Whispering Sands - Hanksville

We spent one night here while traveling through the area. I booked online after discovering this was the better of the two available options in town. A tip: if you check in on Yelp, you can get about $15 off your stay. We were pleasantly surprised by Whispering Sands. We stayed in the main building, and our room was very clean and nice, featuring granite countertops throughout. It also had a mini fridge and microwave. The beds were very comfortable to sit on, but I found them too soft for sleeping; I sank into the mattress and had difficulty falling asleep because of it. The hotel has a laundry room (open until 11 PM) and is right next to a burger and shake place. Overall, I would recommend this hotel, despite my issues with the mattress.

To my delight, there was a basket filled with breakfast items, including instant oatmeal, bottled water, a breakfast bar, fruit cups, tea, coffee, instant hot chocolate, and instant apple cider. I appreciated this thoughtful touch, especially with the individually wrapped spoons included in the basket. The room itself was clean, although the WiFi tended to be slow. The customer service could use some improvement, as the owner—if that's who they were—was a bit brusque during check-in. Nonetheless, we enjoyed a restful night and were on our way the next day. Overall, this motel is perfectly adequate for a short stay.

The room was clean and equipped with amenities like an XL mini fridge (I know, it sounds like an oxymoron, but it was larger than the usual mini fridge), a microwave, a TV, cable, and internet. Two unexpected yet appreciated features were a heating lamp above the toilet for those chilly winter days and the fact that the room was already pre-heated. This was a huge advantage, especially with a little one in tow—it was great not having to wait for the room to warm up. I also enjoyed the complimentary breakfast bar, which offered real food options. The only downside I noted was that the shower/bathtub setup could use some upgrades. Additionally, be cautious in the parking lot as it can be icy; the receptionist kindly warned us about this multiple times. Overall, I would definitely return here again!

Upon checking in, I requested a room on the ground floor due to the heavy luggage I had to carry. I was informed that I had to take the room I was assigned instead. Later that evening, the smoke alarm went off and wouldn't turn off. When I went to the front desk for assistance, the staff came and removed the battery without replacing it. The room was extremely cold, so I tried to increase the heating, only to discover that the heater was broken and blowing in cold air from outside. I spoke with the manager, who provided me with a space heater, but it wasn't very effective. Furthermore, the lights began to flicker and eventually went out because the heater tripped the circuit breaker. I went back to the manager to ask her to reset the breaker. I also requested a refund or partial refund, but the manager refused. The service was terrible, and the manager was unfriendly and indifferent to the issues I was facing.

The restaurant offered a friendly atmosphere, was clean, and conveniently located near several parks. The beds were comfortable, and there was a gas station nearby featuring a fantastic hamburger joint. The views were stunning, and we enjoyed our stay in a cabin with a charming wooden ceiling.