Hotel Days Inn By Wyndham Bradenton - Near The Gulf (Bradenton, USA)

It’s that first impression that counts and here, the welcome you get from the front desk is warm and genuine. The friendly staff members are a real plus feature here.

Rooms are clean and have a pleasing smell that indicates regular cleaning and maintenance. There are some significant exceptions which should be rectified by more stringent cleaning procedures.

The café is right next door and starts serving breakfast from very early morning. Breakfast here is terrific … far better than what you’d expect from a hotel. Again, in the café, everyone is really friendly.

Visiting the Gulf? … Then prepare to gulp! It’s a good 45 minutes away. The surrounding neighborhood isn’t very appealing, either; although there’s little sign of any real trouble. There are some dubious characters in the hotel as well, which is a bit worrying.

The ice machine is regularly out of ice and nobody attends to it. Other room related problems include furniture which is almost derelict. Beds are comfy, though. Annoyingly, there is no ESPN on the TV.

Carpets are so dirty that you feel obliged to keep your shoes on. Go to the front desk to register a complaint about this, or a number of other room cleanliness issues … and an interesting scene unfolds. Front desk staff just leaves their post for very extended periods, so it’s impossible to get a solution. When they finally give in and return, you may see the offer of a room transfer as being a solution. It ain’t necessarily so … because the alternative room can be as bad as the one you are in.