This hotel's motel-style outdoor room entry is troublesome. The hotel is located on a main road in a fairly populated part of the University of Virginia and it can be noisy, drafty, or both. The room was clean but the decor was straight out of 1971. Also, the lighting was extremely difficult: There was no light switch near the entrance, so I had to fumble around in the dark and eventually found the bed light. There was no overhead light to speak of.

After cranking up the heat (on admittedly one of the coldest nights Charlottesville has seen this winter) I heard what sounded like a medium-size leafblower starting. This was the heating. To my relief/dismay, it went off five minutes later leaving me in peace, yet frigid throughout the night.

The one bright spot was the front desk head. The next morning he lent me an ice scrapper to clear my rental car's windshield. That was kind of him.

We booked this hotel on Best Western's website and recieved a discount. But that should have alerted us right then. The rooms looked clean on the surface upon walking in but that changed right away. The furniture was old and scratched, and the blankets and sheets smelled very badly. The TV looked alright, but half the channels were fuzzy. The carpet looked fairly clean, but I didn't let my kids or myself walk on it w/o shoes. The bathroom sink, which was located outside of the actual bathroom was the cleanest thing in the whole room. The bathroom toilet and tub was filthy. Mold everywhere: on the ceiling, floor, walls, etc.... The shower wouldn't work properly and didn't drain. We had to literally pull the nasty plug out completely for it to drain. The coffee pot still had old coffee grinds in it for who knows how long, plus it didn't work. The alarm clock worked but looked like it was from the 1980's. The trim around the doors and walls were filthy with hand prints and dirt. And to top it all off, around 10pm on a Saturday night, a huge riot formed in the parking lot with yelling and fighting. About 5 police cars came and broke it up about an hour later. We would never stay in this hotel again.

This particular Best Western is in serious need of refurbishment and not up to their normal standard. Luckily we were only there for one night. They had no record of our booking on arrival, although I had an e-mail confirmation, however they had rooms available. Room was acceptable but again in need of a make-over. Reception staff were helpful and pleasant and breakfast was the standard Continental style help yourself. The location is good, a short walk from UVA which is well worth a visit, and a short drive or taxi ride to historic downtown area which is lovely.

I pulled in on a Saturaday around 4pm and the first thing I noticed when getting out of the car was a 'stinky' smell. I picked this hotel as I was traveling with 3 high school kids checking out colleges. I had read it was within walking distance to the University of Virginia and to me...was reasonably priced. We were given 2 adjoining rooms on the street side and walking up to the rooms the smell lingered. Upon entering the room the smell disappeared and the room, although outdated was okay. The best part of the hotel is its location...we walked to the Rotunda and an area called "The Corner" where there were a few college type stores and dining options. The only time I smelled the unpleasant odor was when we first arrived...never again upon entering or leaving the room. Would I stay there again? I don't know....i think first of all i would check out other options.