Complaints

The complaint text that is displayed might not represent all complaints filed with BBB. Some consumers may elect to not publish the details of their complaints, some complaints may not meet BBB's standards for publication, or BBB may display a portion of complaints when a high volume is received for a particular business.

• Initial Complaint

  Date:05/05/2025

  Type:Product Issues
  Status:

  UnresolvedMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  I booked reservations for 3 rooms at the Howard Johnson hotel. As soon as we opened the door, we were overwhelmed by a foul, strong odor of cigarette smoke to which caused watery eyes and discomfort in the designated non-smoking rooms. Also, the hygiene of the rooms and the linens and curtains were badly stained. The doors trimming were grossly stained with sticky film like grease. As stated on my reservations I have the right to cancel those reservations before 6pm, so I tried to cancel my reservations online but was unsuccessful. Even though I was due at my mother in law funeral, I called the hotel directly and I was kept on the phone for one hour being switched over to 3 different agents, Rachel, Joshua and John, who ultimately told me to go physically to the hotel to cancel. Following his directives, I drove back to the hotel and I spoke to Tina at the front desk and gave her my room keys by 5pm and stated the manager would contact me that night. After not receiving a call, I called back and after being on hold for half an hour, only to be told that the manager would reach out in the morning. On April 22, 2025, I waited until 4pm and still, no one reached out to me. Again, I phoned the hotel and Chrissy offered to have the manager give me a call as he was busy. I explained that I had provided my information several times unsuccessfully receiving a call back to settle my issue and offered to wait on the phone to speak to the manager. Chrissy said he would call from his own line. I requested the manager’s name, Jawad B.  and informed Chrissy that I expect a courtesy callback in the next 15 minutes. That call never came. This is not professionalism. I went ahead and called my credit card company to find out that the hotel put 4 different charges on my credit card. I went ahead and called the hotel again very upset and finally jawad got on the phone simply to yell and hung up on me when I was asking why he had charged my card 4 times without my permission.

  Business Response

  Date: 05/06/2025

  Guest
  had a reservation for 3 rooms from 4/21/25 to 4/22/25. She checked in to all 3
  rooms around 2pm. She came back at 5:15Pm claiming the rooms smell like
  cigarette. She was told the rooms were checked, there was nothing wrong with
  them and she was going to be charged. The next day, we did find out that they
  did used the rooms to shower. If there was anything wrong with all 3 rooms, all she had to do is come back to the front desk and let us know about any issue. Guest did t do that, they used the bathrooms, went to the funeral, I guess made arrangement with other family member than decided to cancel the reservations.

  This is the e-mail I sent to the guest:
  
   Dear
  Mrs. *******, I would like to take this opportunity to apologize for any
  unpleasant experience as a guest of the Howard Johnson of Toms River. I
  appreciate the time that you took to bring this matter to our attention. Our
  records show that you checked in to all 3 rooms at 2:15PM, and you tried to
  cancel them at 5:10PM. My front desk agent gave you two adjoining rooms, and
  the third right next to them as requested. If there was something wrong with
  them, you should have let us know right away, not 3 hours later. We did check
  the rooms the next day, the bathrooms were used in two of them. My front desk
  agent did inform you that no refund would be issued. Once again, I apologize
  for any inconvenience we may have caused you. Please feel welcome at our hotel
  in your future travels. Sincerely, Jawad B.

  Customer Answer

  Date: 05/08/2025

  
  
  Complaint: ********

  
  
  I am writing in response to your recent message regarding the reservation for three rooms on April 21, 2025.
  First and foremost, I would like to clarify that none of the guests in our party used the showers in any of the rooms. We left the premises shortly after checking in, as we needed to attend a funeral. If you review your hotel’s surveillance footage, you will see that we departed soon after 2 PM and did not return to occupy or use the rooms in any capacity. The claim that the bathrooms were used is simply untrue, and the photos we submitted clearly show dry tubs with no indication of use.
  Furthermore, I made every effort to cancel the reservation as soon as the issue with the smoke odor was noticed. I spent over an hour on the phone with your central reservations number, speaking with at least three different agents, before being directed to return to the hotel to handle the matter in person. There should be call recordings available to verify this.
  It is inaccurate and deeply concerning to suggest that we used the rooms for three hours or that we used the facilities, when in fact we were attempting to resolve the situation through the proper channels from the moment we noticed the problem. The claim that our party failed to notify staff or attempted to exploit the reservation is baseless and unfair.
  I respectfully request that this matter be reviewed again in light of the facts provided, and that the charges associated with this reservation be reconsidered. We acted in good faith and followed the instructions given to us by your team. We trust you will do the same.
  
  
  Regards,
  
  
  
  ********** ******

• Initial Complaint

  Date:03/29/2024

  Type:Service or Repair Issues
  Status:

  UnansweredMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  I stayed at the hotel on 3/15/24 until 3/16/24. A $100 deposit was authorized but has since been returned to me. I did not use any amenities, checked out on time, and did not damage, destroy, or ruin any hotel property in or outside of the room. I have called the hotel twice, no answer. Sent to a voice mailbox that always says "full."

• Initial Complaint

  Date:08/28/2023

  Type:Service or Repair Issues
  Status:

  AnsweredMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  on 7-15-2023 I rented a room from Howard Johnson for 2 days for my daughter and family. When my family return to the room that night, it didn't have power in the rented room. When we spoke to the manager/, she didn't offer refund and was very nasty to my family. I am requesting a refund for ****** because my family had to stay uncomfortable on the floor at my house. Plus, my grandchild has breathing issues and needs nightly treatments while she sleep which the Hotel could provide that service being the Howard Johnson Hotel did not have **************** in the building for over 48 hours

  Business Response

  Date: 09/11/2023

  Guest had a reservation with a third party "Expedia" for 2 nights from 7/15/23 to 7/17/23. The only power outage that occurred that weekend was on 7/16/23 around 7:30AM, and the power company had it restored an hour later.

  I have no record of guest checking out early, because we did not get a call from Expedia requesting that.

  Again, this power outage affected the entire neighborhood, and it was brief, and it happened on the second day of their stay, but they are asking for a full refund.

• Initial Complaint

  Date:07/20/2023

  Type:Product Issues
  Status:

  UnresolvedMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  I had made an advance reservation for 1 night, 7/10, lodging for my niece ********************, her 3 children and her mother, my sister-in-law, ******************** who all reside in *******, **. ********************* immediately---before settling into the room and before unpacking a single bag-- reported to front dest that said lodging evidenced the following safety and generally unsatisfactory conditions.Statement of ********************, adult guest #1 Absence of the glass--with just the frames left standing--on both sides of where a door (to 2nd fl hall) once stood and the quite poor, unsafe lighting in hall itself. Most disturbing with respect to the outside, before entering the room, was pervasive smell of pot/cigarette smell mixed together. Arriving at room door, it was found unlocked, heightening already aroused security/safety concerns. Moreover, we were unsuccessful in attempts at locking, from inside, that same door, exacerbating those concerns further.Entering room, again strong smell of pot/cigarettes was undeniable, this in a room proffered as a "non-smoking" room. Sliding glass door evidenced these security issues: rusted track and locking mechanism, door unable to close completely and consequently unable to lock, another serious safety issue. The fridge freezer section was unusable due to the buildup of frost/ice. The room in general barely met basic mimimun cleanliness standards. We left beds untouched nor unpacked . any bags. Promptly upon discovering the above noted deficiencies we returned bags to car. My daughter went directly to front desk to report deficiencies and decline accepting room. She was denied refund and returned to car to relate same to me. After phone call with her husband, she returned to front desk to ask again for refund and was told "no, we checked out your complaints and found them without merit". I attest that no hotel employee went to room to check out complaints.******************** I attest to each of the problems as related above. ********************

  Business Response

  Date: 08/30/2023

  The following email was sent to ****************** on 7/14/23 when he complained to Howard Johnson's Corporate:

  Dear ******************,
  I would like to take this opportunity to apologize for any unpleasant experience as a guest of the Howard Johnson of **************. I appreciate the time that you took to bring this matter to our attention.
   Both doors were checked while your niece was there, and they worked properly. Your family was in that room for half an hour, and we were not able to just give it to another guest without housekeeping clean it again.
  What I can do, is offer **** Wyndham points to use with any Wyndham property. 
  
    Once again, I apologize for any inconvenience we may have caused you. Please feel welcome at our hotel in your future travels.
   
  Sincerely,
   
   
  Jawad Benmakhlouf 

  Customer Answer

  Date: 09/07/2023

  
  Complaint: 20341424
  
  I am rejecting this response because:

  We have no interest in accepting wyndham rewards points. If your hotel is representative of the poor quality of wyndham hotels we have no interest in returning to a wyndham hotel. We standby our original written account of our experience at the hotel that night in question. Your answer to BBB alledging that you promptly responded to the room to survey--and refute-- our complaints is categorically false. As indicated in our original complaint, one adult was within view of the room, in the car, while the other adult went to the front desk to register thier dissatisfaction and not hotel employee had gone to the room by the time we pulled away from the property.

  We will now pursue this complaint with the ** **** of ******** Affairs. Your F rating with the BBB and your well documented history of not responding to customer complaints in the past will support our complaint.

  We will accept nothing short of a full refund of the charge

  
  ***************************`