Last Updated on March 9, 2024 by CreditFred
I recently went on a road-trip with a couple of friends to Crater Lake National Park, and stayed at the Fairfield Inn & Suites in Medford for 3 nights.
Hotel Overview
- Opened in 2021
- Marriott Category 4 Hotel
- Free Parking (with EV charging)
- Complimentary breakfast
- Amenities include heated indoor pool, gym, and business services
Location
The hotel is located in Medford, OR. It is right off the I-5, so is very convenient to get to. There is also ample food options nearby so it won’t be hard to find restaurants, gas, or do some quick shopping at Walmart or Costco. However, it is about a 2-hour drive to get into Crater Lake National Park, so keep that in mind if there is where you will be visiting.
Booking
For this 3-night stay, we booked a standard 2 Queen Room for an average rate of $211/night (before taxes & fees). Good thing we booked early, as rates quickly climbed closer to the date:
Since this was a paid stay, I decided to put the charge onto my Amex Marriott Business card, which earns 6x Marriott points, in addition to what I earn as a member of the Marriott Bonvoy program. As an aside, this card also gives you automatic Silver Elite status. although, if you are like me and hold the Amex Platinum, you will automatically get Gold Elite status, which has some valuable perks and makes it more likely to get an upgrade.
Prior to our arrival, I reached out to the hotel via chat feature in the Marriott App. To my delight, we were upgraded to a suite for the entire stay! Although this doesn’t always reflect in the app (you have to confirm in person at check-in), mine showed up immediately.
Even though this was just a rural Fairfield hotel, it was a really great upgrade that we appreciated and enjoyed during our stay!
Check-In
Although the experience via chat was very pleasant, my check-in wasn’t. Not only did they not acknowledge status and mention the welcome gift of points (not a big deal), but the lack of any energy interacting with the staff didn’t make me feel very welcomed. She also did not mention anything about the upgrade (usually they will inform me something along the lines of “good news, we’ve upgraded you to a suite!”).
Maybe it was just one staff having a bad day, because the remainder of my stay was really pleasant and the other staff I interacted with were all very warm and friendly.
Exterior
Nothing much to write home about, but definitely very clean, new, and modern looking.
Lobby & Hallways
I’m really digging Marriott’s new interior design language, especially at their more “budget-friendly” properties. Although the lobby was small and modest, it felt very warm and comfortable. Everything is brand new so also felt super clean!
We were given a suite on the top floor (even though there’s only 4 floors, I appreciate being further from the ground level).
Room
Again, nothing spectacular to really write home about. Nevertheless, like the rest of the property, the room was spacious, clean, and very new (to the point where a lot of the piping could still be heard settling in). This was more than enough for a quick place to crash during a road trip.
The only difference between a regular room and suite is the additional “living room area”, where the sofa can be turned into a bed. This was really useful to us since then each of us got our own bed.
A few more pictures…
Bathroom wasn’t too big, and unfortunately did not come with my favorite “rainforest shower head”. That being said, water pressure was satisfactory and overall very happy with the quality at this location and price level.
Sanitation wipes were also provided.
Check out the short room tour video:
Amenities
This hotel includes a gym, a small pool, and business services.
Gym and swimming pool…
If you need to print anything out, this is convenient:
Breakfast
In short: better than I expected! After getting served multiple brown-bag to-go breakfasts due to the pandemic, this finally feels like a decent breakfast offering.
Some pictures:
Very nice environment. I’d say it was never more than 20% full at any point during our stay.
Conclusion
We were very satisfied with our stay here and I strongly recommend it to anyone that will be passing by the area and looking for an affordable, modern and clean place to stay! If you don’t mind the slightly longer drive into the National Parks nearby, this is a great option. Plus – you get decent complimentary breakfast, a perk I value greatly!