Sonesta Essential Ames

Mohammad at the front desk was a highlight. He was very friendly over the phone when I asked about checking in late, and he was very friendly when I actually did come for check in and at breakfast. Our actual room was a bit disappointing— there were stains on our sheets and blankets, and our shower curtain rod was falling off the wall. Also, they did not bother to remove the old Red Roof Inn branding that was posted in our room. The breakfast was also just okay— they had oatmeal out but no heat-safe bowls to make it in, and they had no drinking water out either. The price was good though so I appreciated that. Overall this place was just okay to stay in.

Definately a budget hotel. Our bed was creeky, haven't had that in a hotel in a while! There was also a lot of noise from the parking lot outside. It was August but people were grillling and yelling out there at 11 pm. Nothing horrible, nothing great. It was inexpensive.

This was one of the only hotels with availability for three nights due to an event nearby. Location was great (close to ISU) and the staff was very friendly. I appreciated the breakfast options, though it was your basic breakfast with cereal, oatmeal, bagels, muffins, bananas, oranges, a waffle maker, and egg patties and sausage. The issue for us was the condition of the room. When we arrived, the A/C was off so the room was stuffy and had a strong smoke smell. Once I turned on the A/C and it cooled down, the smell improved but it was still faint throughout our stay. There was a used towel hanging on the back of the bathroom door and a hair on the toilet seat. I left the towel hoping they'd take it the next day, but it was still there when we got back (they took other towels, but missed that one again). I put it on the floor and they finally took it the next day. Also, on one of the bedsheets there was what I'd describe as a "scuff" mark from someone's shoe. The wood floors are nicer than carpet, but they weren't clean and felt dirty (so I wore sandals when walking around). There is daily maid service, but it didn't seem very thorough. None of the ice machines were working, but the front desk was happy to provide ice upon request. There also isn't an easy option to fill water bottles (just a water fountain with a small spigot). It was affordable & an "ok" stay, but next time I think I would pay more to stay somewhere else.

The beds were terrible, really springy and hard to sleep on. The hallway was super noisy with people yelling and running down the hallways. The staff were super kind.

Never again First room reeked of cigarette smoke the second one they gave looked to be clean but had damp sheets on top of a made bed and smelled liked pee and an 80’s men’s locker room

A typical motel. Not hotel quality. Thin, rough towels which were stained. Pillow cases were also stained and stunk like body oil. I laid a hand towel over the pillow case because it seemed like it was previously used without washing. The room was not pre-cooled so it felt hot and muggy for the first several hours.