Slightly better than the Bates Motel

Should you find yourself in need of hotel accommodations in the Little Rock, AR area, I recommend that you seriously rethink your travel plans. The Clinton Library and the ducks walking the red carpet at The Peabody Hotel are both worth your time should you be in town, but you could fly in first thing in the morning, do those two things and catch an evening flight to somewhere good. Plus, I hear there are other Peabody Hotels with red carpet walking ducks so you could take that off your list. Should you have to travel to Little Rock under duress for your child's sport as I did or for business, then I highly DO NOT recommend the downtown La Quinta.

There were a few okay things about it: free wifi, complimentary breakfast (if you are all about fruit loops and giant waffles like my 10 year old), it seemed pretty clean, and the location (quick drive to the River Market/Downtown area- close enough to walk if it wasn't 95 with 140% humidity).

Some glaring omissions from the property: a bar, room service, and a fitness facility (a tiny room with a sad stair master and treadmill does not a fitness area make -yes there was an offsite gym of some sort, but then what to do with the 10 year old?) I know the La Quinta chain falls under the category of a low/mid range hotel or possibly a mid/high range motel so perhaps these items are unreasonable, but they would definitely improve the experience.

Actual bad things: 1. The rattly door. Every single time our neighbors opened and shut their door, ours would rattle like someone was trying to shake it open. The first night whomever was next door had some sort of cause for going in and out approximately 35 times between 11pm & 12am. I actually got out of bed at one point to look through the peep whole and double check that we indeed just had annoying neighbors and we weren't under attack. 2. The lack of toiletries. I thought we would rough it with the sucky shampoo, conditioner and lotion provided. Ha! The joke was on me. There was one tiny bottle of shampoo/conditioner combo and that was it. Everyone knows those combo concoctions are total bull shit! We both have longish, super thick hair. I called my daughter in and we stood there pointing and laughing at the sad little bottle of useless goo. 3. The keys only worked for one day at a time. Our key cards for our room were also to be used to enter the parking garage and "the gym". The second night we were there we get back to the hotel, drive our rented sweet Grand Marquis to the parking garage gate insert key card and nothing. Denied! I then back up the boat of a car, go in and without asking for my name or id, only my room #, the front desk dude resets my cards. The third night we roll in and the parking garage gate is open. We get all the way to the room and the door will not open. Red light. Denied. Downstairs we go and again only asked for the room number and the cards are reset. The fourth night we roll in and the garage gate is open. We get to our room. Red light. Denied. Downstairs. Keys reset with only a room number. Back upstairs. Red light. Denied again! Downstairs. The front desk dude apologizes again and resets again. I tell him if I can't get in I am calling him and he's coming upstairs. The chick at the front desk then says to me in a somewhat bitchy know-it-all type voice, "What color light are you getting, red or green?" Barely able to contain myself from jumping over the desk and smacking her, I reply "Red." Stupid front desk chick then says, "Oh, sometimes people get green and don't know which way to turn the handle." There are times when it is best to say nothing at all. I did stare at her for a good 10 seconds before schlepping away. I kinda wish I had just said what I was thinking which was, "Are you fucking kidding me?!?" Maybe I should call now and ask her, but I don't know her name. My daughter could not believe I didn't let lose on these people. I think she was starving for some entertainment. 4. They only clean your room when they feel like it. 5. The wall mounted hair dryer kept falling off the wall.

The good news is we stayed 4 nights, had 5 "free" breakfasts and my bill was under $350. I guess sometimes you actually do get what you pay for.

Peace & Love :-)