Hello fellow FFs.
After traveling around the country, I found out alot about the inconsistancies among hotel chains. Espcially Comfort Inns and Holiday Inns. I know that these are economy Inns but come on these Comfort Inns, I stayed in a great 4 star like Comfort Inn at Hershey,PA, then in New Orleans the Downtown Comfort Inn is to be avoided at all times. Then here is the Holiday Inn; I stayed at a great great Holiday Inn in Pasadena,CA nd now I am in Midtown Memphis' Holiday Inn, this Holiday Inn is among the dirtiest I have ever encountered. Now I am at a looking stage. I stayed in Hampton Inn in Westpoint,MO (just outside St. Louis) and I liked it alot, I don't know if Hampton Inn is as inconsistant as Holiday Inns I mean they are Hilton; a local told me about how good the Springfield Suites is. What do ya'll think? Springfield or Hampton Inn, I saw Holiday Inn Express around that area as well, I don't know if I should pass that or not, after all I am PC Platinum.

Thank y'all in advance for your advices.

FYI: The Holiday Inn in Pasadena is soon to become a Sheraton.

FYI: The Holiday Inn in Pasadena is soon to become a Sheraton.

There are variations for every chain, but it is much more pronounced at the lower-price chains.

Holiday Inn is my usual hotel. Stayed at some terrific properties as well as some real dives.

Days Inns are even more erratic.

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"I will not be pushed, filed, stamped, indexed, briefed, debriefed or numbered. My life is my own."

Yea, there are incredible inconsistencies in Holiday Inns.. "select" designation sometimes helps - asking whether doors are inside or outside sometimes helps.. but not always..

I find Hamptons more consistent, although there are exceptions (JAX near airport comes to mind -ugh)! My most recent experiences indicates that Hilton Garden Inns are inexpensive and consistently good. Most are new, and the rooms are very nice - most have good internet access - many are Jr. Suite type arrangements.. Embassy Suites are good - although many don't qualify as inexpensive..

It's a crap shoot much of the time.. sometimes takes me multiple trips to the same city to determine where my preferred hotel in any given city is...

Thanks for all the info, I guess one of the ways to find nicer properties is to ask the locals. A guy I met at my client's site told me that SpringHill Suites is real good, I think i'll take his word for it.

Hampton Inns are usually pretty consistent, definitely much more so than Holiday Inns. BTW, did you mean Westport, not Westpoint?

It is Westport. I can't type.

I checked in at the SpringHill Suites. It is much much better than the Holiday Inn in Midtown. Even though it will take me approx 30 mins to get to client's site, I'd say this is well worth the move.

When I first started traveling, Days in was a decent mid-range chain. In the past decade, Days Inn seams to have gone more towards the true budget sector, but there still are some nice properties. They have a rating system - don't stay at anything less than 3 out 5 (on their scale).

Lately I pick places like Comfort Inn, Hampton Inn, or Courtyard. Hampton Inn seems to rather consistent and Courtyard has always been great, although I don't stay there as often.

Here is some great advice that you probably already know...

On the weekend (Fri, Sat, Sun) find business parks...they almost always have nice hotels (like Marriot, Crowne Plaza, and Sheraton) and deeply discount them because they were built for the mid-week business traveler. This is true in Europe too. Found a Crowne Plaza outside Amsterdam that was discounted by 2/3 from the daily rate!

During the week, look for hotels in areas that were built for the weekend traveler...like in rural locations along interstates.

Use the net to make reservations...even while traveling....great rates and saves time!

Are the variations more a sign of the local area, then the hotel chain?

I see a big difference between the CORPORATE owned properties and the franchises ones. I get more indifference and attitude at the corporate Marriott Properties. Perhaps it starts at the top with Bill M. It seems they are more concerned about the bottom line. And I suspect that is why Marriott was removed from 1st place in the Freddy's!

As a former hotelier, and one who worked for a national midprice chain in quality assurance in the mid 80's, let me share a little bit with you.

Many hotel properties, acutally most, are franchises. Most franchisees own properties affiliated with several chains. Some chains have stringent standards while others are suspect. Some chains enforce their standards while most look the other way, for the most part.

Many franchisees will actually run all of their properties to the lesser standards and tell the chain that if they don't like it, they'll change their affiliation. It's not that tough to change. We have all seen the revolving door game played by properties. A lot of times it is geographical as well. What is acceptable in Paducah, Kentucky would probably never fly (no pun intended) in Seattle.

The less you pay, the more apt you are to find such inconsistencies, although there are exceptions. I have found Hamptons to be very good and consistent. I have never had a bad stay with Hilton, but have been in Holiday Inns and Sheratons over the years that were no better than a flophouse in France!

Even had a horror story at Westin in Kansas City a few years ago and since college days would have NEVER expected that. I would go so far as to say that "You get what you pay for" is not applicable anymore with lodgings, because I have had some great budget stays in places like Paducah, Marion, Council Bluffs, Cherokee, Clinton, Athens, La Mirada, etc.

I find the biggest differences between Best Westerns. Some are really nice and some are roach motels with bugs that bite while you try and sleep. Pictures in the catalogue don't help, the air brushing is quite good. I will no longer stay at Best Westerns unless I know someone who has stayed at the particular hotel I am looking to stay at and gives me the thumbs .up or someone at FT gives me advice on the property.