AC Hotel by Marriott Durham

"Fantastic location. Felt safe the whole stay. Several food spots in walking distance (Heavenly Buffalo was by far the best — give it a try!). Was able to take Uber/Lyft for under $10 just about everywhere we needed to go, the airport however was understandably more. Hotel was clean and beautiful! Check in and out was quick and easy. We did not eat at the hotel due to other reviews stating it was over priced for what was offered. The only complaint we really had was that we called down to the front desk around 10am and asked for different, firmer, pillows. Were told they had some and would bring them right up. Called again at 2pm and was told again they would bring them right up. 6pm rolled around so I went down to the front desk to get it handled. They brought the pillows around 7pm, but they were the same as what was already in the room. No fault to the hotel if they didn’t have different pillows, but we waited all day to be let down and ended up purchasing and having Target deliver us a pillow (and snacks) at 9pm. Also, the coffee maker in the room had mold in it so was not able to use… but there is a breakfast place and Dunkin Donuts walking distance so didn’t bother us. Overall it was a great stay, we would stay here again!"

"I love AC hotels and this is the first time I've had such a bad experience. The check in process was clunky, the front desk employees in plain clothes not professional attire greeted me, friendly of course. However they could not explain the mobile check in and or help me get a mobile key card through the app, I checked in manually still never received the mobile key app which they said they would authorize and send. Got to the room and it was pretty dirty hairs in the sink, a big crack in the shower, stains on the countertops from overuse and the most frustrating of all -a glitchy TV. I even took a video of it shorting out! I tried to order food from the lobby bar and when I called the front desk they said the bar doesnt have a phone? but they can take my order, they never called to tell me it was ready and I walked down there and was just handed two plates of food to carry back up to my room, not even in to go containers. The whole transaction was very perplexing. I went to get a carafe and fill it with water, one of my favorite AC hotel features but only two available, both filthy and looked like they had been touched a million times, no cups nothing else on the shelf next to the water and ice machine - seems like such an easy thing to check and refill these stations. Then there was the noise, I've never honestly stayed at a Marriott where I could hear the people above me but this went on the majority of the evening and started up again at 6:45 in the morning. Literally could hear every person's footsteps in the room above me. Finally upon checkout I expressed my frustrations to the front desk who apologized for the inconvenience but offered no credit or refund. Then when I got my folio emailed they charged me for parking when I was not in the garage! Would not stay here again."

"Nice hotel and pleasant staff. Rooms are basic but perfectly workable. Easy walk to Duke University and close to restaurants. Breakfast buffet is a bit expensive and you need to find the staff to get utensils. We found the taxi they recommended artificially bumped their prices but that's not on the hotel and more of an FYI. Overall good experience and good location."

"Staff is horrible (Lisa). I was in town for a wedding immediately following Christmas travel. Before I arrived I called ahead and asked if dry cleaning service was going to be operating as my suit and shirts needed a refresher. I was told there would be no issues over the phone. Upon arrival (the night before the wedding), I dropped off my suit and two shirts in the lobby and confirmed the pickup time of 5pm the following day. I was told there was no issue. At 10am, while heading out to go to brunch, I asked the front desk if the clothes were picked up at 8am. They went in the back, came back and told me that they were picked up and would be ready at 5pm that day. At 4:45pm I went down and planned on hanging out at the bar while I waited for the clothes to arrive, but decided to swing by the front desk to see if they were a bit early. Lisa was working the front desk and I informed her that I dropped off some clothes this morning and was wondering if they were ready. She went back and handed me my dirty clothes with a big smile on her face. Honestly, in the moment, I didn’t look at the clothes. I thanked her and started to head for the elevator. It wasn’t until I was in the elevator that I noticed the clothes weren’t cleaned. Lisa’s brilliant solution to my problem was putting $20 in an envelope and told me to go to the cleaners myself and they would be ready at 7:30pm, but the service started at 7:30. My jaw hit the floor. The staff lied to my face on multiple occasions and wasted any time I had to get the close cleaned myself. I am now forced to attend this wedding with dirty, wrinkled clothes because this staff failed at their jobs. Stay away from this property. I have lifetime silver status, but will not stay at another Marriott property until I am reimbursed for my stay and will only stay at Hilton properties."

"The hotel lobby, bar and rooms are lovely. I just love the room layout and decor. It's very clean and tranquil. Very restful and beautiful. The front desk staffers were friendly and helpful. Check-in and check-out were seamlessly efficient. We had two areas of disappointment: We found the smell in the lobby, bar and breakfast area to be incredibly unpleasant. At first, I thought it was related to some sort of cleaning supplies but the smell persisted throughout our stay. It was very unpleasant, especially when having a drink in the bar or breakfast in the morning. We were also disappointed by the staff at the breakfast buffet. You have to get your silverware from them as it's not on the buffet for some strange reason. They were no where to be found when we had fixed our plates so we sat there for awhile and then finally went to go find someone. Even then, they were slow to respond and never spoke directly to us. We had go find them to ask for the check and then find them again to ask for a pen to sign the check. It wasn't busy - there were only 2 other couples in the breakfast area at the time. If you aren't going to provide silverware on the buffet line, then I would hope that the staff would be more attentive."