My family and I recently stayed at the Anaheim Portofino Inn & Suites on 06/20-06/22 in a family suite, which included a bunk bed & pull out sofa. We usually stay across the street from Disneyland at Tropicana Inn & Suites or SpringHill Suites Convention Center, which is located next to Portofino Inn. Unfortunately, both of these hotels had no availability, so we decided to give Portofino Inn a chance. We were very disappointed with the service, quality & overall visit here. If I could give them 0 stars, I would.
First, I called on Wednesday 06/17 & spoke to Jennifer C. with reservations. I asked for pricing & what was included in the pricing. She advised me the room included the bunk bed & pull out sofa. She also told me the price would be $366.58 after taxes, with free parking included in the price if I paid up front, she also mentioned that there would be a $50/night card hold for incidentals (as most hotels do). I asked her if she was sure that was all for pricing & I was reassured that was all. I told her to go ahead and make the reservation. She informed me that my payment would be taken out within 24 hours & I would receive a confirmation email.
Shortly after our phone call, I received an email stating that our stay was going to be $436.92 and parking was going to be $30/night as well as the incidental $50/night card hold. I checked my banking app, and nothing was taken out yet. I called reservations again and spoke to another Jennifer. I had explained was I was told about pricing by the previous Jennifer & the email I received. She advised me that on her end it showed $366.58 as well so she wasn’t sure why I received the email I did. She also mentioned that she didn’t know why I was told the parking was included in the fee if it is $15/night on her end. She said I would only be getting $366.58 taken out & if I had any concerns to call again.
The next morning, the payment of $436.92 was taken out of my account. I called the hotel directly around 9 in the morning on 06/18. To my surprise, I spoke to the manager Edgar, I explained my situation with the reservation. He then said the parking is $30/night & it is not $15/night nor included. I explained my frustration with the back and forth, and said “yeah it’s $30” instead of honoring what I was told by the reservation line. I then asked if I can cancel the reservation and get my money back, he told me I had until 12 PM that day to get a refund, but funds take anywhere from 3-7 business days to be returned. Considering our trip was that Saturday, I would not be receiving our money back in time. We decided to stay with the reservation. The unprofessionalism & insignificant knowledge of the hotel fees with the reservation line should’ve been my first red flag to cancel.
Prior to arrival, I called and spoke to Cindy at the hotel to ensure our reservation was still there on her end & I asked to speak to Edgar, she mentioned he was at a meeting. I then explained the situation about being told parking was included by reservations, & she easily honored that compared to the hotel manager not being professional and doing that for us.
We arrived on 06/20 around 4:30 pm (check in is at 4 pm). Upon check in, I was greeted by Jesus the hotel supervisor. He took our card for incidentals & gave me our hotel room card keys.
We were in the second building on the 5th floor. We unloaded & headed up with our belongings. Upon entering the building, it was very hot inside while we waited for the elevator. The second we got into our room, we all had a foul smell of urine / musty scent hit us. There was also a hole in the room chair. We left our bags in the room & headed out for dinner. Prior to leaving, I stopped by the front desk, & advised Jesus the room smelled & if housekeeping can spray something for the scent. He said yes & would send someone. We ate dinner & headed back. Once we arrived back, the room smelled more clean almost like they sprayed either a disinfectant spray or fabric spray.
Around 10 PM, once my children were getting ready for bed, we noticed a musty scent again. I then sprayed my perfume around for the meanwhile. While I was getting out my children’s clothes for the next day, I noticed the sink outside of the bathroom was leaking significantly. I tried calling the front desk, with the room phone, but to my luck it was not working. I then had to call with my cell phone. I advised the front desk & they sent maintenance up. Once maintenance arrived, he checked out the area & said that whoever did the previous pipe did it wrong & it needed to be fixed and he tightened it as much as he could and he would be back tomorrow morning to fix it. He also mentioned he had a machine to extract the dampness from the area. As the area under the sink was soaked and smelled moldy & musty. He left.
I then showered and when I came out. I noticed it was leaking still, I went to the front desk again & advised the young girl working it was leaking & that the entire hotel smells like marijuana & if there’s anyway we could be switched rooms or get our money refunded. She said she was going to leave a note for Jesus so he can compensate us as she could not move us since there was no rooms. She gave me two bath mats and said she will send maintenance up again. Maintenance returned & gave me a bucket to put under the sink. Overnight, there was still leakage.
In the morning, I stopped by the front desk & talked to Jesus. He told me that maintenance was going to go in & fix the issue. I also mentioned that I didn’t like how it smelled like marijuana all around & all he told me was “whoever it is will be fined $250”. We then left to Disneyland and were there all day and returned until the night. During the day, I called the hotel to see if the issue was fixed & Jesus ensured me it was, I asked if we can get a new room & he said to advise him so he can get it ready. Unfortunately we came back until almost midnight with our toddlers.
Once we arrived back in the late night, we were way too exhausted to switch everyone and our belongings. So we slept, packed up our things & left as soon as we could in the morning. Upon check out, Jesus did not ask how our visit was or anything. I believe since he knew we were unhappy with our stay.
Besides that experience, I would stay away if I were you. The hotel is very dirty & even just being in there made us feel dirty. Everything is run down. The hotel is advertised as “family friendly” yet throughout the hotel hallways and even the parking it smelled like marijuana all over. There’s mold all over the bathroom, which explains the musty scent. This is a very unsafe/unhealthy environment for anyone, especially families with little children or older family members who can easily get sick from the mold. I have an immune-compromised toddler & am happy we left before he could get sick.
This is the first and last time we will ever stay here. I don’t think a refund can even compensate for the experience here. I’m hoping a manager can reach out directly to fix this issue.
US
AU