Phoenix Inn Suites – South Salem

I stayed here on a work trip. Sound familiar? Ha ha. I totally thought that this was going to be in the Portland area. As it turns out, it was about an hour and a half away in a very rural area. I had no choice but to embrace it. It is unlike me to give it 2 star reviews, the only reason for this is that it lacked a lot of things. Which is no one’s fault. You can tell that it’s an older hotel. By far. What I will say, what they do have is great service. The service is the one thing that stood out the most for me. They are so kind and so helpful and so welcoming. The people in Salem are absolutely wonderful and so nice. The experience in Salem was great and it seemed as though this hotel was one of the best in the area. However, the gym was the worst gym I think I’ve ever been to. The fitness center had no air conditioning and it was very small. I apparently I chose a very busy time to go because even with three people in there, you felt like there was no room. And… The AC thing. I don’t remember if there was a pool or not. The rooms are pretty basic as well. For the most part this hotel is located in a good area. You’re about 4 miles from downtown which is about a $ 20 taxi ride. There’s a few things within reason that you can also walk to like Trader Joe’s, is one that I can remember. Not too many great restaurants though. I would recommend this if you’re in Salem New Hampshire. I don’t know if there are many other options. But it’s not going to be very resort like. Again, the service made it.

Not a bad hotel. It was really clean and kept up. The location is great. Easy walk to Qdoba or Mod pizza. Commercial street can get pretty busy. The continental breakfast isn’t good and is very carb-​dense. The pool and hot tub left something to be desired. I would stay here again only because the other hotels in Salem can be a little sketchy.

My husband and I just spent his birthday at this hotel. It was clean, staff was friendly, we got the romance package which came with a $ 50 gift card to Bentleys Grill, sparkling cider, and truffles. We slept well, and had a great breakfast the next morning. The Jacuzzi tub in the room was also great. We had a great time and have decided to visit this hotel a lot more often, and to stay longer! Great job you guys!

Great chain-​hotel with awesome rates (on Expedia). Clean room and courteous receptionists.

This hotel was pretty AWSOME!
The beds were extremely comfortable. Great pillows. The room was nice and spacious. Nice tv. Great water pressure. The indoor pool and hot tub were nice. Breakfast wasn’t bad. The staff was polite. Only real negatives were I wish the pool was open 24 hours. And the housekeeping didn’t clean out the fridge before we got there for who knows how long there was leftover food in it.
Will most definitely come back if we are ever in Salem again.

I was pretty surprised at how expensive most of the places in Salem were even on discount sites. We paid about the same per night as the Red Lion in Olympia (80 – 90) a night and it was definitely lacking in a few areas.
The checkin went fine, we came in late but the girl at the front desk was adequately friendly. My first concern came as we got into the rickety elevator and went down into the basement. Yes people. The basement, to our room. It was clear from our initial descent that the building is quite dated. The carpet needing to be changed was nearly at crisis level. The bathroom was nice and large but the shower and toilet were very old and the toilet barely flushed. There was a slip mat in the shower that could probably be used as a science project.
Ok enough jokes, while these aspects certainly could benefit from a facelift I stand by my three star review, three stars means it’s A-​ok, and it was! You could see evidence of effort. A nice huge bed with clean linen and comfy pillows, a good tv, desk and mini fridge. They had a hot tub, indoor pool and a small fitness center that all appeared clean and well kept. And lastly, and most importantly, food! The complimentary breakfast was the nicest breakfast of anywhere we stayed, hands down.
The breakfast had a large pastry selection, biscuits and gravy, a waffle maker, juices and coffee, a selection of fresh fruit, yogurt, scrambled eggs and crunchy bacon. There was also a hotel employee present who kept the breakfast bounty plentiful, bussed tables, and was an absolute doll when I asked to read the egg ingredients to make sure they were gluten free.
Soo​.in all I think this place has potential, but could certainly use a facelift in a couple dire areas.

I was extremely disgusted with the fact that this hotel does NOT change your sheets before you check in. Meaning: they expect you to sleep in the filth of whoever had the room before you! I checked in during the day, went about my family visit, came back to go to bed and when I pulled the sheets down there was nasty crusty yellow stuff on the sheets! I was too tired so I slept above them and put the «change the sheets» card on my pillow for the morning. Came back after lunch and found the bed had been made and the card back on the nightstand. I pulled the sheets down to see the same crusty yellow stuff on the sheets. At that point I called front desk to complain and FINALLY got *hopefully* cleaner sheets. This is extremely unprofessional, unacceptable and not worth staying there ever again. I wouldn’t trust their sheets if I were you. Unfortunately, due to family circumstances I had to endure over a week stay! And pay money that the room nor service was worth. Never again!

I booked this room via Travelocity.
My travel plans changed and I needed to cancel my room. To my dismay, refunds were not allowed. So made the trip to Salem to continue with My booking. The front desk staff were very friendly and helpful. They were accommodating with my late check in and helped to direct me to restaurants in the area.
The rooms are very large! Dual sinks, sitting area and very comfortable beds await you. I loved the fact that the couch in the room converts to a sofa bed. Also, there is a fridge and microwave in the room.
There is free hot and cold continental breakfast with plentiful breakfast options. Free Wi-​fi as a guest here as well :)
I don’t know if I’ll head to Salem soon? But if I do I’ll be sure to stay here again !!

Amazing guest services! Daily hot breakfast and the staff is friendly, helpful and courteous.

Great shower, comfy beds. Close to all. Pleasant staff. Rooms were ample with desk and couch
Equipped with fridge and microwave.
Breakfast could’ve had a daily meat option but it was easy and good enough to get our day started.
Big sign outside is not lit so it’s easy to pass up especially if it’s dark and has a narrow driveway… so just pay extra attention.

I stayed here for three nights this week and loved it! The wifi worked fantastic as I had to do homework for my online classes, which is always a concern when traveling to unknown places. Only one day I had trouble connecting. I called the front desk and the gal that answered was very helpful to restart the router. I was back online within mere minutes and completed my assignments with ease.
Housekeeping was on point. Always had fresh towels and the room was very uncluttered and smelled nice.
There is free breakfast from 6:30−10am, however I was unable to make it the way my schedule went throughout my stay.
The beds were very comfortable after my 20hour drive from Southern California. I was able to have friends over for a quick visit and entertain as there was a comfy chair in the corner and a desk chair, along with the comfortable two queen sized beds. The room looks narrow, but it’s actually quite spacious if you keep your luggage tucked aside.
The a/​c worked wonders as I get hot very easily. It was easy to operate and very helpful to my sleeping conditions and keeping a good air flow in the daytime.
Awesome water pressure and heat in the shower, which was lovely to enjoy after the long drive north, adventurous days of exploring Oregon, and enjoying a long shower since California is in a drought. If they weren’t booked through this weekend, I would have gladly extended my stay a few days more! They were very accommodating and I throughly enjoyed my stay with Phoenix Inn Suites in Salem, Oregon!

Really disappointed in the front desk customer service. It felt like the staff enjoyed inconveniencing my family and I. We are a military family and it felt like the one lady «Monique» was prejudice against us. It felt like she enjoyed seeing me unhappy– it shouldn’t be that way! She refused to give us anything more than a first name. I was very irritated I had driven 10 hours with my one year old and 7 year old, their aunt, and our family pet to get a room mix up. PCSing is stressful.
She explained that only one room remained on the 4^th floor, and then it was on the 3^rd. Oh, no, there were moooore rooms if we paid extra? We are a family of 4 and booked for a family of 4, but she said that wasn’t her problem and that we can upgrade for $ 20 to two beds. That’s when I asked to speak to a manager because I booked for a 4 person room, she refused and said «you don’t need to talk to anyone else. You can talk to me», and she gave us a king bed room on the 3^rd. I explained that we needed a ground level floor, and she said there was nothing available.
The rooms are not bad, older. The one we got was kind of beat up and a little smelly. Leaving my truck parked outside made me kind of nervous after dealing with the mean-​spirited (spiteful even) front counter lady.

I won’t spend an eternity writing a review on this place because the bottom line is it was a great value for the accommodations provided. It was obvious this place has been recently renovated and very well taken care of. The staff were extremely helpful and the cleanliness was outstanding. Other reviews spoke of rooms smelling like cigarettes, this was not the case for me. This was a business/​personal trip and I would recommend this place to anyone. One caution would be to request a room away from the elevator. Rooms 210, 310 and 410 are a definite NO, as they are right next to the elevator. The hotel is centrally located to all basic stores one might need and most within walking distance. There is even an awesome taproom 2 buildings way with about 30 beers on tap (B2 Taphouse). Downtown Salem is about a 10 minute drive and Portland an hour. I will be back and when I do I will stay at the Phoenix Inn.

Not bad for the price. The room was clean and the air worked great. The tub was slow to drain so we stood in our own bath water for a bit, downside. Indoor pool was cold and not so great but breakfast was decent. Fridge and microwave were a plus. Location was good too, felt totally safe. All in all I would stay here again.

For the price it was O.K. however I specifically booked a suite and that’s what they told me I had. Upon check in I noticed the suite is two queen beds in one room, a fridge and a microwave, and a computer table… ummm not a suite. My sister paid more for a king suite in Albany same chain. Went to see her to go to a graduation. Same ROOM. with a divider that was about waist high, bed on one side and a sofa and coffee table on the other. She paid 100.00 more than I did.
My suite/​room was clean, pool was nice, continental breakfast was good, though at the Albany location where my sister was staying they had a lot more variety. It was kinda neat to see difference in the same chanin 30 miles apart.
I would recommend to the management of this location to put more staff on when several colleges are graduating at the same time and you are fully booked, poor gal at the desk worked her rear end off and did a really good job.

Décor is a bit dated but not a issue, the room was pretty clean and has that «retro charm» if you’re into it. I thought it was a pretty nice change.
Staff seemed pretty friendly, but really strict on the time for the complimentary breakfast, we arrived 7 minutes late at 10:07am (could still hear people inside the breakfast room eating) but the lady at the front desk wouldn’t let us in.
Pretty bad customer service in that regard.
Other than that, if you book through Hotwire you will get a better rate. I don’t see the value in paying full price walking in, as it isn’t worth the $$.

I really tried to be positive about this hotel and accept that it needs a little work but it didn’t work for me. I passed the hotel the first time I drive by at night because the lights on the sign are out on one side. All of the wall paper needs replaced. I entered my room and it smelled like smoke quite bad. All of this I could have gotten over. When I crawled into bed I began to itch instantly, I am not sure if this is due to their laundry soap, but I have never had this issue. The bed was also not double sheeted so I could pull off the bed spread. The walls are paper this so all night I heard everyone all night, woke up very sore and ready for a hot shower. I started the shower, got in and noticed black mold at the top of the shower curtain. That was it for me! I almost didn’t stop for breakfast, but I did and I must say the continental breakfast was the best part of my stay.

This is the second time I have stayed here. Great indoor pool, never crowded and seems really clean. My 7 year old swam ever night! Close to Enchanted Forrest which was the reason for our visit. The staff is so nice and goes above and beyond to help you.
The rooms are a little old and the carpets are in need of a shampoo.
We have enjoyed the breakfast every morning, not fancy but does the job!
If I come again, I will stay here for the location, service, cost, pool, and complimentary breakfast.

July 1 2014: Another update: The incidental fee is now $ 100, up from $ 50.00. Compared with other hotels in Salem, the incidental fee is the same as, or lower than most hotels in the area.
Still a really friendly crew. Thanks for another great weekend.
Just an update to let everyone know that the slightly funky smell in the hallway is no more. YAY!
Also, this time the $ 50.00 incidental fee was credited back to my account as soon as I checked out.
There also seemed to be a misunderstanding at the hotel (and I noticed a guest had this misunderstanding,) about the elevator not going to the second floor. At Phoenix Inn, the Second floor is actually the lobby. Not sure why, but there it is. I had a nice stay at Phoenix Inn. Thanks again to the staff!
PS. When I checked in, I asked the front desk for a quiet room because I was getting away from a live-​in job and needed peace and quiet. Believe me, I got a quiet room. I didn’t realize that she spared me from a fate worse than death until I went downstairs for breakfast on my first night and heard kids at the other end of the hall. Thank you thank you!

If you’re browsing for a hotel in Salem on Hotwire and see a reasonably-​priced 3-​star, it’s going to be this one — with examples of 3-​star hotels being Sheraton Four Points or Holiday Inn, — this is nooooo 3-​star hotel.
So many things annoyed me about this hotel trying to pass itself off as a 3-​star, I thought I should write them down.
1. No notepad or pen in the room for writing down complaints!
2. Whole hotel smells like an old casino. An old, depressing, off-​strip, smoky casino. Looks really worn-​down and dingy too.
3. Room was not vacuumed– someone’s pink sock toejam was all over the floors and the disgusting bedspread that is clearly never washed.
4. Floors and walls thud like crazy– can hear kids running down the hall like thunder, people thumping above you.
5. Giant 1″ gap under hotel room door– can hear everything outside the room, everyone in the hall, and they can hear what we’re saying in the room, I’m sure. We had to put the bed bolster along the bottom of the door to block out the light and some of the sound. Similar 1″ gap under the doors separating the adjoining room! Totally unacceptable! Had to stuff that one with the nasty bedspread.
6. Generally not clean– couch had nasty sticky old strawberry jam (or something) all over the arm.
7. Coffee maker filthy — as in never washed? Unusable.
8. Ugly dirty «auras» on the walls where pictures used to hang and empty cabinet holes where mini-​bars used to be… depressing!
9. There isn’t even a full bathroom– sinks are out in the room with bright garish light.
10. Hot water is scalding, scalding hot. Helped with soaking that jam off the couch arm, though.
11. Nasty grip strips in the bathtub look totally brown, dirty and disgusting.
12. Unwashed duvet was not in a case or «double-​sheeted»… just bare
Just… ugh. Ugh. So regretting not choosing whatever the Hotwire 2-​star hotel was for a few bucks less, because I’ll bet it was better than this place!