My husband and I checked in for a Park and Go as we had a 6AM flight the following morning. We selected the hotel based on our experiences with Hilton and the fact that the hotel site showed an airport shuttle. At check-in, the extremely effusive desk clerk assured us that the van began service at 4:45AM and that would be plenty of time to get us to the nearby airport. We said we would be in the lobby the following morning for the 4:45 shuttle. The next day we arrived in the lobby at 4:38AM. By 4:45 no van was in sight nor was there any sign of life at the front desk. My husband knocked on the office door. No answer. Two minutes later, I knocked on the same door. No answer. I walked into the nearby hall. No one around. I walked behind the front desk and pushed various buttons on the telephone. No answers. I did leave a message for the General Manager. We called Uber and took it to the airport. As we were heading to a pheasant shoot, we had "baggage" which needed additional scrutiny. Even with our TSA-precheck, we walked directly from security onto the jetway. Not the kind to pressure I enjoy.
Arriving at our destination, I did have a voice mail from Tara, the manager, but I opted to address the situation upon our return. When we landed as few days later, I waited until we had collected our luggage before calling for the van. Hannah at the Hampton was great and said she'd send it right over. After 12 minutes, there was no van (it is literally a 3 minute drive!) so I called back and Hannah politely said she'd check on it. At that moment a policeman, who must have noticed our "case," approached us warily to enquire why we had been standing in front of the airport for so long. I told Hannah to
forget the van and we took a taxi. WOW!! Let down on both ends of the trip!! And we still had an hour and a half drive back home.
After returning home, I called the hotel and eventually spoke with Connor, the assistant manager, who listened patiently to all of the above, apologized for the inconvenience and offered us a $50 refund as well covering the cost of the Uber.
Bottom Line: our room was great; the bed comfortable. The "hotel van" is shared with one or two nearby hotels and, while I am all for economy, this fact should be made known to clients, along with a realistic timetable. Would I stay here again? Definitely not, if I were flying into or out of Roanoke. Otherwise, maybe.
