Hotel Forty Five Macon a Tribute Portfolio Hotel

Second time staying here for work and I love this place. Sophia, one of the managers, was so nice and had outstanding intel on the local history and places to see. Gave me some insight into the local breweries and the hotel’s very on Bullet Bourbon. My bartender, Sara, was top notch and super nice. Made my stay so much better. Thank you Sara and Sophia.

This hotel is terrible. Customer service is bad, valet is bad, the check in lobby is a cluttered mess. I checked in for a 2 night stay. The staff said I had a 3 night stay, but I had a copy of my booking reservation that said two nights. They told me they would charge me to cancel the third night. The Marriott app showed two nights, the confirmation email showed two nights... but their computer said 3. Finally got that resolved after some arguing with the counter. Next, Valet is a disaster. I parked my car with Valet, who sent me a link to pay and request my car. I did that and got charged $30/night for parking. Fine. The hotel then added $90.00 in parking fees to the folio, in addition to the charges from the parking company. I spoke with the front desk who assured me they would refund it. Wasn't refunded. Called the hotel 3 times requesting a refund, no response. This is a racket and the AG of this state should look into this mess. The room was just OK. AC didn't work, the window shade was busted, the carpet is worn down, and when you open the drawer that the safe is in, the entire cabinet tips over because of the weight of the safe. This is a courtyard at best -- a pig in lipstick. The management and Marriott brand should be embarrassed with this property. The fact that I have to fight to get my money back from them when they tried to scam an extra night out of me and then again for parking is ridiculous, I've been going back and forth with them so I can get my expense reports done, with no luck. I had to report this hotel to our travel department to have it blocked from future bookings.

Hotel Forty Five in Macon is undeniably stylish. The retro design is charming, the rooftop bar is fantastic, and the hotel is impressively dog-friendly. Under normal circumstances, I’d be writing a glowing review. However, the experience was severely marred by poor operational execution. The parking situation is disorganized and feels like an afterthought. The valet stand was cluttered and chaotic, and I had a near miss with another guest reversing recklessly. For $30 a night in parking fees, I expect a safer, more streamlined arrival process. But the real issue was check-in. It was hands down the worst I’ve ever experienced at any hotel, let alone one charging $300+ a night. Despite having a confirmation email and SMS proving my fully paid reservation, the front desk couldn’t find it in their system. Rather than helping resolve it, they made me call Marriott support. Support confirmed the reservation did exist and should be visible to the property, but still refused to contact the hotel directly. I was stuck between two entities refusing to communicate with no resolution being attempted from either end until I handed my phone to the front desk clerk, who finally spoke to support. A few minutes later, the reservation “magically” appeared. What’s worse? After all of that, there was no gesture of goodwill. No offer to waive valet, no drink voucher, no apology beyond the bare minimum. For a property that markets itself as boutique and elevated, the lack of basic hospitality and accountability was staggering. I also expect more from Marriott as a brand. Beautiful space. Terrible process. And absolutely no interest in making it right. I won’t be back.