and pleasant stays for a budget. This was definitely a major exception and an overall disappointment.

The reservation process over the phone was unpleasant, the receptionist was short and rude over the phone. There was no invitational or welcoming tone in her voice at all. The hotel itself was at best, an out of date slum. The beds were clean but the carpet and walls were not. Lots of evidence of smoking (even though it's prohibited on the premises) in the hallway and in the room. The air conditioner in the room took longer than most to sufficiently cool, while the lobby and hallways felt warmer than the outside (81° when we arrived with a slight breeze).

My best assumption for the condition of the hotel is a worker shortage, based on the dust and grime clearly left over from 2018. The elevator had unidentified liquid stains on the walls and floor, perhaps the same residue from the outdoor table?

Appliances were out of date or non-functioning. Each lamp operated on its own switch with no operational overhead lighting. The bathroom was questionable. Standing water in the bathtub, pitifully low water pressure, an actual crack in the basin of the porcelain toilet, and bathroom doors with non-locking doors, complete with a missing knob. The closet and dressers were disheveled with broken drawers and peeling wood.

The pool was also very unkept and too small for the size of the hotel. Lots of cigarettes, empty bottles and other litter scattered around the outside of seating area.

The staff seemed unapproachable or generally disinterested throughout the stay. The tenant at breakfast was having a loud conversation through the headphones of her cellphone, and when we checked out the receptionist spoke less than a full sentence as she dismissed us. I attempted to mention my displeasure but was seemingly ignored.

We make an anual trip to Winston-Salem, and this was our first and certainly last stay at this hotel. My car would be a cleaner, and more comfortable alternative if desperation arises for next year. I put off writing this review for a week, just to let my mind relax and clear after the experience. Yet, I sustain as previously stated, if you simply need a place to rest your head for a single night and don't plan to stay the whole day.... see if they'll give you a...

I will not be giving a good review to the Winston Salem, NC La Quinta. I arrived to find a $100 deposit was mandatory to stay. I had made these reservations months ago and was not told of this. The gentleman at the front desk said it would be charged to my credit card and would be released back within 7 days. I am at the beginning of my vacation and didn't want my money withheld. I asked if I could leave $100 on cash for the night instead. He said I could do that. So he took my money, gave me a receipt and locked it up in his safe. I'm traveling with my dog so he gave me a room on the 2nd floor. I road the elevator and as I got off all I could smell was cigarette smoke. My room was at the end of the hall and the smell only got worse. Then I opened my door and yes my room stunk of cigarettes. Horrible. I went back to the front desk and told him. He told me the 2nd floor was the "pet" floor. I said I can't handle that smell. He repeated the pet floor. I asked him to come to the floor and see for himself, but he refused. I asked him if it wasn't state law no smoking in the hotel. He finally gave me a room on the 3rd floor. The room was great. The next problem came after I checked out. I showed my receipt and my money was released to me. And I left for Atlanta. Once I arrived I checked my bank balance to find I was charged $100 more than my receipt shows. I called and no one answered the phone. I actually called 15 times. I was put on hold twice and waited 10 minutes then hung up. On the 15th call I got a person. That person explained why they require a deposit. I repeated that I was told I could leave it in cash instead. I told him it was locked in the vault and released to me in the morning. He again told me why they require a deposit. I was getting upset and told him to release the $100 back to my card. He then apologized and said it was a mistake and it would be released back within 7 days. I told him I would be writing a review for Google. Then I hung up. This was my experience at La Quinta...