We tend to stay at a Hampton Inn in this same area, but because I am unhappy with the comfort level of the bed at Hampton Inn, we decided to try the Best Western Plus (given that it had great reviews so far). The lobby is very modern looking, colorful, clean. They actually had a small bar in the lobby open for guests, which we didn't try out. The front desk clerks were very friendly and helpful. They have a heated pool that was open and a fitness center. We didn't use either, but we did look in on the pool. It was a nice little pool, but due to COVID, we didn't really want to swim. The room looked and smelled clean, and was quite large in comparison to other hotel rooms with 2 queen beds. There was even a lounge chair with ottoman in addition to the desk with chair and a padded bench. The hotel isn't far from a variety of restaurants, so we left to get some dinner. I suppose we could have eaten in the lobby/bar area, but there were only high-top tables with stools and couches. Not very conducive to eating BBQ. We went back down to the lobby at one point and the two front desk gentlemen were mopping the lobby and hallway. It's nice to observe the attempt at cleanliness - even without COVID.
The room was a little warm overnight. We prefer a cooler temp for easier sleep, but I don't think the fan stayed on all night. In addition, the comforter on the bed was thick and warm. So, that didn't help with body temperature. The bed itself was a little more comfortable than the Hampton Inn bed - a little softer - and I appreciated this immensely. Also a plus (for me, due to allergies), there weren't any feather pillows in the room. Didn't have to mess with checking each pillow to find the foam/poly pillows.
Breakfast was the usual hot breakfast hotel fare. I was a bit surprised that there wasn't much for COVID protocol in regard to the breakfast. The gentlemen refilling things were wearing gloves and masks, but otherwise, we didn't really note any Covid-style changes. There weren't any tables marked for non-use. Thankfully the area wasn't packed and we picked a table as separated as we could. Of course, we could have taken it up to our room, too. The hot food was good - eggs, bacon, potatoes, sausage, biscuits and gravy and then your cold/room temp fare of pastries, bread, oatmeal packets, and make-your-own waffles. I didn't see any swapping out of serving utensils or anything of that sort, but they did have a hand sanitizer station near the breakfast area that we used prior to eating. The two staff working the breakfast area even brought around fresh food to tables to see if anyone wanted seconds - which I've never seen done before and thought was a nice gesture.
Here is really my only real issue, which the hotel may or may not have been able to control - the smell and taste of the tap water. It honestly tastes and smells like lake water. The juice machine in the breakfast area used tap water - so the juice had the lake water flavor, unfortunately. The coffee DID NOT smell or taste like the tap water, which made us happy. I'm guessing it was overpowered by the coffee. You smelled it when you took a shower BUT at least you didn't continue to smell like it after the shower. So, I would suggest that if you are staying at this hotel - bring bottles of water to drink or take medications. Don't drink the juice from the machine at breakfast, and be ready for the smell during showers.
Otherwise, overall, we had a pleasant experience and would probably return. I just wish we'd known about the water situation ahead of time so we could plan with more bottled water and avoid the juice. As a side note, we've stayed at the Hampton Inn in this area a couple times and never noticed this strong taste or odor in the tap water. Maybe they treat theirs?? less
GuestXperience Team, Other at Best Western Plus Ardmore Inn & Suites, responded to this review
Dear Guest,
We appreciate your detailed review of our property - your kind words inspire us to do better and feedback like this makes us strive to give the best service. Thank you for your feedback about the drinking water/juice. We will see what we can do about having some updates soon so we can provide even better value. Until then, we would love to welcome you back and hope that you consider staying with us the next time you are in the area.
Best Regards,
Best Western Plus Ardmore
Customer Care Team