Hampton Inn Columbia SC/Fort Jackson - Great Graduation Stay

When my one kid was scheduled to graduate Basic Training at Fort Jackson in February of 2013, I immediately made a reservation at the Hampton Inn Columbia SC/Fort Jackson.  It was nearly a brand-new hotel at the time, having just opened within the last six months.

LOCATION & CHECK IN

The Hampton Inn Columbia SC/Fort Jackson is conveniently located to the base.  It is just off of Exit 9 of I-77.  Getting to the hotel was easy.  Getting off of the street it was on and back on to I-77 was a bit more difficult.  I hope they put a traffic light in at the end of the street soon.  It is convenient to many restaurants in the area as well.

The night we arrived was just after “Family Day” at the base.  I had a problem with my debit card I had reserved this on earlier in the month.  They tried to authorize the card and when it was declined, they called my workplace and got an authorization from them.  However, we just switched it to my new card once I arrived there.  Be warned that on busy nights such as events like this at Fort Jackson they will likely try to authorize your credit card and if it’s declined you could find yourself without a room when you arrive.

ROOM

Our room had 2 queen beds in it.  There was plenty of room for the 3 of us for 2 nights.  Even with our luggage.  The beds had the Hampton Cloud 9 bedding on them which I love.  It feels like there is no bedding on you while you sleep, yet I am snuggled in comfort.  The television was a flat-panel with enough stations to keep us entertained while we were in the room, including cartoon and family stations.  There were drawers beneath it for clothing although we lived out of our luggage.  The refrigerator in the room did come in handy as we ordered in both evenings after coming back from the base and had a place to keep leftovers.  Our room overlooked the interstate, although this isn’t a place you go to for the views.

The bathroom was comfortable and spacious.  Hair dryer that worked fine, coffee maker on the counter with a selection of shampoo, conditioner, lotion, soap, etc. The shower pressure was good even in the morning when there were likely so many people getting ready at the same time to head out to graduation.

AMENITIES

Hampton offers a complimentary breakfast with their rooms and this is pretty uniform throughout the chain.  I was kind of disappointed they didn’t have grits instead of oatmeal, this being the south, but otherwise this was fine. The selection of hot items is decent – you are getting food that comes frozen in bags and is reheated so it’s pretty much the quality you expect.  Other than the hot items there was bagels, muffins, pastry, cereal, yogurt, fruit, and a waffle station.  Even on the morning of graduation there was plenty of food out and plenty of seating.

The indoor pool was nice if a little cool in February.  I couldn’t bring myself to get in above my waist although my son enjoyed it just fine.  The biggest disappointment was no Jacuzzi.  I was so looking forward to soaking in it, as was our soldier the afternoon after graduation when he came back to the hotel with us.

Wifi internet access was complimentary and the speed was also fine.  There was a shop near the desk to grab snacks and drinks as well.

FINAL THOUGHTS

This being a brand-new hotel it was in fine shape.  All of the staff we encountered was courteous, despite it being a time when events such as graduation put a strain on them.  They had recommendations for food for us both nights.  The place was comfortable and inviting, with a good location.  The only issues we had were really minor, being getting back to the interstate from the street (something they can’t control) and the lack of Jacuzzi. 

Hampton Inn Spartanburg-North I85 - Convenient Place to Lay Your Head

Traveling south for the kid’s Basic Training graduation, we took a night at the end to go visit some friends up in Spartanburg.  Not wanting to pile all of us into their home, I booked rooms nearby at the Hampton Inn Spartanburg-North I85.  The night we stayed there was plagued by rain.  We arrived there in rain, it rained all night, and it was still drizzling when we left in the morning.  The photos show a bright-looking beautiful building, but in the dreary weather, much of that was lost on us.  It’s in an area with a number of restaurants, although we didn’t try them as we were having dinner over at our friend’s house. 

Located not far off exit 78 of I85, it was easy on and off from both directions. 

CHECK IN & ROOM 

Many of the Hampton Inns right now are undergoing renovations with a new lobby and breakfast area design.  The day we arrived I looked around and asked the woman at the desk about it.  She said they had just finished it that day, as in the last of the new furniture had arrived that morning.  The result is a bright lobby and a much less crowded breakfast area with plenty of seating. 

Our room was typical Hampton Inn.  Two queen beds in the room with the great Cloud Nine bedding.  I swear it feels sometimes like there’s no comforter on me, yet I stay warm.  The new plasma television got plenty of stations to keep us entertained for the brief time we were actually in the room. 

The bathroom was clean and spacious as well.  There was a coffee-maker on the counter-top along with the usual shampoo, conditioner, lotion, etc.  There were plenty of towels for the three of us.  My morning shower was hot and I had no problem with water pressure. 

We slept good in the room which seemed to be at the back of the hotel furthest away from the road.  Even with the rain pouring down, there was no outside noise to keep us awake. 

AMENITIES 

The Hampton Inn Spartanburg-North I85 has an outdoor pool, so it wasn’t open in February.  That was my one disappointment at two of the hotels I stayed at on this trip.  Even “the south” can sometimes be too cold to swim a good chunk of the year and you’d think they would have their pools indoors. 

When we arrived, there were fresh cookies at the desk along with 24 hour coffee, tea & hot chocolate nearby.  The teenager traveling with us made use of the Fitness Center after we came back from our visit and said it was fine.  Most Hamptons now have three pieces of equipment: an elliptical machine, a stairmaster, and a treadmill. 

I didn’t use the business center, but the in-room wifi had a good signal and is complimentary. 

The breakfast in the morning was good.  With the new design, there’s plenty of room to move around even when it’s crowded.  It was pretty empty as we were down there first thing.  The food seemed very fresh although I just had some cereal, a pastry & juice.  There were also hot items available as well as a waffle station, yogurt, bagels, bread, muffins, fruit, and fresh oatmeal.  I’m kind of over Hampton Inn coffee, preferring to stop at Starbucks or elsewhere. 

FINAL THOUGHTS 

Our bill wasn’t under the door but available at the desk.  Everything was fine.  All of the staff we encountered was friendly and talkative. 

I’d have no problem staying here again if I were visiting friends in the area.  I wouldn’t use it as much more than a place to sleep, especially in the winter, since there’s not as much to do with it only having an outdoor pool.  The recent renovations add a lot to the place.  Our room was very clean and I had no issues with it, including no noise issues.  

Hampton Inn & Suites Wilkes-Barre PA - Great Location, Beautiful Hotel

My one kid was graduating Basic Training down in Fort Jackson, SC.  It would be a pretty quick trip down to the area and back, with three of us driving down being cheaper than flying and renting a car.  That meant hotels.  The first night I wasn’t sure how far we’d be able to drive.  I’d just worked the night before so I planned to stop at the Hampton Inn & Suites in Wilkes-Barre PA.  

LOCATION 

Definitely a plus here is the location.  Not only is it fairly easy off & on exit 168 of I81, but it’s also located in an area with a lot of shops and restaurants.  There is an arena nearby and I imagine traffic can sometimes be a nightmare when there’s an event going on, but we didn’t have to deal with any of that.  The only issue I had was there didn’t seem to be any gas stations at this exit that I could find the next morning when we went to leave. 

CHECK-IN & ROOM 

The hotel is a fairly new one.  I can tell that by looking at it, as I work for another hotel in the chain.  There are certain things I picked up on that indicated this, not the least of which is the newer lobby design.  All of the Hampton Inns are supposed to have a similar design by this summer, but it’s pretty easy to tell which hotels were built with that design in mind versus which ones were remodeled to alter the original design.  The front desk is on the left as I walked in with an expansive breakfast and seating area on the right.  It’s quite comfortable with lots of couches and soft chairs as well as the “bar” with plugs for people who want to sit with their electronic devices. 

I had no issues checking in.  The staff was pleasant to deal with.  I have a standing request in my profile for the top floor if it’s available and here we got that.  The room keys are still the electronic locks where you slide the card into the slot. 

The room was quite nice and roomy.  Everything was immaculate, which also helps with the impression of it being a newer hotel.  (A conversation in the morning indicated this was 2-3 years old, which did sort of surprise me.  The hotel is obviously well maintained.)  Two queen-size beds took up most of the room but there was still plenty of room to move around.  The flat-screen television received plenty of stations.  There was a desk for working at as well as a chair between the bed and the far wall, so plenty of places to sit beside the bed. 

The bathroom was also immaculate with plenty of towels for the three of us and enough counter-space for two females to spread out.  There was the usual shampoo, conditioner, moisturizing lotion, etc. here as well as the coffee maker for in-room coffee.  Water pressure was good when I took my shower in the morning. 

AMENITIES 

The first thing we headed to was the indoor pool area.  This has a pool and Jacuzzi.  The Jacuzzi was huge!  It was definitely one of the highlights of the trip.  If every hotel we stayed at had a Jacuzzi like this, I would have been a happy camper. It was nice and hot too.  My son swam in the pool while we soaked in the Jacuzzi.  There were plenty of lounge chairs to relax in as well when I was done with my soak and he wanted to swim a bit longer.  Next to this was the exercise room.  This is another thing Hampton has recently updated and it had a good selection of equipment and weights. 

Breakfast in the morning was typical of hotel breakfast bars and fine by Hampton standards.  I get the hot items all the time, so I tend to stick with just the cereal and fruit.  My son tried a waffle here in the waffle-maker but couldn’t finish it.  There were also bagels, pastry, toast, yogurt, and the hot items which are usually a meat selection and an egg-based protein.  Contrary to popular belief, these are not powdered eggs but eggs that come frozen in a bag and are re-thermed in the bag in a convection oven.  Still not the same as fresh, but I like it for a little something to have in the morning before getting on the road. 

FINAL THOUGHTS 

My bill was under the door and all was right with the world as we left.  I would definitely choose this hotel again, especially when we head in this direction.  The location is great and the hotel itself is cleaned and well-maintained. All of the staff I encountered were pleasant to deal with and we got a good night’s sleep with no noise issues or other disturbances.