Ramada Inn: Barstow

I just moved from California to Texas. I drove from California to Texas with my cats in my backseat. I had to stay at several hotels along the way and thought I would post reviews about each hotel. Each place I stayed was pet friendly, although each charged a different fee for the privilege of allowing my cats to share the room with me. The first day I only drove 2 hours from Van Nuys where my trip started and I stayed the night at the Ramada Inn in Barstow, California. It was a comfortable place to stay, given that I was dog tired. I had been up 44 hours before getting to the Ramada Inn packing and getting ready for the movers to come. Therefore, I may not have noticed some things that a person who was more awake would have.

Price: I booked all my rooms through Expedia.com using a rebate website called bigcrumbs. The price was okay. I paid $69.87 plus fees which made the total $78.52 (but using bigcrumbs I got a $4.47 rebate on the room). I paid more for some rooms along my route and less for some. This room comes in at about average for room prices. I could have probably gotten something cheaper. There was also a pet deposit of $20 which was also about average for a pet fee. I paid less at some hotels and more at some hotels.

Location: The Ramada Inn had a pretty good location. It was on a main street in Barstow. It also wasn't too far from the I-15 which I traveled into Barstow on, and not terribly far from I-40 which was the interstate I was switching too. It was hid on a back road a bit, but I didn't have any trouble finding it or getting to it. The one thing that was bad about the Ramada's location was that it was next to a train track. I was so tired that the train didn't bother me, but it might bother someone less tired than I was. You could definitely hear the train inside the hotel.

Room Details: It was a nice looking room that was decorated very well. It had cream wall paper that wasn't marred or peeling. A blue/brown/gray patterned carpet that didn't have any overt stains on it. The beds had a gold/red comforter on them and the beds were comfortable. It had two nice framed mirrors on the wall, and two pictures of bamboo. The walls were very nicely decorated. The bathroom was a good size with a tub shower. The bathroom was clean and I had plenty of hot water with good pressure in the shower. The tub drained slow, but I figured it just needed some draino--happens from time to time. The room also had a hair dryer, iron, and free internet. I used the wireless internet and it was very slow. It had a TV supposedly with cable which I didn't turn on. It also had a microwave and a refrigerator (in which I chilled some sodas) that worked well. The room came with a free continental breakfast but I didn't get up early enough to partake of. The website says it has a full spa and laundry facilities but I didn't see or use any of those features. It did have a pool but I didn't use it.

Other information: The staff was nice. The clerk behind the desk was pleasant even though it was 3am when I checked in (they have someone at the desk 24 hours a day). I liked the fact that I could check in so late. That was definitely a bonus. They also put me on the first floor which is a plus when you have pets because it is difficult to carry three cats up stairs or get them to the elevator. The security guard saw that I was overloaded with my suitcase and my pets and offered to help me carry my bag to my room which was also very nice. The next morning, I couldn't get my cat, Carlye, out from under the bed so instead of making the noon check out time it was more like 1pm. The front desk allowed me this late check out with no fuss. One thing I did note about the room itself was that the room was clean but not really clean. The sheets seemed cleaned as did the bathroom but I found a couple of items under the bed when retrieving Carlye (a potato chip bag and a diaper) and I found a toy in the closet.

Overall this was a nice hotel. It was fairly clean, pet friendly, allowed for a late check in, and had friendly staff. I got a good night's sleep there and would stay there again. If your travels take you out to Barstow, CA then you could worse than staying at the Ramada Inn in Barstow.