My stay at the Crowne Plaza Charlotte left a lot to be desired. I drove around the block twice upon arrival, because the front entrance to the hotel was not clearly marked and the hotel's shuttles were blocking the doors. The front desk staff wasn't exactly rude, but they were in no way polite. They acted like I was interrupting their conversation.
I was given a room right next to the elevator, although the hotel was clearly all but empty. Upon getting to my room, I found a CD of "soothing" music that the Crowne Plaza provides to guests to help them "relax." I soon learned that this CD is apparently intended to help you drown out the noise that bleeds through the walls. I could hear every word of the telephone conversation that occurred in the room next to me, and the racket from the elevator kept me up all night.
The bed was one of the worst I have ever encountered. There were crumbs and little pieces of chocolate on top of the "clean" comforter when I got ready for bed, and the pillows felt more like old afghans stuffed into pillowcases. The room itself was dingy, the furniture was in terrible shape, and the thermostat was dysfunctional. The temperature fluctuated between 65-80 degrees all night. In addition, there was a floodlight pointed straight into my window from the parking deck below. The hotel staff had thoughtfully provided a clothespin so that you could shut the curtains, but enough light made it through that I did not have to turn on a lamp to read - and I did plenty of reading that night since it was impossible to sleep!
I generally try to be optimistic and laid back when traveling, but the Crowne Plaza Charlotte really tested my patience. I don't like to complain, and since I was only staying one night, I decided not to contact the front desk about all of these problems. As a result, I got about an hour and a half of sleep on the night before my business meeting, and I will never stay at the Crowne Plaza again.
