There was no corporate memo that went out to 2,500 Hamptons giving the OK to lax, sadder standards. When you come across dishevelment or disarray, or missing service elements, it's down to the individual operator.

I recently had a great, 10/10 stay at an HI in northern Michigan where the team was knocking itself out to provide a great time -- and an infuriating 2/10 stay at an HI in the DC metro where the operator had stripped every possible amenity from the customer experience and was clearing using the pandemic as a rationale for treating guests like the propane tanks you shove in and out of cages at Hone Depot.

You can't draw any conclusions about "Hampton Inn quality" from such data.