First time in Alabama for a family reunion. We'd never heard of this hotel but gave it a chance after reading good reviews. Greeted warmly by the wonderful staff. We reserved a suite but none were available (something about flooding victims). We understood and didn't mind squeezing into a smaller room (we've experienced this before with hurricane and fire victims). Instead we were given two rooms which was more than enough space. The rooms are a bit cramped with the over-sized furniture. Fully equipped kitchen. Very tiny pool. Restaurants within walking distance.

My friend and I were on the way to Gulf Shores Alabama, we stopped at the Welcome Center across the Alabama line just south of Tennessee on I 65. We met some people from Decatur Alabama serving popcorn and sodas. They said they do this every year on Good Friday to ask people to stay in Decatur on their way down or back up from their Easter weekend trips. We met three ladies from Home-Towne Suites Decatur, they were so warm and friendly and excited about us coming to stay at their hotel, we decided to take the time to try it. We were not disappointed. We had a great stay, the service was great. The rooms were cozy and clean. We loved having our own kitchen. We now call this our new Home away from Home. We plan to go back for a weekend this summer.

Our stay was not only business but personal also. While my husband worked we stayed at the hotel. The staff and facility was amazing. That word is hard to use in our economy now because people seem to cut what is important "Service". The hotel and staff from checkin, the house-keepers, the after hours service to the pool, on-site laundry, cook-out grills and the home away from home care such as activities(the hotel host: volleyball, cajun food, local appatizer night and more) that includes the whole family to indv. and you can not forget the warm cookies that come with a smile and "how is your day" when you pass any of the staff.
If you are coming to this area for a few days or months I would highly recommend Home-Towne Suites for you or your family when you have to be away.
Also don't forget this hotel has gone a little futher for you also.... need a night out, need dinner, they have established discounts with local vendors/resturants for you while you are in the area. They go over this at check in..enjoy your stay we did. We may see you there cause we will be back.

We were so excited to see the layout of the family suite. The room was affordable, had a full kitchen, dining room table, and a separate bedroom where we could take our youngest to bed while the older kids could stay up watching tv in the main room and eventually fall asleep on the queen bed, sofa-sleeper, and recliner. The grounds were very pretty, nicely landscaped, and well-maintained. Everything was quite impressive - until we entered the doorway of the wing we were to stay in. The odor was almost overwhelming. The hall and stairwell reeked of cigarette smoke, animals, and dirty bodies. We were a little worried, but when we opened the door of our suite, we had to step back into the hallway for breathable air. Even as a former smoker, I have never been in a room that smelled more strongly of cigarette smoke, bars included. Within a few minutes, we all had watery eyes and were constantly clearing our throats. Being surrounded by a lake, the town is very humid, and the odor permeated everything in the room: bedding, pillows,curtains, clean towels, carpet, sofa, recliner, and especially the air conditioner. When we called the front desk and requested a non-smoking room, we were told that it was non-smoking. We said there must be a mistake and were then given the following explanation. None of the rooms, we were told, were ever truly non-smoking because they "rotated" the smoking rooms. The desk clerk, who was very pleasant and friendly, said she would try to find a room that didn't smell quite so bad, but she doubted there would be one and it was time for her to leave for the night. (There are no employees present at all after about 6:00 pm!) We waited and waited until we finally realized that she had left and we were stuck in that room. We couldn't even check out and go to another hotel because there wasn't anyone working anymore.
Our next problem was the state of the sofa and recliner. I was stunned at the condition they were in. Both were covered in stains, holes, and rips (several of which seemed to be slash marks). I didn't expect the furniture to be in perfect condition, but the amount of staining was extreme, over about 90% of the surfaces and even running completely down the sides to the floor. We had to cover them with the bedspreads because, believe it or not, I'd rather my children sat on them than on the furniture.
The final hurrah was on the dining table. It was niceley set to make it look homey, but one of the glasses had sticky dried soda in the bottom of it. That put an end to the idea of saving a little money by making dinner and breakfast instead of eating out.
We made it through the night by turning off the air conditioners (where the strongest odors were coming from) and opening the windows. It was a long, hot, humid, Alabama night in August. By morning, our clean clothes had picked up the smell of the room, and showering couldn't remove the odors from our hair. I was embarrassed by the state we were in when we arrived at our final destination later that day.
The only highlight of our stay was the resaturant that the desk clerk had recommended. Mc Collum's Catfish & Seafood Restaurant has the best scallops and fried oysters I've ever eaten!
Needless to say, we cancelled our reservation for our return trip the following week. Doing so was hassle-free.
It's truly a shame that the rooms were in such bad shape. With the way the family suites are designed, this could be an ideal solution for a larger family traveling within a budget. Hopefully this is not a typical example of all Home-Towne Suites; that it is merely an unfortunate result of high humidity, rotation of smoking rooms, and thirsty yet forgetful housekeepers. I can't come up with an excuse for the furniture, though....