I read mixed reviews on other websites about this hotel and I wanted to add my point of view. I actually stayed there twice in a 2 week period. My first stay found me in a 1st floor room near the lobby. It was a quiet location, but I found the room to be untidy. The bathroom floor had hair in the corners and the kitchen floor had noticable grime. The lighting was poor over the bathroom vanity and in the bedroom closet. The door leading to the patio looked as though it needed to have it's frame repaired. Since it looked as though it had been damaged by forceable entry, I had difficulty sleeping all night. Adding to my sleep problems was a worn out bed that had such a sway I had to fight continuously to keep from rolling into the center. Finally, when we arrived at 4PM, there was a used room service plate and silverware outside the door of our room. I moved it to a hallway chair. The next day when we checked out, the plate was still in the chair. Some staff were pleasant, some cold. I spoke to a very nice front desk clerk the morning before our departure. I inquired about the availability of towels at the pool. He told me they were available, so I got ready to swim and headed to the pool. When I arrived I found out it was closed until 10:30AM. On the way back to the room I saw that front desk clerk. I said, "Why didn't you tell me the pool was closed?" to which he responded, "You didn't ask." True, but if someone is inquiring about pool towels, chances are they are going to the pool. I did use the fitness center and found it to be adequate with a couple of stationary bikes and a treadmill, plus a tv to watch while exercising. There were dry saunas in each locker room at the center too. Two weeks later, I was back at the hotel. This time I had a "dry" check-in clerk. I told her I was uncomfortable in the 1st floor room because the exterior door frame looked so damaged and asked if I could have something higher. She told me the hotel was almost filled to capacity and that she could not process any special requests. However, I did end up with a room on the 4th floor. That room was SO much better. It was cleaner and the bed was normal. This time I had a sliding glass door to the patio, but the door lock was broken. But, since I was upstairs I didn't feel so bad about the security issue. However, there was no patio furniture! So we decided to stay inside. But when we walked out onto the patio to look around, we saw what appeared to be a hand-rolled cigarette (we're pretty sure it was marijuana.) We left it as it was and decided to stay off the patio. Also, while this room was cleaner, it was missing the cookie sheet in the oven, the plate in the microwave, and had a fridge that didn't get very cold. But the lighting on the bathroom vanity was much better. The hotel is located in a nice area of town. It's next to a large shopping mall and close to other upscale shopping areas and eateries. (We ended up eating at PF Chang's twice!) Parking at the hotel is tight unless you park in the garage. I lucked out and always found a parking space around the hotel, even if a few times it was far in the back. The hotel has a nightly buffet, but we didn't try it out, and a bar. I did visit the bar when our room was on the 1st floor as the staff said I was to fill the ice bucket with the bartender. Upstairs there was an ice machine, so I didn't have to worry about irritating the busy bartender. We saw complementary coffee in the lobby and we received USA Today each day of our stay. And during the 1st stay, we found 2 bottled waters waiting outside with our morning newspaper. That didn't happen when we were upstairs. The suite had a living room with a tv, sofa, chair, coffee table and end tables plus the dining table and 4 chairs were adjacent. The bedroom had a nice armoir with another tv, bed, and 2 night tables. The vanity area was positioned between the bathroom and the closet. The kitchen had a full-size range and refrigerator. It was also equipped with a microwave, coffee pot, and toaster. I found it easy to cook breakfast in the room. But I did take my own skillet and spatula (after reading other posts.) The room had dishes, glasses, and silverware, which were stored in the dishwasher. The upscale Harris Teeter grocery store is only about 2 blocks away. (It's much nicer than the Harris Teeter in Jax, FL.) So overall the hotel was fine. It was nice to be able to cook some meals and store some snacks in the room. Hubby really enjoyed having 2 TVs. The hotel does offer high-speed internet for $10/day, but we didn't buy that luxury. I would have liked to have used the outdoor pool, but I like to swim in the morning and it always opened at 10:30AM, which I find very late. I would stay there again with the same Priceline rate of $40, but I would keep my fingers crossed when I bid for a 3* and hope for the Hyatt down the street. While it doesn't have a kitchen, it does have a friendly staff, clean, comfortable rooms, and an indoor pool with "normal" operating hours. Plus the last time I stayed there I got it for a $28 bid, which was icing on the cake!
