| rev:text
| - Far too many problems to recommend this place. If you are an upstanding citizen who expects reasonable accommodations and responsive service, run away from this place. The problems ran the gamut - broken a/c, other maintenance problems, no maid service, unavailable and/or rude employees, overpriced for what you get, and problematic police presence. Let's begin.
I stayed here for about 6 weeks. For the first 3 weeks, the maid never came. I kept asking for maid service, but it never happened. I cornered a maid and she said my room was not on her list. The first time I contacted the front desk, they said they'd take care of it and didn't. The 2nd time I complained, I demanded my room be cleaned immediately. The front desk clerk - who was annoyed that I interrupted her personal cellphone call - threatened to kick me out of the hotel.
She also didn't send a maid. I contacted corporate on Saturday. Corporate told me ESA - a chain of over 500 properties - had only ONE person working the customer service phone for the weekend (ESA said nobody would call me back about my problem until the following week. I was sent an email saying the hotel manager should contact me within 24 hours. I never heard from anybody, ever. This CSR also said - correct or not - that in low occupancy periods such as this hotel was experiencing, that the manager was supposed to be on the premises. I saw the man 3X the entire 6 weeks I was there. He never spoke to me.
There was rarely anybody at the front desk. There was a line of people waiting to do business. Customers would call the front desk with their cell phones or the lobby phone. You'd get an answer half the time. This was extra aggravating because for some reason, the keycards failed frequently, at least once a week, usually more often, locking me out of my room forcing me to go to the desk to get them reactivated. One guy told me he had the district manager's phone number saved as it was often the only way to get a response. He offered it to me but I declined. Customers complained to each other about not being able to check in or check out, etc.
The pool closed at 9 pm, too early, especially considering the summer heat. They closed this early for the convenience of hotel staff. The pool was often dirty, and was closed for several days. The hot tub jets never worked while I was there.
My a/c didn't drain condensate water properly. At some point the a/c failed and started dumping stinky moldy+algae water all over the carpet. ESA offered a room change - the next day. The hilarious thing is that they moved some other sucker into my room the day after I moved out. I know they didn't repair or clean up.
The room's hair dryer caught fire the first time I used it. They didn't have a proper replacement. The microwave was full of soot and stunk terribly every time I used it - I think something in it caught fire at some point. There were lots of details in the room that needed repair. The carpets were filthy and need shampooing. I understand the free wi-fi isn't going to be the best, but it was often too slow even for things like email and loading webpages. And the better internet on offer was overpriced at $30/week or $60/month. I didn't bite because I already didn't trust the quality of anything at this place. The breakfast was snacky bars and coffee. It wasn't available every day, varying with the whims of the staff working that day.
The police. Scottsdale police hung out in the side or rear parking lot every night. 2 or 3 SUVs with officers hanging out and chatting. Must be nice. I had a friend over one evening, and officers harassed him when he left the hotel, asking him what room he went to, what he was doing, who he was seeing. They intimidated him into showing them his cellphone proving where he had been. They told my friend they were aware of prostitution going on in the hotel. If that is the case, why didn't they or the hotel management deal with it directly by removing the problem?
It's considered an "economy" chain, but the pricing is too high - they try to get you for as much as $80/night during what was clearly a low-occupancy period. Weekly rates are no longer offered. ESA pricing is deliberately obscure and complicated. You have to tell ESA how long your stay is, and then they offer you a rate and various discounts. They also email you coupons. If you book through your logged-in online account (if you sign up) or you book from the hotel wi-fi, your quoted rates are higher than if you don't do these things. ESA gives new customers lower intro rates then jacks them up if you decide to extend your visit. The coupons they send also say you can't use them to extend a current reservation.
So sorry, but no I can't recommend this place. I'm providing you this comprehensive review to show you what a money-grubbing ripoff ESA is, and to encourage you to stay away.
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