HOLIDAY INN THE CASTLE

I purchased in full months in advance, Monday through Friday the week after Thanksgiving. It occurred to me that we were landing at 11:45 p.m. Monday evening, which means we would not check into The Castle until past midnight the next morning. I called the hotel to make them aware of our actual check in. I spoke to Ariel, who made it clear that if we didn't check in via the app, we would lose the room. I was astounded. As I paid for the room in full in advance, how is this even an issue? Her response, "This isn't about you. It isn't fair if you aren't in your room and other individuals require your room." I was astounded. I paid in full in advance for the room for four days checking in on Monday to avoid an issue checking in early Tuesday morning at 1:00 a.m. How is this an issue?! I was outraged. Ariel's response was that she would check us in on Monday, "Only if you guarantee you are coming in on Tuesday morning." I assured her we were. She acted as if she was doing us a favor for a room I paid for months in advance for a four day stay versus the actual three day stay. Tuesday, after I slept in the bed, I went to grab my phone to walk out to a dinner meeting and I noticed the fitted sheet was not changed prior to my arrival as there was makeup all over it, (see photo). Cherry on top of a disturbing experience with a Marriott property.

Everyone is so friendly! Beautiful castle and decor. Checked out the pool even though it was chilly outside and raining. Plenty of parking and close by to everything you want to visit. Loved the king size bed, large tv, the relaxing shower and views out the window. Wish we had more time to use more amenities but one night was excellent.

Great location, service is very good. Rooms are ok, not upscale but clean and cozy

It is preposterous to call this an Autograph Collection Hotel, and if this is an AAA four diamond, I’m not sure that designation carries value any longer. Read and believe the other negative reviews of this hotel- I wish I had.

The issues started upon arrival at my room:
-Food (crushed almonds) and pills (Advil) strewn across the rug in the middle of the room. I’d be very upset if an economy hotel called my room clean with food on the floor, let alone what Marriott calls their “boutique to luxury” collection.
-Couch stained all over with over a dozen crusty white spots that I hope were milk.
-The shower smelled like a wet gym towel. Clearly it had been left damp and then the room closed up. It was overpoweringly unpleasant, so I opened the window and ran the room fan on high until housekeeping could clean it properly (remember this detail).
-A tear/ hole in the bed’s fitted sheet right at head level. Impossible to miss with even the quickest glance.
The rug and shower were quickly remedied by the hotel, but at 11:30 PM, after a long day of travel and work, standing in the hall while my room is cleaned is not a “luxury” experience.

Next, the breakfast: a few trays of soggy eggs, potatoes, breakfast meat, etc…with the only a la carte offerings being omelets or other egg preparations. The average Residence Inn/ Fairfield Inn, etc…has more diverse offerings that also taste far better. Every Autograph Collection at which I have to date stayed has had a fantastic restaurant, always well above average. It was unexpected to be offered such bad food and no “menu” choices.

Finally, and worst of all: on the morning of my checkout I was woken (despite a do-not-disturb sign) at 7:30 am to a phone call from the front desk. Despite the fact that my room’s window freely opens (and even has the common hotel “stopper” so that it can only open a few inches), despite the fact that nowhere in the room is a sign asking guests to not open the window, and despite the fact that the window has been opened for the past three days straight, apparently an employee had noticed my open window from the pool deck and decided that at 7:30 in the morning is was essential that I close it immediately, due to an unpublished “engineering rule”.

Is it a “luxury” or “boutique” experience to be woken at 7:30? Is it a luxury or boutique experience to have an employee argue with you that you are not allowed to open a second floor window (that only opens three inches) on a dry 65 degree day? Did this need to be addressed at that hour, considering I was checking out just three hours later? I am still stunned that this occurred.
It completely cheapens the Autograph brand that this hotel is allowed to retain membership.

Excellent Hotel and the atencion with the Room and the Pool