Best Western Albany Mall Inn & Suites

Please understand that I write this as a business traveler who stays in many hotels of differing brands on a regular basis. I am not a «neat freak», a whiner, or someone who looks for things to go wrong. With that in mind please read below.
This Best Western is the worst hotel I’ve ever had the misfortune in which to lay me head. It began at the front desk. The young lady who greeted my colleagues and I was pleasant and took care of us. Then the manager showed up, and she was rude for no apparent reason. We were finally checked in, and headed for our rooms. The halls smelled strongly of smoke, and there was a distinct odor of curry coming from a couple of the rooms.
Once in the room, it became obvious that this was a poorly run hotel indeed. The bathroom had not been cleaned. There were spots all over the toilet seat and on the rim and black hairs in the bathtub and sink. Since this was an even week with a marathon coming up, there were few other choices of accommodations. I went to CVS and bought just what I needed to clean the bathroom. There was also a sticky substance dripped all over the desk; I suspect it was syrup from the last person’s breakfast.
As for amenities, the only shampoo offered is the type where the shampoo and conditioner are all in one. Many hotels went away from this years ago because of so many complaints from guests. The television is a fairly small 21″ 4:3 tube that is over 8 years old. It is also easy to tell that it has been well over a decade since this room has seen a paint roller or decent artwork of any kind. I am writing this to you using my wireless card because the internet connection is painfully slow. When you logon to the hotel’s wifi, you find out that this is a very slow dsl connection. In addition, publishing a free breakfast for this establishment should be a criminal offense for false advertising. Breakfast was nothing short of pitiful.
Finally, I was out past the time for the front door to be locked. The key entry didn’t work, nor did the buzzer for the front desk. I had to knock. It took several tries to get Danielle to come to the desk to open the door. When I asked her about a wake-​up call, she mumbled and wrote nothing down. It seems talking on her cell phone and scrolling through Facebook were more important than guests. I have seen her name on other review, and i wonder why she still has a job.
Since there is an event this week, there are virtually no other rooms left in town unless we want to go even further down than this dump. My recommendation is to run, not walk, away from this hotel as fast as possible. Don’t put yourself, your family, or your coworkers through the horror of staying at this location.

When I travel for business I am usually gone 3 weeks at a time during the month. I spent three weeks in Albany Georgia and I immediately checked into the Best Western. BW’s are usually pretty reliable… good wifi and cable and clean rooms. They are kind of a staple of mine. BOY was I in for a surprise — I didn’t even last two nights!
My first night my toilet clogged around 10pm. Being a young female who had always lived with a father or boyfriend, and being that I was paying over $ 100/​per night for a hotel, my response was to call for help. No one at the front desk answered so I made my way down to the lobby. The young woman at the front desk was on the phone… not the hotel phone, HER phone. I wasn’t really upset. If I had to work at a hotel all night I’d probably talk on the phone too. But here’s the kicker… she DIDN“T hang up!!! Eventually I just interrupted her conversation and told her my problem. She nodded and walked into the back room (chatting away on her phone). She came back with a plunger WHICH SHE HANDED TO ME and kept talking on the phone. I told her that I didn’t even know HOW to use a plunger (ok ok cut me some slack… I’m not a sissy but there are always guys around to do such things). She looked REALLY put out. She told me the maintenance guys would be here in the morning. WHAT?! Um… I might have to pee between now and then, thanks.
I told her I didn’t know how to use the plunger nor did I think I should do it when I am paying quite a bit for a hotel in Southern Georgia. She took her phone with her, took the plunger from me and proceeded to follow me up to my room. In short, she did fix the problem, and I thanked her before she walked back to the desk… her phone attached to her ear. I was frustrated and annoyed… I visited other hotels the next day and ended up at the Suburban Extended Stay mostly because the staff was awesome when I went in to price the room. (see that review for more).
Anyways, I am sure that this was an isolated incident and I’m sorry to write it, but customers have power now with Unilocal… I am sure the managers of the establishment won’t like to read this, but every word is true. I won’t be in Albany but I will keep this experience in my mind in the future when BW is a choice of hotel.