IA Des Moines Ramada West

[Nautica3]

It's a Fairfield, which means (IMO) "don't expect much beyond clean". The place was clean.

Room felt a little smaller than others I've been in recently, especially in/around the bathroom. Got a non-smoking room w/ single King bed on the first floor. The bed was surprisingly comfortable!

Unfortunately, the room was on the side of the hotel facing the highway, on the first floor. Traffic noise, however, was surprisingly not bad in the room. The a/c unit wasn't loud by any means, but it provided just enough "white noise" to cancel out any highway noise I might've heard.

TV was small--probably a 19 or 20" unit. Definitely not 25" or bigger. Typical crappy remote control (is it a law that hotels can't provide decent remotes to their customers! Geez!)

Complimentary Continental Breakfast was served daily. Not bad, but no variety, so it got a little boring after several days. But it was decent.

The pool was fine. 5' max depth. Usually the towel rack out there was empty or close to it, so be sure to bring a towel from your room. No hot tub. :)

Free USA Today available in the lobby. Coffee service available in lobby 24/7. Vending & Ice machines in lobby as well.

Free passes to the local Aspen Health Club available at the front desk, and they were quite generous w/ them!

Overall, about as I expected. Wouldn't be bad for short-term stays. I'll probably go for something a little more upscale in the future (I generally like 2.5* hotels, and this is definitely only a 2*), but it's fine for what it is. If you're only passing thru or stay for just a few short days, you can't beat the price!

Nautica3 :)

[Nautica3]

Stayed here again a few weeks ago. That time I got a room on the second floor, away from the highway. Room was slightly smaller than previous time, with only a single standard double bed instead of a King. Also, no hair dryer in the room. Apparently, according to the front desk, none of the rooms on the second floor have complimentary hair dryers. Go figure.

[Nautica3]

Have stayed here several more times since last reported. For some reason, I find I sleep VERY well at the FF. I think it's their sheets and blankets...very soft! Anyway, additional notes:

- 3rd floor is interior hallways, which means a slightly different (read: larger) layout. Hair dryers on 1st and 3rd floor rooms, but not 2nd floor.

- They try to not put guests on the 2nd floor during the Winter. The exterior hallways tend to get slick, which is dangerous.

- Can generally get this property for $23/night. Haven't been able to get accepted lower than that.

[KC-Matt]

Just wanted to add a note that this Fairfield Inn is no longer a Fairfield, and there is a new Fairfield Inn & Suites West Des Moines (well, technically not "new" anymore, it has been there a few years now). I usually stay at the Fairfield West Des Moines when I travel through there and was confused when I first read this review as the new version is all interior corridors and it does have a hot-tub and better ammenities than the old one did. This property is now a Ramada, and a bad one at that.

The new property tends to list under the 2.5* on Priceline. Probably be best if I post a new review for the property, but didn't want others to be confused since this is no longer a fairfield.