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6.9

192 reviews

Sonesta Essential Ames

Sonesta Essential Ames

1400 S Dayton Place, Ames, 50010, Iowa, United States

Choose dates to view prices

Free parking

Business center

Indoor swimming pool

Free wifi

Fitness center

Spa tub

Air conditioning

Parking On Site

Sonesta Essential Ames

Sonesta Essential Ames is a 2-star motel in Ames, Iowa, United States. Located at 1400 S Dayton Place, it sits about 2.6mi from the city center and offers breakfast to jump-start each day. With 192 reviews, this property has plenty of traveler perspectives to consider.

Key amenities include free on-site parking, free WiFi, and an indoor swimming pool. A free fitness center, a business center, and a spa tub round out the wellness options, while air conditioning keeps rooms comfortable. The property is non-smoking, wheelchair accessible, and features an elevator with access to upper floors, 24-hour front desk service, and free toiletries. Pets are welcome with extra charges.

With a simple, traveler-friendly setup, Sonesta Essential Ames pairs comforts like breakfast and a pool with practical perks—free parking, free WiFi, and easy access to the highway and area sights.

For travelers chasing comfort and convenience, wellness and work-ready perks are easy to find. An indoor pool is open year-round, complemented by a spa tub and a free fitness center. A business center helps with productivity, while free WiFi and free on-site parking ease the logistics. Elevators serve the upper floors, a 24-hour front desk is ready to help, and free toiletries plus air conditioning keep stays comfortable. The property remains non-smoking, creating a clean, relaxed backdrop for the stay.

Pet travelers will be glad to know that pets are welcome with extra charges. Cash is not accepted; payment methods include Diners Club, American Express, Visa, Discover, and Mastercard. With 192 reviews, there are plenty of traveler perspectives to consider.

Overall, the mix of year-round pool fun, business-ready spaces, and simple on-site conveniences makes this Ames stay a reliable choice for a practical, traveler-focused visit.

Closest airports

Des Moines International Airport

32.8mi

Fort Dodge Municipal Airport

48.8mi

Most popular amenities

Free parking

Business center

Indoor swimming pool

Free wifi

Fitness center

Spa tub

Air conditioning

Parking On Site

24-hour front desk

Non-smoking rooms

Wheelchair accessible

Elevator

Upper floors accessible by elevator

Free toiletries

Rooms

Guest reviews

6.9

192 reviews

Categories of assessments

Cleanliness

Comfort

Location

Facilities

Staff

Value for money

WiFi quality

Breakfast

Featured reviews:

🇺🇸

Rita

9.1

July 2024

For the price, this hotel was surprisingly well-equipped and clean. The breakfast hours were generous, the staff member in charge of the breakfast was kind and accommodating of late eaters. Besides A/C sound, the room was very quiet.

My first negative impression was the feel of high humidity on the room. That persisted throughout my two-night stay, even though the room was at a comfortable temperature. There were no USB ports in the room, which was surprising and inconvenient. The person at the desk, while polite and attentive, was difficult to understand because of his accent. Finally, the hotel is a little hard to get to off the highway.

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Deborah

10

December 2024

The staff was very friendly especially since we arrived close to midnight the 1st night and almost as late the 2nd time we stayed. The rooms were clean and in excellent condition. The beds were comfortable. I would recommend this Red Roof and would stay here again.

The only negative was the heat was high both nights even though we turned it to the lowest settings , but given the near zero temperature that was very possibly due to the combination of other rooms heat as well.

🇺🇦

Svetik84

10

November 2023

My husband and I were very tired. We had a difficult and long journey. We needed to stop and take a breather. We found this hotel. We really liked the location. Calm and quiet! The service staff is very polite and attentive. The staff responded to our various requests instantly! Having breakfast was also nice! We were not able to enjoy all the services of the hotel, as we only stayed to sleep. But I definitely put this hotel on my radar☺️. Thank you. Sincerely, Lana and Paul Pausig

🇺🇸

Bonita

10

October 2024

I had booked a room for the day before when I arrived it was my mistake and the guy at the desk gave me a room at a really great price not sure if this is the hotels regular rate it was even cheaper than what I had paid though and online website

🇸🇦

Alfayez

9.1

January 2024

The receptionist is very friendly, the room was great, and breakfast was good. Although the location isn’t that good if you don’t have a car you have to take an Uber or Lyft. Also, CyRide ( the bus system in ames) doesn’t go there unfortunately, overall great hotel except the location

Just the location

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Kate

9.1

July 2025

The breakfast was fantastic, the rooms were clean and comfortable, and it's in a great location for what we needed.

The pool was a bit too heavily cholorinated.

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Azariah

10

June 2024

Check process was easy, staff were friendly, bed was comfy, breakfast was tasty! Big plus - no charge for our dog!

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Rebecca

8.2

October 2023

The room was clean and the bed was comfortable. The WIFI worked well and the lighting was great for reading in bed.

It was really quite nice. I would have liked a little freezer within the refrigerator to keep my blue ice frozen but that's the only improvement that I can think of.

🇺🇸

Ronald

9.1

August 2023

Room was very clean and spacious. Breakfast had quite a few offerings...waffles, biscuits and gravy, eggs, cereal, fruit, coffee, juice, bagels, yogurt, etc. I also had a special pricing for this hotel making it about $30.00 cheaper than what I have typically paying at hotels of a similar type this Summer.

n/a

🇺🇸

Cody

8.2

November 2024

The space was nice comfortable bed and big tub.

Alot of the hot tub was broken like jets stayed on maybe 5 seconds, nobs were missing for it.

Points of Interest Around Sonesta Essential Ames

Airports

Des Moines International Airport

32.8mi

Fort Dodge Municipal Airport

48.8mi

Pools

Location

  • Indoor

Availability

  • All season

Amenities of Sonesta Essential Ames

Free parking

Business center

Indoor swimming pool

Free wifi

Fitness center

Spa tub

Air conditioning

Parking On Site

24-hour front desk

Non-smoking rooms

Wheelchair accessible

Elevator

Upper floors accessible by elevator

Free toiletries

Stay rules - Sonesta Essential Ames

  • Check-in / Check-out

  • Pets

  • Internet

  • Age restrictions

  • Curfew

  • Parking

  • Children and beds

  • Cards accepted at this property