We live in the Allentown area and found ourselves put out of the house for one night due to plumbing work. I knew there was a new Best Western in the area and when I went directly to the website, were offering a "special internet rate" of $58.95. I signed up for their free club membership to get some airline miles as well, tried to reserve at that rate via the webpage but couldn't (kept getting an error box). I finally called the toll-free number, found out that rate was "sold out" and was offered the next rate up on the webpage or $69.99. I sighed a few times and said I'd have to think about it, got offered a $62 "manager's special" rate instead and I took it. By comparison, other decent hotels in the area (Holiday Inn Express, Wingate, Hampton Inn) are $100-$170/night and up. There are a few "no-tell motels" in the $50-70 but they can be pretty iffy.
Awkward location in what used to be a median, with very heavy area traffic. Ignore the webpage directions that make you loop around Route 22, it's ridiculous. Take Route 78W to Tilghman St. West toward the PA Turnpike. Stay straight/to the right on Tilghman when the road splits at Rt 22 after the Turnpike entrance. Hotel will be immediately after on the left.
Nice, clean, huge king room, very nicely decorated and great modern bedding/furniture. A half-wall divides the bed and the sitting area. Nice flat-screen TV but the reception was absolutely awful and snowy, despite the fact they're just using the local cable company. (Hubby assumes they have an internal wiring or box problem.) TV also only visible from the bed, not the couch due to the half wall. The couch was a sofabed, even though we had a standard room and not a suite. There's an in-room coffeepot but what it brewed tasted awful, maybe because the pot was too new or cleaned too aggressively - it was like a mouth full of chemicals and we dumped it. There was a small fridge and microwave.
No hot tub even though the web page said there was one. The interior pool is glass-walled for both the lobby and the parking lot - made us feel too much like fish in a bowl for people going by, especially after dark, and we opted not to use it. Frosting that glass, at least to the outside, might not be a bad idea. It felt very exposed.
Road noise is definiately an issue. We kept the fan running all night to help with white noise. Next time I'd bring a fan or a sleep machine. This could be a real concern for light sleepers, ask for a room away from Tilghman.
Now, let me say for $62 and 250 airline miles, it was FANTASTIC. I couldn't get a room down the street from me for that, and that's at an old, tired motel with an adult video store in the parking lot!! If I was coming to the area for a Dorney or Musikfest or Christkindlmarkt and the rate was reasonable, it would certainly be a top pick.
