Residence Inn by Marriott Sarasota Bradenton, Sarasota

Unfortunately, the Residence Inn in Brandenton/Sarasota seems to have been on quite the downhill slide lately. I stayed here last summer and enjoyed my stay, but this summer has been an entirely different story. From a front-desk employee who takes more breaks than he does guest inquiries to my room flooding twice, it was quite a stay. Plus, the drains in my room had a putrid smell emanating from them that a whole bottle of bleach couldn't kill. And don't even get me started on the animals. Just hope you don't end up adjacent to an unsupervised, restless animal. The smell and noise is enough to drive you crazy. It's the little things that really add up to a less than impressive stay. While the rates have gone up, the rooms themselves don't seem to be benefitting from this increase. The appliances are certainly showing their age and the furniture looks worn out. Heck, they even got rid of the little flower pots and free peppermints that used to be in the rooms. The rooms now have a very sterile and uninviting feel to them, something which you can get elsewhere on the cheap. Save for the one employee, the staff is very friendly and always ready to help. The maid service can be pretty hit-or-miss, although the cleaning woman I've had recently has been excellent. So kudos to them for making my stay as enjoyable as they could. For the money, you can definitely do better than the Residence Inn. However, a new manager recently took over who seems intent on turning this ship around. Let's hope, but until then, do yourself a favor and stay somewhere else. It's not worth the damper it will put on your stay in Sarasota.

I like all! Its clean, the breakfast is excelent, the rooms are large, I will visit promptly.