2 1/2 * Clarion Hotel West Des Moines (or Clive), IA Stayed June 16-20 and again June 22-27 $36/night Don't recall exact taxes and fees, but seemed standard/reasonable. Amenities listed: Airport Shuttle, fitness center, business center, pool, restaurant Hotel is a former Sheraton Four Points. Nice enough place. Pool is good, hot Tub is too shallow, but better than nothing. Has a nice restaurant, but didn't eat there. Business Center offers free High-Speed Internet, but only on 1 PC, so it's sometimes busy. Fitness room is a joke, as are most hotel facilities, but right next door is the Aspen Athletic Club, which the Clarion will give free passes too! That health club is huge, and has anything you could ever want in terms of fitness! Took advantage of it several times! The first week my room was on the second floor. Typical two full-sized bed setup. Don't think it was a non-smoking room, because there was a slight smoky smell to the bedspread and pillows. Blech! Loud AC/heat unit. The phone line connection didn't work from the desk, so I had to hook into the phone's line near the nightstand. Also, the second floor halls always seemed to smell like whatever was cooking in the restaurant's kitchen that day. My second week there was much better. Got a non-smoking room on the 5th floor w/ a single King bed, chair/ottoman, mini-fridge, and microwave! AC/heater was less noisy, too! And the 5th floor halls didn't smell. Overall, decent hotel, especially for this price. Avoid the 2nd floor, though.
