The exterior's attractive integrity served to hide the fact that the interior had suffered from deferred maintenance, neglect, and well below average housekeeping. The room's bedspreads did not match and there was a feeling of griminess about the place--which was of course accentuated by opening the room door and getting a whiff of mould and mildew from the former pool area.

Having become among the last Howard Johnson's Motor Lodges the site was very disappointing since it could not even come close to measuring up to what had once been the exacting standards that were hallmarks of the once mighty Orange Roofed chain. The reality is--there are no longer standards, and while Middletown's desk clerk was cordial, he was unsympathetic. It seems to be a universal trend--perhaps employees everywhere are just not incented to care (just exactly what's up with the associate nonsense too--so the housekeeper is on the same level as the CEO--I think not?).