We priced the Red Lion - Stapleton on Priceline for a total of $63/nt, which seemed like a pretty good deal until I read all these horror stories. However, the stories were not entirely true; Red Lion is certainly due for a room renovation, but it's not disgusting. It looks dingy as hell from the outside, but the lobby and restaurant area are tasteful.
We stayed on the second floor, about 2 rooms away from the elevator. Beds were acceptable. The bed linens were thin. The TV was a regular tube TV, but big enough to see adequately, and had a good cable selection (Cartoon Network, all right!). Our drapes had some holes in them and they felt dirty, but weren't awful. The room is relatively big, but sparsely furnished. Sound quality of the room was regular - not bad, but not great. Industrial-looking stairwells aren't the most convenient, but are the fastest way to get from floor to floor (elevator's a little slow). Check-in was quick and efficient, and check-out was standard. The Sunday morning clerk was nice enough to open up the store at 6:30 AM so we could get some ibuprofen.
What WAS surprising was the Bath & Body Works bath amenities! We had Coconut Lime Verbena facial bars, Warm Vanilla Sugar bath bars, and Coconut Lime Verbena shampoo / Conditioner / Lotion. Towels are the cheap, scratchy kind though. But the soap was great and I got a few extras to take along for the rest of our trip (beats that weird-smelling "french-milled" standard hotel stuff).
The area itself is called Stapleton, which is an urban redevelopment project. There is a mall about three blocks away that has standard stores (Big 5 Sporting Goods, Wal-Mart, IHOP, etc.), but if you cross the interstate, there's a slightly more upscale mall nearby (Macy's, Target, brazillian steakhouse). Nothing is really within "walking" distance (it would be unsafe to try and run across traffic without any dedicated sidewalks), but driving is not a hassle.
Would I stay here again? Yes, it is a budget-quality hotel and had a budget-quality price at the time we stayed. If they renovate the rooms, it will be a deal if the prices don't change.










