Travel Poll - Hotels

[GilliC]

I just realized I'm a week late. Oops! Between hospital visits and Easter travels, I lost track.

1. What is your typical accommodation style when you travel? What are your must-haves and preferences?

2. What was the coolest or most unique hotel/inn/B&B you've ever stayed at? What made it special?

3. What was the worst, and why?!

[dorothyinAus]

1. What is your typical accommodation style when you travel? -- I'm a pretty basic person.  I prefer American-style rooms, but do not need them to be luxury, Hampton Inns are my preferred hotel.
What are your must-haves and preferences? -- I generally pick hotels based on location, and I like them to have airport shuttles. Private, en suite baths are a must, as are in room climate control options.

2. What was the coolest or most unique hotel/inn/B&B you've ever stayed at? -- the Stranraer House B&B on Kangaroo Island was great, as was the B&B I stayed in while visiting Cork (unfortunately, I have forgotten the name).
What made it special? -- they were special because they were interesting and fun, and the locations were great.

3. What was the worst, and why?! -- a toss up between the hotel in Adelaide which was advertised as a luxury 4-star hotel and ended up being not even a 1-star in my opinion; and the Holiday Inn Express I stayed at in Tampa this January -- the rooms were small, the walls were paper thin, there was a light outside the widows that even the blackout curtains couldn't keep from the room, the staff was not helpful at all, the elevator went out and nothing was said or done to assist guests with luggage or even to direct them to the stairs, and none of the phones in the rooms worked, and to top it off when I alerted the staff to the non-working phones, I was simply told to use my cell phone in the event of an emergency, nothing was said about having the issues investigated or corrected.

[Wanderista]

1. What is your typical accommodation style when you travel? What are your must-haves and preferences? I am pretty flexible but when possible I do like a place to have some character. I favor boutique hotels but I can appreciate a nice chain too.

2. What was the coolest or most unique hotel/inn/B&B you've ever stayed at? What made it special? I've stayed at several places that really set the standard for my idea of a nice stay. Generally the best ones had great service and gave me cool upgrades. I have stayed at plenty that were perfectly fine. I like a hotel to be to a certain standard. I need a private en-suite and my own room. (Not into hosteling). Beyond that, I am fairly easy to please. I want certain amenities from a hotel (in the US, typically a pool) but the hotel is not the main emphasis of my travel. It serves a purpose. It gets extra points for having a nice breakfast or restaurant though.

3. What was the worst, and why?! I've stayed at a few bad ones. One was an ex-Yugo hotel in Sibenik, Croatia that had not been updated at all. It smelled weird. The furniture and decor was all straight out of '70s communism. The door to the bathroom was some kind of semi-see-through glass (not sexy). The service was bad. This is a shame because Sibenik is a cute town, it just needs better accommodation options.

I also stayed at a dirty hostel in Berlin with a friend. It was so gross. There was one shared unisex bathroom for everyone. It had a 3 quarter length wall between the toilet and shower. This meant that if someone was on the toilet while you showered, you heard everything. Also, the shower drain was all backed up with clogged hair so when you turned the shower on, dark water would flood up over the side of the shower cubicle. I couldn't actually stand in the shower because of this. I just had to awkwardly lean over towards the showerhead from outside the door to wash. Also, the place had bedbugs. Maybe I'd like Berlin better if I stayed at a better place.

[sunshinedaydreams]

Apr 13, 2015 17:28:25 GMT -5 @sfgal530 said:

I can easily answer #3 - it was our second hotel in Cuba last week! It was called Hotel Jagua in Cienfuegos and apparently consistent running water was a luxury that we couldn't be afforded. I couldn't shower, couldn't wash my hands, and if you wanted to flush the toilet you had to trek downstairs to the pool, fill a bucket with water, and then trek back up six floors to dump it in the toilet tank so that it flushed. And of course it was super hot and humid and the wrong time of the month for me to not have running water so I was kind of a raging bitch.

The best part is that the hotel is owned and operated by the government so no one there cared at all, because they make their state-specified salary and that's it. There's no incentive to improve because there are no other options and no one is rewarded for working hard.

In all honesty it was a really interesting cultural experience but I really could have used a daily shower. That being said I really loved Cubaand our other hotel was pretty decent, but that was far and away the worst place I've ever stayed. Thankfully it was only three nights! And I'm not even complaining about the roaches that scurried about, or the craptastic furnishings, lumpy pillows, and super cheap, scratchy bed sheets, because all I really wanted was a damn shower.

I've been wondering how your trip went.  Maybe I should be glad now that we didn't book with NG!

[sunshinedaydreams]

1. This really depends, for us, on where we're traveling. We like to always have some sort of local charm to the places we stay. In a lot of places we look for apartments instead so that we can "live like locals." Pretty much the only must have is a private bathroom. Everything else I can live without. I prefer free wifi.

2. Not sure if this counts as a hotel, I loved Migration Camp in the Serengeti! I was blown away by how nice the "tents" were with solar hot water, hardwood floors, leather furniture, etc. We sat on our back porch and had giraffes walk right up to us. It was awesome!

3. Again, not sure if it counts as a hotel, but Sandals Montego Bay. We were completely underwhelmed and paid WAY too much for the craphole room and half-ass service we got.

[RoxMonster]

1. What is your typical accommodation style when you travel? What are your must-haves and preferences? Usually mid-range, but occasionally higher-end. Must-haves are private bathrooms, A/C if we'll be somewhere hot, security, and cleanliness.

Preferences are free WiFi, unique decor, extras like a jacuzzi tub or robes

2. What was the coolest or most unique hotel/inn/B&B you've ever stayed at? What made it special?
Tough call, but I will say The Lamplighter Inn & Suites in Carmel, CA. It was such a charming inn a block from the beach. We left our windows open at night and could hear the waves and breathe in the cool, fresh sea breeze. It basically had a big outdoor courtyard with the prettiest flowers/decor and a fire pit area, and all the rooms opened out onto it. It was our first experience staying at an inn and not a hotel, and we just loved it. The innkeepers were so nice, we got to meet people from all the world, the location was wonderful. I'd go back in a heartbeat.

3. What was the worst, and why?!
The Hampton Inn in downtown Milwaukee. The parking situation was annoying and weird, you had to go up to the 4th floor to get to the main lobby. They messed up our room, the A/C barely worked, it smelled like smoke even though it was non-smoking, and none of the front desk clerks were helpful or even somewhat nice.

[hazel]

Apr 13, 2015 17:28:25 GMT -5 @sfgal530 said:

I can easily answer #3 - it was our second hotel in Cuba last week! It was called Hotel Jagua in Cienfuegos and apparently consistent running water was a luxury that we couldn't be afforded. I couldn't shower, couldn't wash my hands, and if you wanted to flush the toilet you had to trek downstairs to the pool, fill a bucket with water, and then trek back up six floors to dump it in the toilet tank so that it flushed. And of course it was super hot and humid and the wrong time of the month for me to not have running water so I was kind of a raging bitch.

The best part is that the hotel is owned and operated by the government so no one there cared at all, because they make their state-specified salary and that's it. There's no incentive to improve because there are no other options and no one is rewarded for working hard.

In all honesty it was a really interesting cultural experience but I really could have used a daily shower. That being said I really loved Cubaand our other hotel was pretty decent, but that was far and away the worst place I've ever stayed. Thankfully it was only three nights! And I'm not even complaining about the roaches that scurried about, or the craptastic furnishings, lumpy pillows, and super cheap, scratchy bed sheets, because all I really wanted was a damn shower.

Did you happen to take a group/guided tour to Cuba? My cousin went last week with a tour group and they stayed that at hotel (ETA: and had the same water issues there).

[rupertpenny]

1. What is your typical accommodation style when you travel? What are your must-haves and preferences?

I have always been more of a budget traveler, and I'm not the kind of person who loves staying in hotels. If I'm by myself I'm generally happy to stay in a hostel, but now that my kid is usually with me when we travel I can't do that much anymore. Things I do look for are free wifi, a bathtub, AC, a pool, and babysitting services. Luckily since most of my current travels are in SE Asia I can get all of these things for pretty cheap.

2. What was the coolest or most unique hotel/inn/B&B you've ever stayed at? What made it special?
I'm not sure if this counts, but we stayed in a great apartment when we were in Lisbon. The decoration was great, and it was in an interesting neighborhood, and we even had a little balcony. My avatar was actually taken on the balcony there.

3. What was the worst, and why?!
I have stayed in a few sketcy motels. One with my college BF because we were under 25 and it was during spring break time so no respectable hotels would rent us a room. Another time with my H when we went to a college football game kind of last minute. All of the non-gross options were taken.

[Deleted]

Apr 13, 2015 15:45:17 GMT -5 GilliC said:

1. What is your typical accommodation style when you travel? What are your must-haves and preferences? I'm kind of all over the place.  Usually small inns/hotels or apartment/cabin rentals.  I dislike high-rises and big resorts because they tend to be more crowded and expensive and I rarely use the amenities of larger hotels. We will occasionally do an overnight in a luxury hotel for a special occasion (like the Ritz Carlton in Moscow during a layover on our anniversary) but not the norm.  My preference is a b&b or inn with a very private room.  Private bathroom and hot water are musts.

2. What was the coolest or most unique hotel/inn/B&B you've ever stayed at? What made it special? An amazing place that comes to mind is Pax Guest House in Dingle, Ireland.  Our room was facing the water with breathtaking views, with glass doors out to a private patio.  The overall inn experience was phenomenal and there was a house dog that we could let into our room to cuddle which pretty much made it for me (I always miss our dog so badly when we travel).

3. What was the worst, and why?! I have to stretch to answer this one.  In Thailand we stayed in several places that did not have hot water.  Even though the accommodations were otherwise fine, lack of hot water is really a deal breaker for me.  We stayed in a beach bungalow at a place called Banyan Bay Villas on Koh Jum, and it really should have been phenomenal - private romantic bungalow, right on the beach, listening to the waves at night, etc.  Except...no hot water, lots of bugs and creatures, and remote enough to be a little scary at night.  In Guatemala we stayed at the Jaguar Inn in Tikal, and they only had electricity at certain times which appeared to be basically never.  It's in the jungle so everything is damp.  These are all things that in retrospect didn't ruin my experience (both were amazing trips overall) but times when I wasn't loving the accommodations. 

[frlcb]

1. What is your typical accommodation style when you travel? What are your must-haves and preferences? It depends on if we are with our kids or not. If we are and we aren't staying a condo we stay at suite hotels (like Embassy Suites in the US) so we don't have to go to bed when they do! If it is just dh and I we like to do either boutique hotels or luxury hotels, although he would be fine staying in a less fancy hotel. We stay in a lot of Hyatts. Edited to add that as a whole we love the paradores in Spain, they are government run but are very cool old historic buildings and are very nice.


2. What was the coolest or most unique hotel/inn/B&B you've ever stayed at? What made it special? We loved Blackberry Farm, it was amazing from the facilities to the service to the food. I loved Sanctuary Lodge in Peru at Machu Picchu, the Four Seasons in Buenos Aires, Park Hyatt in Melbourne, Solitaire Lodge in Rotarua NZ


3. What was the worst, and why? Honestly I don't know - some of the hostels I stayed in when I backpacked in my 20s around Europe were pretty bad!

[Champagne Supernova]

1. What is your typical accommodation style when you travel? What are your must-haves and preferences?

I don't really have a style. I just need a place to crash in a really good location (walking distance to everything or smack-dabbed in the center of the city)

2. What was the coolest or most unique hotel/inn/B&B you've ever stayed at? What made it special?

We stayed at the Casa Andina in Sacred Valley during our ten year anniversary. It was special because the travel company hooked us up with a cottage instead of a regular room and the view of the Andes from our balcony was glorious. I stayed in many unique hotels but this one is the most memorable. 

3. What was the worst, and why?

The worst was the Hotel Jail in Lucerne. Never again. I think I got bitten by bed bugs in that hotel. 

[dragon's breath]

1. My usual--cheap, I only want to be in the room for the bed and the bathroom, I prefer to spend the money on anything else--food, museums, boat rides, gladiator school, theater, anything. However, when the price range is good, I like to have a fridge and microwave, ac, cable and free wi-fi, especially if I'll be there a couple days. This is best for work, when I can't really go anywhere because of class or whatever and spend more time in the room than I would for fun travel. I don't have tv at home, so it's kind of a treat when I travel. Even in other countries, I like to go to the markets and get food for some meals so that I can make breakfast or lunches and help lower food costs (when we spent a week+ in London, we'd get really good breads from the market, cheese and fruit from the neighborhood store, etc) That, combined with a cheap room (that had a stovetop, fridge, and microwave) in a converted house, really helped stretch the budget.

2. Probably the place we stayed in Edinburg. It was gorgeous, nice room, old building with beautiful carvings and chairs in the halls. We did that trip on a tour, so stayed in a lot nicer places than I would normally.

3. That one is easy! A complete dive in Newport, Oregon on my honeymoon. It had not been decorated since the 60's or 70's, everything was shag, avocado green, mustard yellow, burnt orange, etc. And the guy at the desk had a huge head of thick black hair, with dandruff so bad it was like an inch of snow. But, we did that whole trip for a few hundred bucks, and drove away laughing, so I guess it was still ok.

[cheezer]

1. What is your typical accommodation style when you travel? What are your must-haves and preferences?
 We usually prefer more boutique style places, higher end of mid-range.  We like modern over fussy.  We use a lot of points so we stay at a lot of Marriotts and Starwood hotels.  


2. What was the coolest or most unique hotel/inn/B&B you've ever stayed at? What made it special?
 Safari at Elephant Plains in South Africa because duh, safari.  Park Hyatt in the Maldives - great little bungalows right on the beach.  Pacuare Lodge in Costa Rica which you have to whitewater raft into.  Tambo del Inka outside of Machu Picchu which was the most relaxing hotel ever.  A cave hotel in Cappadocia in Turkey.


3. What was the worst, and why?!


College spring break somewhere in Daytona Beach, FL.  H and I (we were dating at the time) were about to get busy until he stopped me and said don't move, there is a cockroach crawling on the bed.  Thankfully I was so drunk most of the rest of the week I didn't worry about cockroaches.  We were also 4+ to a room for the whole week (there were a whole bunch of us that went).  

[GilliC]

1. I'm all over the place with hotels, but I almost never stay in true 5-star luxury places. If I splurge on a hotel, it tends to be someplace historic or unusual, where the stay is an experience itself. Most of the time I aim for something between $60 and $150 US/night and settle for whatever that buys me.

My only must-have is running hot water. I hate bucket showers. Hate them. My in-laws didn't have running water in their apartment until recently, and it drove me nuts. I just never felt clean.

I do try to avoid rooms without a window or private bathroom, but it's not a dealbreaker. Location is usually my deciding factor, and free Wi-Fi is a major plus.

2. Obviously the most unique would the ICEHOTEL in Sweden and the Traveller's Cave Hotel in Cappadocia.

Perhaps the most unusual was when I waited too long to book a room in southeast Iceland, and I started calling every hotel, B&B, and farm stays I could find within a 50-mile radius. We ended up staying at a flower farm with a guesthouse, but since their guesthouse was fully booked they offered us a private room in their house. We pretty much slept on a fold-out sofa in their TV room! But it was better than having to sleep in the car!

3. The worst was probably the Four Pillars in Abingdon, England. I was there for three weeks for work, and the first night I was in a room where the shower didn't work and the road noise outside was bad enough that I couldn't sleep (and I can sleep through almost anything). I did move to another room, but the bigger problem was the management staff.

I was there for work, and whenever the Wi-Fi stopped working (kind of important for the whole work thing), they didn't even apologize. They just said, "It's not working. It's a problem with the provider, not with us." No apology, no alternative, no estimate of how long it might take to come back. And this is on top of the fact that you had to request a new login and password every day for every device you used. Consider: three weeks, with a laptop, an iPhone, and occasionally an iPad!

The kicker was when I was actually reprimanded by one of the managers. Apparently the way the hotel indicates that you've authorized charges to your room is by putting a highlighter mark on that little folded paper they give you with the key card. When I changed rooms, I left the piece of paper behind. Because who needs it, right?! It did say that you should keep the key card with you at all times. I assumed that meant the card that is the key to your room. Apparently to them, "key card" meant that card that came with the key. And when I tried to charge dinner to my room and didn't have that piece of paper, the manager got really huffy that I didn't have it. I told him that I didn't get a new one when I changed rooms, and he actually snapped at me, "Well, you should have asked for a new one." WTF?

[anna7602]

Apr 13, 2015 17:28:25 GMT -5 @sfgal530 said:

I can easily answer #3 - it was our second hotel in Cuba last week! It was called Hotel Jagua in Cienfuegos and apparently consistent running water was a luxury that we couldn't be afforded. I couldn't shower, couldn't wash my hands, and if you wanted to flush the toilet you had to trek downstairs to the pool, fill a bucket with water, and then trek back up six floors to dump it in the toilet tank so that it flushed. And of course it was super hot and humid and the wrong time of the month for me to not have running water so I was kind of a raging bitch.

The best part is that the hotel is owned and operated by the government so no one there cared at all, because they make their state-specified salary and that's it. There's no incentive to improve because there are no other options and no one is rewarded for working hard.

In all honesty it was a really interesting cultural experience but I really could have used a daily shower. That being said I really loved Cubaand our other hotel was pretty decent, but that was far and away the worst place I've ever stayed. Thankfully it was only three nights! And I'm not even complaining about the roaches that scurried about, or the craptastic furnishings, lumpy pillows, and super cheap, scratchy bed sheets, because all I really wanted was a damn shower.

This sounds like every trip I've ever taken to Cuba, minus AF. I even pack my own toilet paper when I go because it's never guaranteed that it will be available. 

I've had better experiences staying in people's apartments than in hotels in Cuba, although the running water thing has still been an issue. But at least individuals are more interested in my being happy than anything government-run is. 

[scout8]

1. We like small inns best. We are usually on a budget so mid-range places. We swear by TA and find the highest rated small inns and go with those. We are pretty much always happy with our choices. 

2. Most unique was either the cave hotel in Turkey or the working sheep ranch in Patagonia. 

3. Worst was this small hotel we stayed in when we were on a wedding planning trip to San Juan, PR. We had just gotten back from a long vacation, so we didn't want to spend much money on the PR trip. We picked a cheap place and it was a dump. Clearly, we had forgotten to check TA. Worst part was we were looking at all of these nice hotels for our wedding venue and then we would have to go back to our dump at night. 

[dana2006]

1. For personal travel, I prefer B&Bs (history, location, and breakfast--yes please!) For work travel I've stayed in a wide range of hotels, from 5-star ones (usually only in Asia) to shoe boxes in expensive European capitals.

2. A monastery in Mount Koya, Japan, which served unforgetful meals.

3. A hostel in Beijing. It was during the Olympics and the price was highway rubbery for what it was. It was slated to be demolished soon after our stay, so it was quite run down, with water dripping constantly, mildew in corners, and sagging beds.

[hazel]

@sfgal530 - I wasn't sure how many tours occur at the same time. Figured it was worth asking!  It would have been such a small world if you were part of the same tour. I believe she was with Gate1Travel. Your advice and experience is very similar to what she said too. My boyfriend has been talking about visiting Cuba soon so between the both of you, I feel like I have a lot of good information if I get the chance to go with him. 

[sunshinedaydreams]

Apr 14, 2015 0:34:44 GMT -5 @sfgal530 said:

Apr 13, 2015 19:27:42 GMT -5 hazel said:

Did you happen to take a group/guided tour to Cuba? My cousin went last week with a tour group and they stayed that at hotel (ETA: and had the same water issues there).

Why yes, I did!  We went with National Geographic, but there were several tours staying there (I met the tour guide for Insight Cuba so I know they were there).  Honestly, I think the hotel just wasn't set up to handle a full capacity situation - it turns out that Cuba doesn't have a pipe system to transport water; they have huge water tanks on the roof and they literally bring water in on the back of a truck, then they pipe it up to the water tanks, then you need to wait for it to get back down to your floor, and then you have to hope they have enough for everyone.  In our situation they didn't, so I was able to shower exactly one out of the three days we were there, because the other times the water was all used up and we were waiting for more.  But that's just part of being in Cuba, you know?  I actually was pretty cool about it until the end, where we were hot and sweaty and the last day was super long and all I wanted was to shower.  I was like, dreaming about it on the bus ride back to Havana.

sunshinedaydreams, I've been meaning to write a trip report up but I'm just absolutely slammed.  Overall the trip to Cuba was great - my H doesn't like to travel (too bad for him because he travels a LOT!) and halfway through the trip he was like, "I would totally come back to Cuba.  It's one of my favorite places."  He really didn't expect to like it and he LOVED it.  I've got some recommendations for restaurants and things to do during the limited "free" time you have, and I promise I'll add those in the next week or so.  You're going in May, right?  Who are you going with?  Hotel Jagua is pretty popular with tour groups because it's the "big" hotel in Cienfuegos.  A few quick things to note right now:
1.  Bring Kleenex along to use as additional TP in public restrooms.
2.  You are expected to tip when you use public restrooms.  1 CUC (Convertible Peso) is sufficient.
3.  Take hand sanitizer with you because a lot of the "soap" dispensers in Cuba are actually filled with liquid bleach since they had a cholera outbreak a while back and that was used then.
More to come but you truly will enjoy it.  Havana is incredible!

Well it looks like we'll be staying there, too, if you met the guide from InsightCuba!  At least we'll know what to expect.  Thanks for the tips.  We're not going til next month, so we've got some time.  I can't wait for the full review!

[aliciaflorrick]

1. What is your typical accommodation style when you travel? What are your must-haves and preferences?
Typically I pick economical hotels that are clean and safe. I do Priceline quite a bit to get good deals on places I wouldn't pay full price for.

2. What was the coolest or most unique hotel/inn/B&B you've ever stayed at? What made it special?
It isn't particularly unique but the Westin in Seattle was the hotel my H (boyfriend at the time) stayed in on our first vacation together. We had so much fun on that trip.

]3. What was the worst, and why?
A B&B in Cartagena on the first night of our honeymoon. It was dirty and the windows had no screen or window pane. This wouldn't be a huge deal except we were facing the courtyard and people sat on a bench below our window all day and night. They did have an amazing breakfast though.

[neonpink]

1. What is your typical accommodation style when you travel? What are your must-haves and preferences?
I typically look for decent reviews and smack dab in the center of things. On our last trip we stayed in a hotel in Prague where we could watch all the people Christmas shopping out our window in the Square it was lovely.


2. What was the coolest or most unique hotel/inn/B&B you've ever stayed at? What made it special?
I've rented a former Palace in Rome and a 3 story apartment in Amsterdam. They were in perfect places, beautiful and made the trip just much more enjoyable.

3. What was the worst, and why?!
First trip to Europe we stayed in Lucerne, during a heat wave, we had no AC. My now H can't sleep in the heat and snored so loud. He had his head practically out the open window. I think everyone in the hotel could hear him from the courtyard. I was so hot and he was so noisy I ended up sleeping in the bathtub to try hide from the heat and noise.

While in college we stayed at a horrible dive hotel in Daytona Beach to see the Rolex 24. The hotel had a umpire convention going on. I have never seen so many 50+ men plastered and vomiting. Also the room had neon lights and murals. It was so sketch. Luckily we spent most of our time at the track.

[gt7301b]

1) I'm all over the place.  My preference tends to be a condo or apartment so we can cook a few meals and keep the costs down.  I tend to stick with Marriott if I need my arrangements to be somewhat flexible.  I usually use trip advisor and try to find the best combination of cost and accommodations.

2) I rarely remember the hotel names, but I did enjoy the Ritz the few times we've stayed there immensely.  We also stayed at the most adorable B&B in Sydney, the proprietors picked us up from the airport and were flexible once our flight was delayed.... the Tara guest house.

3) The hotel we stayed at in Sinai.  My friend and I both got food poisoning, the same night the water wasn't working in the bathroom and we ended up leaving it running all night when it magically turned back on.  Our room flooded into the room below us and we only noticed when the people below us called to complain.  The AC didn't work well and they weren't able to find us a new room.  It was horrible.

[mich1]

1. What is your typical accommodation style when you travel? What are your must-haves and preferences?


Decent hotel at a reasonable price.  We're not real picky, as long as it's clean and easily accessible.


2. What was the coolest or most unique hotel/inn/B&B you've ever stayed at? What made it special?


It would have to be the 2 B&Bs I've stayed at.  One was on San Juan island and was awesome.  We had a hot tub outside off our room and was able to partake in privacy of the woods (B&B was Inn to the Woods).  Other one was in New Orleans, that I found at the last minute.  I think it was called 5 Continents, and as I was on crutches at the time, I got the h/c accessible guest cottage in the back of the house as the stairs to the rest of the rooms were not easily maneuverable for me.  This owner really knew what it was like to be on crutches, and had set everything up perfectly.


3. What was the worst, and why?!


It would have to be the place we stayed at in Niagara Falls.  When I made the reservation, I did not realize that it was associated with a water park.  All the rooms opened into an indoor courtyard and it was noisy as hell.  There were kids screaming in the courtyard and running up and down the halls until early am.  Room was just ok, and the blackout curtains were useless.  Not cheap either.