At 3pm on a Wed, my family found out my father had to have open heart surgery in Edina so we needed a place to stay for 6 nights near the hospital. On Kayak we found this Extended StayAmerica for $70-$80 per night, varying based on the night (weekends cheaper). The rate would have dropped another $10/day had we stayed 7+ nights. It was my sister and I so we opted for one of their 2 double bed rooms.

First the good: 1) Price – cheapest in the area. 2) Location – safe & very, very quiet because it’s set back from the road. As noted below, nothing within walking distance but lots within a short drive and most important for us, near the hospital. 3) Full fridge & kitchenette – it was nice to go grocery shopping once and not have to eat out for every meal. 4) Bathroom – good size with excellent water pressure. Two people could easily use it at the same time though only one sink. 5) Windows – unlike most hotels, these windows are large and can fully open. On the mild days, we left them open all day; you’ll see why below. 6) Heating/Cooling unit – The A/C worked great. We left it off all day and it cooled the room quickly when on. 7) Floors – Our room appeared to have new carpeting and the kitchen/bath vinyl floors appeared new too; no scratches, stains, holes, etc. 8) General Condition – Everything worked, nothing broken, stained, scratched, etc, and there was generally enough space for everything we had.

Now the bad: 1) Cleanliness – I’m not a neat freak or germaphobe but the toilet’s cleanliness was unacceptable. The day we arrived there were black streaks in the bowl and it got worse throughout the week. We understood there would be no housekeeping (unless we paid extra) but my toilet stays clean for 2+ weeks without a touch up. Plus the box springs on both beds had brown stains running down the sides; we hope it was coffee/cola. My sister had to go buy cleaning wipes to clean things to her standard, which is a bit above mine but not unreasonable. But luckily no bugs. 2) Cannot guarantee non-smoking – If you are very sensitive to cigarette smoke, do not book a room here because there is no guarantee of a non-smoking room. We asked for one but did not get it and our room reeked of smoke. Thank goodness the windows opened wide but everyday when we arrived back, we were blasted with the smell of cigarette smoke, even with the windows open all day. And using the Febreze we bought did not help. 3) Beds & bedding – Not very comfortable. I did not feel like I slept well but they did not bother my back. My sister on the other hand awoke every morning with back pain. The linens were budget quality but not ripped or stained. The pillows were not all that comfortable either. 4) Bath fan – very noisy. When it was running, you could not hear anything outside the bathroom. 5) Heating/Cooling unit noise – when the A/C would kick on and off, it did so with quite a loud “thud”. I’m a heavy sleeper so it did not bother me but without the kitchen fan running as white noise, it would wake up my sister. 6) Kitchen dinnerware – only two place settings for most items but only one knife(?). It worked for us but I would have thought with 2 double beds, at least dishes for 4. Plus we had to buy our own dish soap.

All in all I cannot recommend it unless you get a better price than we did. Next time we will likely try to stay elsewhere in the area and pay a bit more. But if you are on a tight budget, this will do.