At check in, we confirmed 3 guests. The clerk gave me one key and was put off that I'd ask for a second. Our room had no lampshades on the lamps. I called the front desk to get lampshades, & point out we got the room this way. We barely got him in the room to look, "Can't now. I have maintenance do tomorrow." And a muttered after thought, "Sorry."
We found food from a prior guest in the fridge. No hot water in the shower, and then handle fell off. It was late. We went to bed.
In the morning, I stopped in the front office to tell them about the shower, but 3 people were waiting and nobody was in the office. They said they'd been waiting a while. I, too, waited a bit, and left. (Note: Contintental breakfast was on counter. Costco muffins, quartered, no sneeze protection, no effort for appeal. I'd have taken a picture but it was too packed waiting in the 4'x6' "lobby" )
At 10 am I called and told a woman the shower was broken. "Do you want it fixed?" she asked. Uh, yes, I would. And lampshades. "I ask maintenance, maybe today. I might be able to move room. Won't know till you come back."
By, now I had no confidence in Budget Inn to make it right. There seemed to be a language barrier. At no point did anybody say they were sorry for the inconvenience. I never got an assurance that the lamps and most importantly, shower would be fixed. Or they'd find me another room. My gut told me, "We already have your money for 2 nights, and no reason to make it right."
Expedia tried to help, and 3 people called the motel. But when I went back at 10 pm, I'd been locked out. The same clerk from the night before said I hadn't told them about anything, so nothing fixed. "You no like? LEAVE!" He refused to refund my money. I left, figuring I'd sleep in my car.
I went to the Holiday Inn Express. They were fully booked, but they called around and found a room for me. Later that night the clerk from Budget in called, yelling "The room is fine. You are a liar and a cheat. I knew that when you told me about lamps, you weren't going to pay. YOU ARE A THIEF!!"
Other observations: no under bed "blockers", so dust that the vacuum couldn't reach, and crumpled balls of paper (and, no I didn't inspect them, because I was afraid of what it really was.) Three hangers, 6 hanger holders. Mold in shower. One lumpy pillow per person (2 per queen bed). And they crammed a pink Formica piece of "kitchen" furniture in, so the room isn't the tidy "budget" room in the pictures.
Yes, It's a cheap motel, and I've stayed in many. But I still expect a clean room, a working shower, and sorta pleasant staff. This is the first time I have been unhappy with a "cheap motel."
It was so bad, yes, I'm warning others on all social media.