We came up for the weekend to attend a family wedding. This place was just the ticket! The room was no-frills, on the smallish size, but it was comfy & SPOTLESS! Seriously, this was the cleanest hotel we've ever stayed at. The motel employees were super friendly and helpful (printed out our boarding passes for our departure back home, gave us directions to areas around town, asked if we needed extra towels or anything, etc.) The motel was conveniently located for us -- it's maybe a 10 minute drive down Sandy Blvd. to the Burnside Bridge which takes you right into the Pearl District. It's also located near the freeway that takes you out to the Columbia River Gorge and it's easy to get to the airport from the Nordic. We LOVE Portland and will definitely stay here again when we're up that way.

The price is right, but the room had a couple of issues. I was expecting that it wouldn't be the nicest room ever since we were not paying a whole lot, but I was still disappointed. The room was an adequate size for two people and the bed was comfortable, but the linens did not appear to be clean and the room had an odd odor--nothing overpowering, but we definitely wrinkled our noses when we walked in. The towels were the standard scratchy, tiny towels you get at most budget hotels. We were asked to pay a cleaning fee when we checked in, and it was basically a "don't steal our (scratchy) towels" fee since the desk clerk went into our room to count the towels before refunding the fee. We thought it was odd that this fee had a specific dollar amount attached to it (rather than just keeping a card on file for incidentals, as other hotels do), that it was unadvertised when we made the reservation, and that it was actually charged then refunded rather than just being a retainer that would be charged in the event of an actual problem (like, apparently, towel theft). I recommend booking online and in advance to get the best rate. We felt that we got a good deal, but while we were checking in (quite late), several people came in to inquire about vacancy and rates and were quoted a rate that was nearly double what we paid.

I read good reviews for this motel and don't want to be contrary. Overall, I had a very good experience there for the price. But the walls seem to be paper-thin, you're near train tracks and a busy street, plus the fact that the rooms all open to the outside all contributes to a noisy experience. I had to knock on the wall at one point around 4am to get a neighbor to turn down his TV. Trust me, once I'm asleep, I'm asleep--but the walls really don't stop much sound at all.

All of that said, I put in earplugs and slept very well. The hotel was very close to the Thrifty Rental Car drop-off point, very close to the airport, and not inconvenient, all things considered, to downtown. I sometimes used the highway, and other times drove down Sandy all the way to central Portland. Very convenient for an early flight.

Everything seemed clean. although I did get some what appeared to be used towels, and everytime I or my family walked across the floor we got bit. We have bites all up our feet and legs from staying here. I'm hoping it is just our room. It looks like fleas but they don't allow animals, so not sure. Other than that the rooms would be great and very comfy. Also the front desk is awesome and very kind. For the price I expected way less. But the itchy bites took my experience down a bit from an otherwise four star experience to a two unfortunately.