Best Western Downtown Motel

This place is a total dive. I had the misfortune to stay here, selecting it sight unseen to earn some best western points. I am not the most picky person having to travel alot on the a measly gov't per diem of 60/night....but OMG-- I would NEVER stay here again. The room reeked of smoke, .there were dust bunnies on the curtains and corners of the room (at least that's what I hope it was)....there were hairs on the floor in the bathroom....and the people who stayed here were scary. Images of bedbugs danced through my head as I tried to sleep here.

Even if the room was clean and the mattress actually had padding over the springs, this would still be a dismal hotel. It has concrete block for room walls--you feel like you are in a prison cell--which is emphasized even more by the scary people staying here with you. My room had an antiquated air conditioner that made more noise than cool air and a tiny 19" tv. Go to the edgewater and sleep like a human being.

Our experience at this motel was not at all like the bad reviews. Our only small complaint was that we couldn't open a window to allow in some fresh air. The room was a bit on the small side, which was irrelevant because we were there only to sleep. More importantly it was very clean. The front desk people were very helpful; in fact I watched the clerk patiently write out very detailed directions for a guest who was unsure how to get to some place in Duluth. Although the motel was sold out, it was very quiet. The design of the motel looks dated, and nobody would mistake it for one of the new places in the Canal Park area, which certainly are more convenient for visits to the harbor area, but those places are much more expensive. In addition, my wife makes business trips as an exhibitor at the Duluth Entertainment Convention Center and has stayed at the BW Downtown nearly a dozen times because offers good value for her needs. If you want to be in the middle of the action in Canal Park, by all means choose one of the several places there. But our experience is that this motel is a good choice if you want to be in downtown.

Come on people... It's not that bad! I stayed in Best Western Downtown Duluth just for one night but it was OK. We payed $93 total for 4 people in one room with two double beds. For this price I wasn't expecting a four-star hotel! Corridors were a little bit smelly, but the room was nice and clean, staff was helpful and the breakfast was a standard set of a muffin, cereal, bread and coffee.The location is really good! It's just 10 minutes walking distance away from the main attractions of Duluth. I recommend BW Dowtown Duluth for a short and cheap stay in Duluth.

Arrived in Duluth on a Saturday and was amazed to find virtually everything full and/or very expensive. Tried this hotel & glad we did. Room was small but clean and orderly. There was a new air conditioner. While it was a smoking room there was no smell. The front desk staff was very friendly and helpful. The continental breakfast is included and is the standard toast/coffee/juice/pastry. Oranges were great. The hotel is centrally located and we walked everywhere. We did note a number of men hanging around on corners several blocks away, so would not want to walk around the non-tourist area after dark.

Based upon the prior review here, we almost didn't book a room at this establishment. Glad that we decided to try it anyway and reach our own decisions. The price was reasonable for the area, the front desk clerk very helpful and accomodating, the room was clean and even though it was a smoking room it did not have any odors that I detected (I am a non-smoker btw). There was continental breakfast in the morning and the office was nice and clean. Would stay here again without hesitation.

I wasn't impressed with this hotel from first arriving. The guy at the front desk wasn't rude, but he wasn't that friendly either. While I was checking in by myself (my boyfriend was waiting in the car) another guy came into the hotel and was standing at the desk near me. The front desk guy wrote my room number large on a piece of paper. I immediately turned the paper over so the guy next to me didn't see it. I would have thought that was a hint but the front desk clerk proceeded to say my room number out loud and how to get find my room. Well one could say it was nice of him to explain how to get to my room (not that it would have been hard) but you should NEVER EVER say a room number out loud in front of other patrons due to security reasons. If I was staying at this hotel by myself I would have been nervous all night.

The area the hotel was in was okay, but only a couple blocks away it seemed a bit sleazy. Each room had an outside entry unless you stay on the top floor. The room itself was okay. The bed was comfortable and I didn't see any hair in the sheets as the other reviews indicated. The room had a table with two shares immediate to your left upon entering. We had a king size bed and there was two end tables next to the bed. Across the bed was a dresser and flat screen LG tv (nice touch). There was an abundant selection of channels to choose from.

The bathroom was another story! You could tell that the bathroom was probably created in the 70's or 80's and was never updated. The tiles were tan and showed their age. There was no fan in the bathroom. The tub/shower was terrible! The tub was very small in width and the shower curtain didn't have those little magnets on the bottom. So while you were taking a shower the curtain would sink into the tub and stick to you. YUCK! There was also hair in the tub that was not ours. The bathroom size itself was large enough to withstand an update. The quick fix they can do for now is get a curved shower bar and curtain with the magnets on the bottom to allow more room. Instead I ended up getting water all over the floor. There also should be a hook on the back of the door. One other thing that was weird, was that the outlet in the bathroom was about 3 feet away from the mirror area on the vanity. So make sure all your electrical appliances have long enough cords.

The free breakfast was a joke. The breakfast area was very small and cramped. When I walked in a maid and the other front desk clerk were standing and talking next to the food areas and there really wasn't room to move around them. The offerings for breakfast were very meager. There was a few cereal options, a few pastries, bread, english muffins, milk, juice, coffee and that was it. No hard boiled eggs. No fruit. Nothing.

The checkout went fine. The front desk clerk was very nice. She could give a few pointers to the guy at night at actually smiling at people who are paying his salary.

Overall, I wouldn't recommend this place. There are other nicer hotels that were just built along Lake Superior. I would recommend checking out one of them instead.

This place is a total dive. I had the misfortune to stay here, selecting it sight unseen to earn some best western points. I am not the most picky person having to travel alot on the a measly gov't per diem of 60/night....but OMG-- I would NEVER stay here again. The room reeked of smoke, .there were dust bunnies on the curtains and corners of the room (at least that's what I hope it was)....there were hairs on the floor in the bathroom....and the people who stayed here were scary. Images of bedbugs danced through my head as I tried to sleep here.

Even if the room was clean and the mattress actually had padding over the springs, this would still be a dismal hotel. It has concrete block for room walls--you feel like you are in a prison cell--which is emphasized even more by the scary people staying here with you. My room had an antiquated air conditioner that made more noise than cool air and a tiny 19" tv. Go to the edgewater and sleep like a human being.

The staff/owner of this Best Western is a very rude unprofessional individual. Booked room over the net, but did not receive waht booked (and confirmed) and no attempts was made to correct problem.

Non-smoking room was booked, but room that was supposed to be non-smoking reeked of smoke.

Unfortunately, due to the season no other hotels had vacancy.

Later in the evening, at a private function, I met one of the executives of the corporation that owns a number of Best Western hotels, including this one.

I voiced my opinion abotht his place and the staff, and was told that they had numerous complaints about this individual, and are planning changes.

I will never stay in this dive again.

However, I will stay Best Western again, as I have always received great service, and this place must be the one exception in the chain.

Non-smoking room smelled like smoke and pee. Stains all over ceilings and floors in room and halls. "Body hair" in the blankets. Absolutly discusting. Very very disappointing. I've never stayed at a hotel this gross before.