Because I use Tripadvisor regularly to provide advice and guidance for various business and family trips I thought I'd write a short review for those consider ing a stay in Des Moines, Iowa.

First of all the Hotel Fort Des Moines is very popular with wedding parties so most likely the hotel will be full of families and those in town for similar activities. We stayed here over the Labor Day weeked with our two young boys.

This is an old hotel that has been remodeled with very average appointments. As long as you are good with that - no problem. Overall the staff was very friendly and accommodating but there was no doorman, bellman or valet available making getting in and out of the hotel a chore. The parking garage is adjacent and attached via sky walk which is great in the cooler months.

We booked two adjoining rooms which were ready upon our arrival. The restaurant was being remodeled so we had to rely on room service from local restaurants which can take up to one hour! The beds are on the hard side and the showers are not very powerful. I note this because I often book rooms based on the beds ie: Westin, Sheraton, Ritz. This is none of the above.

Overall I am rating this experience as Average because that's truly what it is. The rate for our wedding experience was $89/night so I did not have high expectations. Our biggest complaints were noise (it's an old hotel with lots and lots of downtown construction noise). Another huge issue that came up was that two nights in a row we awoke to a disgusting urine smell from the bathroom. I complained to the front desk and they responded immediately but did tell me that this is not "unusual" for them and that they would fix it - o.k. Yuck!

Would we go back? We would probably select another property before going back to the Hotel Fort Des Moines. If you are looking for a great rate with no extras at all - you may be very pleased. Just wanted to pass along our experience for others.

Very run down. In fact, more run down than charming. It's adequate. Was awoken in the night by a loud fight on the street six floors below. Walls are thin. Bathtub drain didn't work. Wireless internet didn't work, but wired internet did. But...Raccoon Brewing Company next door had amazing hamburgers!

I've stayed here on 3 different occasions recently. The rooms are clean but tired looking. The walls are paper thin and you can hear your neighbors TV, phone conversations, toilet flushing etc. Heating system is old with limited temperature control. Staff are nice enough but nothing special. Hotel tends to be crowded and noisy on the weekends. On one occasion the police came in the middle of the night because some of the guests were partying in the hall. This hotel seems to cater to leisure/convention traffic. I will try to find a more business friendly hotel for my next trip to Des Moines.
Stay here only if the price is right and you are not bothered by a noisy hotel.

older downtown hotel, very nice. we walked all over downtown on a day about 20 degrees, using the skywalk, no coat needed. shopping on skywalk is fun. room was good, took a bit to figure out heating system, room never quite warmed up either. easy to restaraunts using sky walk.