Homewood Suites by Hilton Bloomington

Excellent Really closer to four and a half stars than to five, but I'm being generous in how I break the tie today. Several good things going for this. The front desk staff were friendly and helpful. Breakfast had a lot more variety than the typical chain hotel breakfast -- ours even had tasty chicken carnitas and potato pancakes, which made me happy. The rooms themselves are clean and well laid out. The two-bedroom suite was just ideal for us; the kitchen area was very convenient and it was a lot less expensive than having to get two rooms to lodge our family, which we often have to do at hotels that lack such suites. The bathrooms are divided into parts so that one person can use the shower room while the other is using the sink. Little things like that make a difference. The hotel was also quiet and well-maintained. If I had one minor complaint it was that the bed was quite soft, which meant that I felt every slight movement and vibration emanating from my spouse. My sleep was a little fitful as a result. But other than that, have only good things to say about this hotel.

Extra amenity!! This hotel is in a very quiet area 1 exit down from shopping and restaurants. Staff was very kind and professional. The b-fast was never really busy and crazy like some places. Waffles/ eggs/ shredded pork and tortillas. NO Gluten free stuff. The 2 computers they have one is trash monitor is 90% blacked out and the other computer never loads the websites one needs. Rooms are spacious but this is where the ratings fall. My wife found an open box that once contained a strap-on in my daughters dresser. I can't make this up. Staff needs to take their time and go through all drawers and places where paper and trash hides. Rooms needed to be more thoroughly cleaned and vacuumed. The TV's are not smart TV so no Netflix etc. One must pay $10 to view a movie that you cannot stop and continue later. Management needs to over see more often and give staff more help to take their time and catch the little things.

Wonderful room and hospitality We stayed two nights in April for the total eclipse. I think they were fully booked and I was expecting chaos. Instead, I was pleasantly surprised with a wonderful, comfortable stay. The two ladies working at the desk (so sorry that I don’t remember their names) were so friendly, welcoming, and helpful. They were genuinely excited that we were there for the eclipse and were happy to provide information on restaurants and answer our questions. Our room was large, clean, and comfortable. It was fantastic to have a full-size refrigerator and freezer since we brought a cooler full of food for our road trip. Breakfast was great, and the people working kept up with the crowd very well. We really appreciated feeling welcomed during this crazy time for Bloomington! I will note that this is a dog-friendly hotel, and there were several dogs and some barking. It did not bother me, but it’s something to be aware of if you do not like dogs.

Credit card fraud Booked a points stay with them and checked in online as we arrived. When we got there we asked to be moved to the 4th floor from the second. No worries. Room changed. After leaving and driving home, I get three text messages and a phone call that they need a credit card, that they had an issue with their system. I called and explained, again, that it was a points stay, we didn’t charge anything to the room, so they didn’t need a credit card. I let them know they needed to figure out whatever mistake they had made and correct it. At 8pm that night I get a receipt for my stay. They charged a card that I had used in January, for my stay in March. I did not give them a card at check in, or give them consent to charge that card for any reason. I called Hilton Honors and spent an hour and a half on the phone with a very nice supervisor”Mike”. Cinnamon, the girl who switched our rooms had cancelled our points stay and rebooked the fourth floor room. The issue being, you can’t book a points stay from the desk. Then, after speaking to me, one of the girls “SKelly42” as listed as cashier on my receipt decided to charge my card for $311.00. Mike reversed the charges and refunded my points. Kudos Mike. I just wanted my money back. This hasn’t turned me off of Hilton properties, but this hotel???? For sure. I spoke to a manager today…. I think her name was Jessica.. She apologized but said it was common to go back and use cards on file for long term stays. We were there from Thursday to Sunday. It still does not give them the right to charge a card they weren’t given at check in. I say train your staff to not commit credit card fraud until managers arrive and they get things settled. Now for the stay…. 90 degrees in the floors with the heaters running full blast. Staff on their phones in the kitchen letting breakfast food run out.. you may or may not get coffee, but definitely a dirty look if you ask about the coffee. The handle in the shower was broken, you had to fumble with it to turn the water on. If you don’t leave the fan run in the bathroom, the sewer smell comes up and is horrible. At least in room 423. The beds are comfy and the rooms are clean. Julie Carter is the sales rep. She’s aces but was out while we were there. Her card is at the front desk. Unfortunately we won’t be staying here again. A little back story, we have been visiting this property for the past 11 years. I think it was pretty new when we started staying here. My boys were in high school. They are grown and have families now. We go back to visit and chose Homewood for it’s amenities and location. From now on, we will just stay downtown Bloomington.

Hotel Commits Credit Card Fraud! DO NOT STAY HERE! They commit credit card fraud!!!!! We have stayed here numerous times, about once a year at least, over the last nine years. We stayed there in January and again over St. Patrick’s weekend. The temperature in the 4th floor hallway was upwards of 80 degrees the entire 4 days. It was about 65 outside each day. The shower handle took both hands to turn on the water. The breakfast was not as indicated on the calendar. The workers in that area spend time serving themselves and on their cell phones allowing the drinks and food to run out. The hand sanitizer was empty daily at the elevator while the maintenance man sat outside in the outside dining area smoking cigarettes, drinking some cranberry drink/cocktail, and on his phone all day long. We were discussing staying somewhere else on our next trip to Bloomington on the way home today due to the downhill nature of the place. Now, we know we will NEVER stay here again. Our stays here are always on points due to the amount of travel done. When we checked in on Thursday, the clerk did not ask for a credit card for incidentals. She politely changed our room to the 4th floor and handed us our honors cookies & water. Today when we arrived home the front desk clerk called asking for a credit card. We explained that it was booked with points and refused to provide a credit card. She had to be corrected multiple times when she kept saying she would have to talk to her manager to let her know we wanted to change to points. That was not what she was being told. We repeatedly told her it was booked with points! Some 3 hours later, this hotel went back into our January stay, pulled up credit card information they are not supposed to retain and billed us for this stay. This is COMPLETELY illegal. Apparently, it is the norm for this hotel!!!