Great place to stay! I really enjoyed myself

Customer service need to be better Our first night they gave us a dirty room. Food on the floor in closet. Leak in bathroom over toilet. They were nice to move us to another room. Ok I understand the ice machine on floor wasn't working because there was a sign. Our last night the air conditioner went out. Have the error sign H3. Security came to see if she can adjust thermostat but it didn't work for either. First thing she said it is hot in here. We talk with someone at the desk at 12 am said they will send a fan up to our room because there was no available rooms to place us. OK 2 hours went by mind you still hot. So I went downstairs as soon as I open the door the damn hallway was cool as our room. You know that made me madder because I have to go get the fan. Customer service is a @#$$-. Since I got the fan the boys finally went to sleep. I'm writing this review and talking 2 Tylenol so I can go to sleep for my flight back to Maryland. I wouldn't write this review if the fan was brought to our room showing that they was concern about the situation of our health in a hot room.

Formal Complaint – Unauthorized Charges and Unprofessional Conduct at Sonesta There’s an old saying: “You can do a thousand things right, but people always remember how you made them feel when something goes wrong.” I have been staying at Sonesta for a little over a month, and for most of that time, I prepaid through third-party platforms like Priceline and Vivo, using my business PayPal account to authorize incidental holds. However, during the last week, I began booking directly through the hotel, and that’s when the billing issues began. The agreement was simple: my Wells Fargo debit card would be charged for the daily room rate of $68 (including taxes and fees), and my PayPal account would be charged a $50 incidental hold. On July 2, 2025, my accounts were authorized for a total of $254.00, including one $68.00 authorization on PayPal, two $68.00 authorizations on Wells Fargo, and one $50.00 incidental charge. However, the only approved and expected authorizations were $68 for the room and $50 for incidentals, totaling $118. On July 3, both my PayPal and Wells Fargo accounts were charged, totaling $186.00. I spoke with Brandi at the front desk, who kindly assured me that the Director of Revenue was aware and would address the issue. At that point, I felt optimistic that it would be resolved. However, early the next morning on July 4 at approximately 2:51 a.m., I received new notifications of two additional attempted debits from Sonesta one for $18 and another for $68 even though my stay had been fully paid at check-in on July 3, with checkout scheduled for 11 a.m. on the 4th. I raised my concerns again with Brandi, who confirmed that she would escalate the matter to the Guest Services Manager, Alicia. On the morning of July 5, I discovered that both of my accounts had been charged again at 5:51 a.m. I went downstairs around 7am or 8am. to speak with Alicia. I showed her transaction histories from both PayPal and Wells Fargo, including two different authorizations and transaction IDs. While Alicia seemed willing to help, she continued to insist that she could not locate the duplicate charges in her system. I explained that I had been double-charged for three days and requested that the hotel only charge my PayPal account for the $50 incidental going forward. Alicia, offered to contact PayPal and write an email explaining the situation on her end so I could try to get my funds released. However, when Alicia got on the phone with the Paypal representative, she told them the only card the hotel authorized was Wellsfargo. A completely different narrative to the one that she had given me earlier when blaming the morning guest services rep who wasn't at the hotel when the transactions were completed. I then informed Alicia that I wanted to explore alternative options for checking back into my room under a new reservation or, at the very least, extending my existing reservation. I explained that it made no sense for the hotel to charge my account and then claim it could not make an accommodation for continued stay. Alicia acknowledged my request and said to give her some time to see what she could do. The burden of resolving these errors continued to fall on me, despite the clear evidence that the mistakes originated from the hotel's end. Later, I called the front desk again and spoke with Alicia, who said she still could not locate the additional charges and that she needed more time to work on the issue. I gave her several more hours. By the time I called back again Alicia had left for the day. I was livid that she left before my concerns were resolved. Thankfully Trina extended my stay and I was able to relax a bit but I was completely stressed out. Trina also advised me that Alicia left notes on the account stating she only released "ONE" of the pending authorizations for $68. I asked Trina why would Alicia refund the account if the goal was to stay and she already had a pending authorization that could be finalized. Trina couldn't answer the question but encouraged me to follow up with Alicia in the morning. On July 6, I went downstairs before church to request a late checkout. Alicia gave me what I perceived as a death stare, rolled her eyes, and initially refused to acknowledge my request. I calmly asked again and was given a dismissive response. I left for church despite feeling disrespected, hoping to return in a better headspace to resolve the billing matter. When I returned, Alicia’s demeanor remained hostile—cold, dismissive, and antagonistic. Josh, the head of security, also greeted me with visible discomfort, which was unusual compared to the warm reception I had typically received. I am highly attuned to energy and situational behavior, and this shift in demeanor was undeniable. When I asked Alicia why her tone had changed, she accused me of having an attitude. I calmly responded that I was in a good mood and that what I would not accept was her projecting frustration onto me. I reminded her that I never authorized the hotel to overcharge me, and I expressed that I was disappointed she left for the day without fully resolving the matter or communicating that she had issued a refund. I asked why I had to learn about the refund from Trina, and why my reservation had to be manually extended for the refund to even matter. I then asked Alicia to explain a new charge of $78, especially given that my daily rate was $68. She told me it was for outstanding incidentals, but she could not identify the date, item, or service to which it applied. I asked again for an itemized breakdown, and she could not provide one. At that point, Josh asked to see proof of the overcharges. I showed him my records, and his entire demeanor shifted. He went from discomfort to understanding that my concerns of being overcharged were in fact legitimate. What made matters worse was the subtle yet damaging implication that I was somehow trying to deceive the hotel or avoid paying my bill when in fact, I had already been overcharged and was seeking a fair resolution. Her inability to own the mistake and her attempts to project guilt onto me not only felt like gaslighting, but also deeply undermined the professional standards I expect from a hospitality provider. Ultimately, I made the decision not to rebook with Sonesta due to the repeated unauthorized charges, the hotel’s failure to properly resolve the billing discrepancies, and the unprofessional, at times disrespectful, treatment I received—particularly from Alicia. Though she initially appeared helpful, her behavior quickly turned hostile and evasive once the billing concerns escalated. This entire experience left me frustrated, financially disrupted, and emotionally drained. Based on this, I cannot in good faith recommend Sonesta to others.

Excellent Guest Service Experience! ❤️ My stay at sonesta hotel has been amazing. I’ve stayed at many hotels but the sonestas guest experience is better than the highest chain of hotels. Lead by Alicia who has been a remarkable host and has pivoted many challenges from long lines, to capacity planning and e during new people are well trained Alicia makes sure every guest has an amazing experience! One example: a guest walked in from American Airlines, I happen to be at the counter being served by Brandi. The guest was visibly flustered from his travels and when the hotels system was down the guest was frustrated he couldn’t check in right away. Already delayed and rerouted to Charlotte by American Airlines he was clearly ready to go off. Alicia very calmly said “I can tell you exhausted, I am working as quickly as I can to get the system back up and running”. “If you take a seat I can have the kitchen bring you something and as soon as I can I will be with you”! The guest immediately calmed down and said you know it’s just frustrating that I’ve had a long day and I can’t check right in but I understand. I mean that kind of professionalism under pressure from guest that are dealing with circumstances beyond their control with major inconvenience is amazing and it has been an immense pleasure to get to know the entire guest services team! I will be referring my employees here for future travel for our business needs!