Whispering Sands - Hanksville

Booked this motel on Expedia. We were driving from Moab to Goblin Valley State Park to make our way to Page, Arizona and this motel in Hanksville looks like the only place in the area of many little towns that looked decent. We were a couple of hours early and there's a sign posted on the office door that they won't be in until 3:00 pm (check in time) to 9:00 pm. So we decided to explore Goblin Valley. Checked in and I guess we were the only people here besides two other 2 cars in the parking lot (we were here in December). Place was surprisingly clean and comfortable. Cable is a little slow and sometimes lag. Bed was comfortable. They give you a continental breakfast basket.

We really enjoyed our stay! The rooms were clean and comfortable, the WiFi had excellent service and the check in process was quick and easy!

As good as it gets within 100+ miles of Capitol Reef National Park. There are other motels salted through the tiny towns in this desert like area, many look like you pay by the hour. Whispering Sands has done the absolute best they can with what they have available. Our room was on the second floor to the right of the stairs, no elevator. The ice machine is on the first floor under the stairs. This is an old building but the rooms are crisp and clean. There are nice touches all over the place including two plastic chairs outside our room to enjoy the view of the mountains and gravel parking lot. The bathroom needs more light but is clean with white towels, the one brown towel is for make-up removal (as noted by the card). There is no continental breakfast per say but there is a breakfast basket in the room, see pic. There is also a nice size mini frig and a microwave (very low to the ground). For $99.00 this should be your only choice in the area.

Stayed a week. The first room I checked into was as the end of a row of single-story rooms. A few hours after checking in, I discovered the door did not latch which necessitated a room change. I was quickly accommodated and put in a room on the ground floor of the 2-story section. The replacement room was substantially nicer than the first; everything was newer and more up to date. Rooms have a refrigerator, microwave, hairdryer, alarm clock, coffee maker and TV. There's A/C but when I turned it on during a couple of hotter days, it didn't seem to work well. The wifi can be spotty and cut out at times. The room was very comfortable and clean. Good linens and toiletries. I love that they give you morning snacks (muffins, cereal bars, fruit cups, cocoa, hot spiced cider) and coupons for 10% of breakfast at Duke's. Housekeeping was friendly and on top of things. I had booked way ahead and had a good rate. I must admit that I would likely be knocking off a star if I'd of stayed in the original room I had checked in to.

Upon checking in, I requested a room on the ground floor due to the heavy luggage I had to carry. I was informed that I had to take the room I was assigned instead. Later that evening, the smoke alarm went off and wouldn't turn off. When I went to the front desk for assistance, the staff came and removed the battery without replacing it. The room was extremely cold, so I tried to increase the heating, only to discover that the heater was broken and blowing in cold air from outside. I spoke with the manager, who provided me with a space heater, but it wasn't very effective. Furthermore, the lights began to flicker and eventually went out because the heater tripped the circuit breaker. I went back to the manager to ask her to reset the breaker. I also requested a refund or partial refund, but the manager refused. The service was terrible, and the manager was unfriendly and indifferent to the issues I was facing.