SpringHill Suites Downtown Charleston (South Carolina)

The Marriott SpringHill Suites was a very convenient and affordable way to stay near the Charleston historic district. The hotel is located on Ripley Point right across the Ashley River from Charleston.

The hotel features comfortable and clean all-suite rooms. Our family of four had lots of space to spread out between the bedroom and sitting room. Drew elected to sleep on the sofa (a convertible sleeper-sofa). (He could also watch TV late there as well. The room had two televisions.)

Amenities include an outdoor pool, fitness center, a small convenience-store pantry near the front desk, and complementary Internet access and a workstation for guests. The hotel also has wireless Internet. A complimentary buffet breakfast, including Continental breakfast items and a hot food selection, is offered in a breakfast dining area. Each room has a coffee/tea service, mini-refrigerator, and microwave. Ample parking is provided, part in a covered garage.

The hotel was a bit difficult to locate when we arrived at night and did take a bit of time to learn the entries and exits to and from the highways and the bridges over to Charleston. But, Calhoun Street led to the center of the historic district.

At the time we stayed there, the hotel was somewhat isolated in an office park area. There were no stores or restaurants within walking distance. A car is required to go into downtown Charleston, but once there, all-day parking is available at the Visitor Center.

Beware if you try to change your reservation date -- they will bill you anyway! My wife and I reserved a suite here for five nights for an anniversary, but had to change and remove the first day long before the check-in time. I was told "no problem" when I called to change. When we arrived the entire hall stank and the room smelled worse, and the bathroom vent didn't work at all. We were exhausted so we just decided to reserve a room elsewhere (Comfort Suites in North Charleston -- GREAT!) for the rest of the stay, and crash and leave as soon as possible the next morning.

After returning home at the end of the trip we found multiple "authorized transactions" for a total of 9 nights stay at this hotel -- we only stayed one day! I called to complain and was told that we were being given a credit back to our card for two nights. Huh? I let the rep convince me that she knew what she was doing, but I should have known better, because today we now have a charge against our card for those two nights instead of a credit.

Now our transactions are *completely* screwed up, we have been billed for two nights we didn't stay, and are awaiting finalization of a charge for FOUR MORE nights we didn't stay there. I now have to get my credit card company to intervene with disputed charges, try to get the hotel manager to fix things, and hope everything works out. And in the meantime, I'm being charged interest for THEIR screw ups!

We will never, EVER do business with Marriott or its affiliates again. The incompetence of their staff is beyond belief.