Are you sure you want to stay in ESA? Think again. ESA, Downtown Anch, AK. Surprisingly, the place was much cleaner than the Midtown Anchorage ESA's. However, the front desk staff member Lia told me I had reserved a room without a kitchen. She was adamant that I chose the room without the kitchenette, which didn't make any sense since being able to cook for me is one of the reasons why I stay in ESA when I travel for my job. She refused to switch rooms by saying, "Just stay there (room 220) tonight, and we'll do it tomorrow." The next day came. Soa, front desk person told me there's nothing she can do. I asked to speak with a manager. She said her manager would come in later. I asked for the time of her manager's arrival. She said around 10am. I went down and over to the front desk to talk to manager Carol -Later, I learned she was an assistant manager, and Alice was the general manager. I asked Carol to switch the room with the Kitchen. To my surprise, she angrily said, "You need to pay $189 more!" I told her there shouldn't be any additional fees for switching rooms. She then angrily postured and lectured me, saying, "Well, when you made a reservation, you should have been more careful!" and still refused to switch rooms. Her behavior was appalling to me. I realized it was impossible to cross my message with her. She was hostile and combative, almost like she was showing off her power in front of her subordinate, Scarlet. I told Carol I would call the 800 number for help instead. She replied, "Go ahead!" I called the 800 number and requested to speak with the customer liaison. However, the operator told me it couldn't be done since "they don't work on the weekends." But I relate my problem with the operator. Just as I hung up the phone with the operator, I got a call from Carol at the front desk. She told me that she could switch the room without extra fees. I was happy, so I thanked her. I move from 220 to 218. The room was okay, but the thermostat was broken, so I couldn't regulate the temperature. Also, heavy dust with a cheap perfume scent spewed out of the fan when I turned on the air conditioner to cool off the room- a common problem in all ESA rooms where I stayed. On my fifth day of stay, I needed to extend the stay. I requested an extension at the front desk. They refused my request by telling me, "We are fully booked." However, I saw multiple rooms available online, so I made a reservation. All of the staff in Downtown ESA weren't happy about my extension. They all were rude and stone-faced when they saw me. I never missed payments, partied, had visitors, and did not cook food with a strong scent. I was a perfect tenant. On May 5, the day of my checkout, I had another bad experience. As you can see in the photo, they disabled the key system of excess to their parking lot. This was inconvenient since I had to haul my stuff through that door. I placed a small rock to keep the door crack open and loaded my things onto my parked truck near the door. However, the mean-faced Scarlet, monitoring me from her front desk camera, walked over and threw away the rock while I was loading without talking to me.  After loading my stuff, I entered the building through the front door to put the Dolly back inside. I ran into a white couple with a child (about 10 years old). Surprisingly, Scarlet greeted them, "Hi, how are you guys doing this morning?" with a big smile. I'm unsure why I was mistreated by these people, but I swore that I'd never stay in ESA again.

Run as Fast as you can! We checked in at midnight after a late flight arrival. This was the only hotel I could find available & now I see why. Do not stay here!! It’s dirty, gross, and in a bad area. Our room was small, dark & dingy & one of the bedspreads had a warm, liquid on it. There were stains on the carpet & it was sticky to walk on. The bathroom was dirty & had ratty towels. I was actually afraid to go to sleep. The “complimentary” breakfast consisted of hard, expired muffins & coffee. There were several people walking around with ankle monitors on with their parole officers. Seemed the hotel has a contract with the correctional facility next door. Some may have been there for their conjugal visits. Not the place we wanted to be with our teenage sons. We paid an astronomical amount to stay for one night…they sure know how to gouge the tourists. When checking out, the outside doors to come in were locked. I asked why & was told that it was for the safety of the customers. Mind you that most of their customers come from the contract they have with the correctional facility & shelters near. Scary for the tourists & cruise passengers (many elderly) that get tricked into booking this place from their deceiving website. I would NEVER stay here again. We could not wait to get out of there. My parents came to pick us up & we told them not to get out the car because the area was so bad. Run as fast as you can from this place.

Don’t Bother Staying Here. The room never cooled despite the AC being on constantly. The TV remote barely works and needs instructions to operate. The breakfast buffet was horrible coffee and stale/ dry muffins. Parking is limited and this is not the best part of downtown. It does have a medium size refrigerator with freezer and a microwave, but does not come stocked with any flatware. No in room coffee maker. There are no charge ports for charge cords and the available wall outlets are not conveniently located. It is overpriced for what is offered.

Nasty, gross, nope This place is a dump. No pool. Surrounded by homeless. We were afraid to walk to the car. Bathrooms were dirty. Just totally scuzzy. Would never stay here again. This is the kind of hotel that homeless people live in. If that doesn’t tell you what kind of place this is, then maybe you won’t mind. The “breakfast” is granola bars and muffins. “Grab and go.”

Was okay. Room was very cold. Need more outlets near bed to charge electronic devices. Traffic noise from street was loud. Bathroom could use a remolding. Staff was friendly. Breakfast was sad, no orange juice or bagels.