If there is such a thing as a 5-star budget motel, this is it.
First off, you should know that I had not originally planned on staying here at this property; I had reservations at the Motel 6 off Exit 261 in Daytona Beach. However, after very quickly determining that said Motel 6 was uninhabitable due to extensive mold and mildew throughout, there I was, in its nasty, humid lobby, on my laptop (at 10:30pm after a 5 hour flight from L.A. into Orlando and then killing another couple of hours at an Applebee's in Winter Haven waiting for rush hour to break up before driving another hour to Daytona), trying to figure out where I could afford to stay that had a room available on Labor Day Weekend. I went on Google and Yelp! and read the reviews about this Super 8, just 12 miles away off I-95 Exit 273, so I called them.
Well, Veronica answered the phone. Veronica is not a human being; Veronica is an ANGEL. (Well, at least it feels like that when you're faced with possibly having to sleep in your car for 4 nights.) This woman was the sweetest, kindest, most wonderful person I could have asked for. I mean, I was exhausted and desperate. I told her of my restrictions due to my deathly allergy to smoke, and she said she had something for me and to come on up. I tried not to get my hopes too high, but it was difficult after talking to this lovely woman.
The staff was unbelievably wonderful in person as well. The humidity was around a million percent, and Ryan (who was in training at the time and, in my experience with him, was a very good match for the job--really, really nice guy) had gone and turned on the A/C in my room so it would be comfortable for me when I arrived. Veronica was just as nice in person as she was on the phone, telling me about the area restaurants, their morning breakfasts, the WiFi, etc.
The room was fantastic. No, it's not the Hilton. (Luckily, I don't have the need to pay someone $400 a night to put a mint on my pillow and wipe my hiney after making boom-boom.) But the room was clean and comfortable, the mattresses were great, and it was really hard to believe this was part of a budget motel chain. They also have self-serve breakfast every morning. Homemade waffles, cereals, juices, coffee, etc. Every room has a fridge, and some also have microwaves. (For me, the fridge was much more important than the microwave; however, my room happened to have both.) Dawn, who worked days, continued the tradition of outstanding customer service; she even enrolled me in the Wyndham Rewards program herself (interrupting her lunch to do so, no less), so now I have even more incentive to lodge with these folks in the future.
My only problem was that on the last day, the housekeeper didn't leave me any bath towels; but Dawn brought some to my room just seconds after I called the front desk. I can live with that.
These folks didn't know it, but this was a very stressful trip for me to begin with. I was visiting my 93-year-old aunt, who's not doing too well, and reconnecting with a cousin I hadn't really hung out with for about 40 years. The patience and multiple acts of kindness the staff at this property showed me were most appreciated. Great experience overall, and I look forward to staying here again in the (hopefully) near future. read more