Manchester East Hotel & Suites

Under renovation, helpful staff On check in I noticed the old Radisson property was undergoing full renovation and only parts of the hotel are functioning as Marriott get ready for a full take over. Michael "Old School" was so helpful and changed my room quickly as there was no power to some of the electrical points. All amenities worked and I got some rest, but no breakfast at present as the hotel undergoes this makeover. All in all good value for money.

Stay at your own risk When one drives on I-43 past this hotel, sees three room balconies with yellow caution tape wrapped around it, room curtains in various states of decaying condition, notices bleary-eyed renters kept awake from Interstate noise all night long, and then peruses the previous 10-20 reviews of this facility, one wishes they utilized TripAdvisor prior to booking this place. This facility would fit in perfectly amidst the crack dens of inner-city Milwaukee, but at least it's in a respectable location.

What a confusing and frustrating experience!! We had reservations for the Radisson Hotel Milwaukee North Shore. That was the first problem, and not the fault of the hotel. We had the address plugged into our Garmin. But the only thing that looked like a hotel in that vicinity was what appeared to be either a new or remodeling of something labeled a Marriott. Driving several blocks up and down the street looking for our hotel was hopeless. Finally we called the number on our reservation and after waiting at least another 20 minutes on hold found out that the hotel had been renamed (Manchester East Hotel and Suites - the name Manchester East (which looked like an office complex) was taped over the sign of the hotel we were looking for) and was a building next door to where we parked in the first place. The owner is apparently planning to move his hotel next door when it is finished. The parking was free, the person at the desk was all right, but put a $20 hold on our credit card in case we did anything to damage our room. We asked for a 4:30 a.m. wake-up call to get to the Ferry across Lake Michigan by the required 5:15 for loading. The first room we were checked into seemed nice but had yellow tape and construction down the hall. However, the toilet seat was broken and we didn't want to be charged to fix it so were moved to another room. It was a basic room, not as nice, with a huge water mark on the ceiling, a large dirty, black spot on the rug, a air filter coming out of the heat/air conditioning unit, and small parts of the wall covering coming off in two places. We were tired, hungry and needed to get to sleep so took pictures and planned to report it before we left the next morning. Unfortunately, we did not get the ask-for (and important) wake-up call, but woke up on our own a little after 5 and made it to the ferry across Lake Michigan 20 minutes before it left, but in time to load our car, the last one on the ferry. Thank goodness for light traffic in Milwaukee early in the morning. I called the front desk and said we did not have time to check out and reported the problems with the room. She said we would not be charged anything. There was no microwave or fridge, the free internet was very slow and the experience was pretty unpleasant, but the bed was comfortable, the room was quiet, the large screen TV was nice and I don't think it even had FOX news on the channels available (which we appreciated).

Not the Best I spent a week in this hotel while attending the US Open. The hotel is quite rundown and the claim of being renovated is a bit misleading. There is a Marriot being built across the parking lot and a Fairfield Inn also going in. It is now being referred to as an events center and according to locals that I talked to, the only part that will remain once the new hotels are open will be the central area to be used as a reception and special event area. The rooms will be torn down. Customer service was reasonable enough though one employee would tell me one thing and another something else when I asked questions about some issues. For example, I called prior to arriving and asked about a microwave and a refrigerator for the room since I was going to be there a week. I was told that would be no problem. When I checked in the next day and inquired, the desk clerk said they did not provide those anymore. A couple days later I came out of my room to find an employee wheeling a refrigerator down the hall to another room. So I asked him about it and when I returned that afternoon, the fridge was in my room. The sleep number bed wasn't very comfortable and road noise from the interstate running past the hotel was quite loud. The best part of the week was the in house bar and grill. The bartender was quite friendly and her pour was quite generous. The food was excellent as well. It was bar food, sandwiches, burgers, salads and some flatbread creations and everything I tried was very satisfying. Additionally, the bar seems to be the local version of Cheers with a number of regulars who come in for happy hour. A very friendly crew. The picture shown with the ad for the hotel is not of the hotel. It appears to be of the Marriott that is under construction next door. It seems the hotel is on the last legs and they are just trying to stay above water until the new hotels are completed. The rooms aren't great, the water pressure in the shower is low but the prices are cheap. The wi-fi was spotty at times and the television only gets about 12 channels if that is a critical issue for someone.

How does this hotel get 3.5 Stars? Felt like we were in a bad movie. The GOOD: The location was convenient for us. The lobby has been updated. Bathroom had towels. Room had beds. The door locked. The BAD: See photos. This hotel is in desperate need of maintenance. It should be shut down, remodeled, and then reopened. The pool area is closed, with yellow tape reminiscent of a crime scene. The door to the room did not have an automatic close, which I believe is a fire code violation. We parked in the back and entered the hotel through a door that should have required a key for access....it was open. The parking lot was unlit, making for a very ominous, potentially unsafe situation. The UGLY: The room was in terrible need of maintenance. The beds were Sleep Number, but did not work. They would inflate, then immediately deflate. Spent the night on a very uncomfortable, under inflated air mattress. The bathroom had one, very tiny bottle of shampoo and one small bar of soap. The coffee maker did not have the right coffee "pods", so getting a cup was nearly impossible. The ABSOLUTELY UNFORGIVABLE: I went to the front desk to purchase some bottles of water. I was told that there was no bottled water in the entire hotel. WHAT? No bottled water, not in a vending machine, not hidden in the back, nowhere?