If you're not familiar with Moreno Valley, it's just outside of Riverside, California and about an hour from LA. It was a fairly quick drive from Yuma. Here's a helpful travel tip: Don't forget time zone changes. I arrived there at what I thought was 2:30, which was in reality 1:30, so we had to bide our time for awhile before our room was ready. We walked around a bit and got lost on a short drive. Good times. So, let me tell you about the hotel.
The Vibe
Outside, the hotel looks really cool. I need to learn more about achitecture to explain myself better, but I liked the stone walls, there was a cool fountain out front, though it wasn't on.
The front area was grassy with palm trees, much of what you'd expect from Cali. The inside was a typical La Quinta. Tastefully decorated and simple. I enjoyed the color scheme of my room. You can see the burgundy accent wall in the photo. The bathroom was huge, which is nice. The room had a good size closet. The carpet and furniture were pretty worn. This hotel could definitely use some updates.
Cleanliness
My room and the rest of the hotel were definitely clean. In fact throughout the day you'd find staff vacuuming this or wiping that. It was nice to see that cleaning was done more than once a day, especially in these COVID days. What wasn't clean was the parking lot. It was, in a word, disgusting. The front looked ok, but if you walked around the back, which you would do if you parked back there or have a dog, there was garbage and dog shit (I'll get to the dog shit later) everywhere. The back garbage can was overflowing. In an the adjacent shared lot someone was living in their car. Not so good vibes there.
Amenities
My room had the standard amenities: coffee maker, TV, fridge, microwave. Lots of outlets but no USB ports, which forced me to buy a charging box because I forgot mine at home. The TV worked fine but the remote didn't work very well. There was no channel guide, nor a guide on the TV, so I had to flip through channels to find what I wanted. Not a deal breaker, but super annoying. There was an extra blanky in my room, which I really appreciate since hotel covers are so thin these days and I like to keep my room just a bit warmer than the Arctic.
The hotel had an indoor pool, small business center and a gym. There were ice machines and vending machines, however only beverages in the machines. No snackies. I like my snackies. There is a convenience store right next door, but that's not AS convenient as having them down the hall. And I swear, more vending machines need to carry Coke Zero!!
They had free breakfast. I'm not a breakfast eater, but if I do eat it, it's protein. The eggs and bacon were pretty meh. They did have cereal, grains to toast, waffles, fruit, and toast though.
The Staff
Not much interaction, but they were nice enough. When I arrived early the desk clerk went ahead and processed my check in so that when I came back I could just grab my key and go. They didn't go out of their way to say hi or stop what they were doing to acknowledge you as you walked by, so meh.
Location
This hotel is VERY close to everything. Just down the street you could shop at Home Goods, TJ Maxx and more. I was able to get my charging box at the Metro store down the street. That shopping area also had a BevMo which I took advantage of for road snacks and bubbles. Plenty of dining around also. BJs was just down the street. It was easy to DoorDash for me to get my wing fix. I mentioned there was a convenience store next door, also a gas station, which is very convenient. That said, it is in a BUSY area. Not ideal for dog walking. The traffic didn't bother me from my room, but Rosie did not like walking next to it.
If you're staying for awhile, there is plenty to do in or near Moreno Valley. There are a number of museums including the Orange Empire Railway Museum and March Field Air Museum. You can visit lakes and mountains, skydive or offroad. As you can see, you won't be bored.
The Flaws
The main flaw for me being a dog owner staying in a pet friendly hotel is that there were no dog poop stations. Hence, why there was dog shit everywhere as I mentioned before. If you accept dogs, you should really ensure there are bags and trash cans somewhere on your grounds. Probably not a deal breaker, but the bathroom door opened out and it was right by the front door. For me, it's just kind of annoying to have to keep opening and shutting the door to walk around it. Seems like that would be an easy fix. The luggage racks in most of these hotels, including this one, don't hold my big ass suitcase. If you're traveling as far as I do and for as long as I sometimes do, you need a big ass suitcase and a rack that will hold it. Again, no pen and paper. What the hell? Lastly, the walls were really thin. I could have joined the conversation of my next door neighbors. Luckily they weren't out to party all night.
The Verdict
If I'm being completely honest, I probably won't stay here again. The main thing for me, traveling with dog, is the lack of poop stations and location. If you're not traveling with dogs, this may be better for you. According to my rating system, La Quinta by Wyndam in Moreno Valley, California gets 7.2 hotel keys.
