The Stephen F. Austin Royal Sonesta Hotel

Beautiful, well kept, 100 year old hotel with classic details. Service was outstanding, our suite was comfortable, elevators were always readily available, and the location was extremely convenient to many restaurants and popular sites. Very pleased we stayed in the Stephen F. Austin Royal Sonesta---we enjoyed the rather cozy feel of the hotel in comparison with the huge ultramodern hotels in the general area.

Overall maintenance is terrible. Rooms are very small. Indoor pool with no restrooms, jacuzzi not clean. Valet parking $60 too expensive for what you get as overall experience. Hotel has great location but other than that nothing special.

Location, location, location. The beds were comfy, the room was well appointed and clean. The location is central to everything in downtown Austin and it's especially convenient if your'e attending SXSW. Everything was a short walk and we never needed a car. If we needed to walk more than 20 minutes, we rented a scooter.

If you are traveling to Austin I would advise you to stay anywhere else, and there are a lot of options. As a point of reference, I stayed at this property when it was the Intercontinental over thirty times for about four nights each time (you can do the math), and it was my go to hotel in Austin. Although there were some issues now and then, I really liked the hotel and looked forward to staying there when work brought me to Austin. However, that is no longer the case. I will not be returning to this hotel ever again. I don’t know exactly when Sonesta bought the property, but they have clearly been cutting costs and it shows. The concierge in the lobby is gone, replaced by a random assortment of snacks and pet products. The staff I interacted with seemed barely, if at all, trained. The elevators looked worn down and it also appeared as if they decided to stop cleaning them. But the room was the worst part. First of all, most of the amenities have been removed. No bathrobe, no slippers (and we all know how dirty hotel room floors can be). The upscale toiletries they used to offer are now mostly gone, and what’s left has been replaced by cheap generic products. I’m all for reducing single use plastic items, but what they did provide was not even close to the level of hotel they claim to be. But the absolute deciding factor was the condition of the room. It was filthy. Spots and blotches on the glass surfaces, peeling and stained wallpaper, chipped paint and damaged walls, dirty and grimy light switches, there was dust and what I believe to be mold on the bathroom mirror and black stains on the shower curtain, and threadbare, worn out furniture. It was gross. I arrived late and didn’t notice everything until the next morning, but it was horrifying. They have also decided to hang some truly hideous artwork in the lobby featuring a hippo in royal garb. I know this is part of their marketing campaign, but whoever thought of this should be fired twice. There are quite a few better options in this price range, but don’t let the branding fool you. It is no longer an upscale hotel, and I would not stay here if it was half the price. If you have a few extra bucks, I would recommend the Van Zandt or the South Congress Hotel, both are excellent hotels with very good service. If you want something a little more budget friendly I found both the Indigo and Holiday Inn to be clean and comfortable. I have not written a review in over four years, but I had to revive my account to document the terrible experience. There are quite a few very good hotel options in and around downtown Austin, but this is no longer one of them. Do yourself a favor and stay anywhere else. I had already booked three rooms here for five nights in April, but i am following my own advice and finding a better option. I hope you do as well.

We arrived with a lot of cases and no one came to help us. Fetched our own trolley and took our luggage into the hotel. Check in was friendly but no porters to take your luggage up so you do it yourself. Just found it a bit strange. Food at the Fork was excellent and so was the service. Bed super comfortable and room great size. Food location!