Highlander Motel

Stayed here over the weekend in a non-​smoking king unit. Wife & I came out to see our son for father’s day, since he was working and couldn’t get home to see me. At the last minute we decided to spend the night but didn’t want to spend almost $ 150 at the place we stayed last time.
This place is an older 50’s style single story motel that a friend had mentioned we should try.
Pros:
The price – about ¹⁄₃ of what the better motels in Athens charge.
The owner, who lives on-​site with his family, is very friendly.
The king-​sized bed was comfortable enough (and I’ve got a bad back), pillows were decent and the bedding clean and in good condition.
The bathroom was clean and towels were clean and adequate (not plush, but not thin & scratchy). Toilet paper was adequate (not plush but adequate). Small soap & shampoo was provided.
The carpet was clean and in good condition. The place looked recently painted.
The light blocking curtain covered the whole window (better than a lot of chain motels), and the a/​c unit could be turned to fan on for good white noise. Also, no one is above or below stomping around or jumping on the bed.
There’s a desk and chair, wifi (worked fine for internet), a 32″ flat screen with cable.
Cons (or not – none of these are deal-​breakers for me):
The bathroom door didn’t close fully – too many coats of paint. Just wife and I but could be awkward if young ones are around.
The tub didn’t drain well – you were standing in several inches of water by the time you finished.
No coffee maker or iron (not expected and a big deal – just fyi), no hangers on the coat rack, no alarm clock (used our phones), only one overhead light and one desk lamp in the main area so the room was kind of dark on one side.
There are smoking and non-​smoking rooms next to each other (although I did not not smell the smoke from the next room until they opened their door the next morning and it came through our A/​C).
A few ants in the bathroom, but no bed bugs or roaches, so not a problem – just fyi.
Checkout was at 11 on Sunday. Almost everyone was still there at 11 and had to drag themselves out – they should extend checkout to 12 on the weekends so folks can relax.

One star, only because I couldn’t do negative stars.
Dirty, old, smelly, cold. Reminded me of every nasty hotel I’ve seen in movies, or been forced to stay in.
Forced into 2 night minimum.
Need to raze the place & start over. With the lack of hotel rooms, I’m sure it’s much more profitable for them to just keep doing it same ‘ol, same ‘ol & laugh all the way to the bank.

Not the worst place in the world but after my friends and I took turns taking a shower the whole room was soaking wet. Zero ventilation, like a jungle. Having no fitted sheets was also weird. I was up all night. But it could’ve been me coming down from the high voltage tequila over at casa nueva.

It’s the perfect spot for a working traveler, clean beds, old but very functional plumbing (my bath tub is robins egg blue. lol) but unless you’re a total snob the widescreen TV, COLD a/​c, 42/​night price tag and very courteous staff make up for any retro fixtures. Stay at the Highlander if you’re in Athens, OH.

Built sometime in the 50’s with an interior decorated sometime in the 90’s, you would think this place would be a dive to avoid. At one point in it’s past, it was the sort of place you paid for by the hour. However, those days are over. The new owners are a family from India, raising their kids in Athens. It’s the owners of the Highlander that make it special. The family lives in an apartment attached to the main office. It’s not just a business for these people, it’s their home. And, as such, they keep it clean and homey. A massive flower garden is located right by the entrance. The owner’s kid’s have a basketball hoop taking up a couple of parking spots. I’ve seen them walk around chatting with guests who are sitting on quaint benches in front of their room. It’s a quiet corner of downtown Athens. You could walk «uptown» in about 20 minutes if you wanted. It’s located very close to the Hockhocking Bike Path. Also, this place is REALLY INEXPENSIVE.
Don’t get me wrong, this isn’t the «Ritz.» It’s a motel. No continental breakfast, no mints on your cushion. You’ll get a clean, if dated, room, a ton of water pressure (old showers mean these puppies are not the «low flow» types you get in modern hotels), widescreen TV, a microwave, fridge, and phone. They even have REAL coat hangers, not the ones that are bolted to the coat hanger rod. Old school. I think one of the rooms has a mirror on the ceiling too, if you’re into that.
Since it’s inexpensive, and close to campus, It’s constantly booked solid. The owners will give your room away if you don’t check in when you say you’re going to arrive, so if you are on you’re running late or going to miss your check-​in time, just keep in touch with them on the phone and your room will be safe.

I stayed here the night of dads dat at OU, though my stay was not associated with that event. I called every other hotel and motel in the area– all were booked. Highlander had one room left and the man was extremely pleasant and warm, especially taking into account we woke him up at 3 in the morning. The room itself was spacious and very clean, the bed comfortable and the staff pleasant. Affordable and well worth it. I highly suggest you support local business and stay here!