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Inns and Outs

 



I’m thinking this morning about my hotel adventures last summer while our bedroom was being rebuilt. 

Do I hold a grudge? Possibly.

We started out at the Doubletree (Twin Knolls) because it was quite near our house. We reasoned that the location would make it easier to meet with contractors, deal with mail and packages, etc. It started out well enough. The room was comfortable and they had cookies.




Soon we realized we were getting something we didn’t want and it was a serious problem. The Doubletree pumps chemical air fresheners throughout the hotel. In the lobby. In the dining spaces. In all the hallways and public spaces. Possibly in the elevators.

I was allergic. It triggered my asthma every time I left our room. I reached out online to Doubletree Corporate to ascertain whether our hotel was required to pump chemical fragrances. They said the usual corporate things and told me to contact the front desk. 

The man at the front desk said they couldn't possibly turn them all off because there were so many. He said they would turn off a few for my convenience. 

I had an asthma flare. A rescue inhaler wasn’t enough, My doctor put me on steroids. We begged our insurance company to put us in a different hotel.

It took several days but they approved a move to the Holiday Inn in Jessup. I was overjoyed. Not only did they not flood the air with chemicals, they also have special rooms for asthma/allergy guests. I was not a problem for them. My needs were completely reasonable.

Image from Holiday Inn website

I’d like to stress that the hotel was clean throughout and both our room and the common spaces smelled clean, perhaps faintly of mild soap. No more than that. And it was enough. 

My memories of the Holiday Inn, even a year later, are suffused with gratitude. 

Recently when I’ve seen folks online asking for local recommendations for where out of town guests should stay, I tell an extremely brief version of my story. Not everyone is sensitive to fragrances or has asthma and allergy issues. But, if you do, having the knowledge of my experience is going to be extremely helpful.

Additionally, despite the fact that I reached out twice for help, the Doubletree wasn’t really concerned and didn’t do anything significant to help. 

Hospitality. What a concept.

I have some questions for you: 

  1. When you think about booking a place to stay, what are your requirements? 
  2. Is one of them the use of signature fragrances throughout the establishment?
  3. Do you consider this an amenity that would influence your decision to book?
These chemical air fresheners cost money. Does anyone truly want them? Could that money be spent on something that hotel guests would value much, much more?

One more thing: I’d love to know what hocolocal hotels, motels, or bed & breakfast places you routinely recommend, and why. We could all learn a lot from one another.

And I have an idea for a follow-up post…


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  1. Julia A. McCreadyJuly 12, 2026 at 5:34 AM

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