Johnson Hotels with Gym

"Stayed one night a week before this one and the difference was noticeable. I agree with the previous reviewer that said the 'Club' rooms are better than the first floor regular King rooms. I booked both rooms through Trip.com. The option to book the Club King rooms is not available on any website that I could find. The first stay, a new trainee upgraded us the 'Club' level, basically the 2nd floor. The difference, besides location, was the room was larger, larger bathroom entryway, couch and most importantly... the door frames were clean and not in need of paint. The second stay, a different person checked in... our room number again was changed from the pre-assigned one given by trip.com (seems to be standard op procedure), but both numbers were on first floor. This time the room just felt dirty because I could see handprints on the door frames bath & entry. If not paint, bleach water would remove. I would actually pay an extra $30 for the Club room, if I had that option. Sadly, you don't know what you will get when you book. I had tried calling the hotel direct to book and their rate was higher than I was finding online...for regular King rooms. The Club rooms ARE fantastic and worth every penny and make the difference of an ABOVE arverage 4* stay vs. a BELOW average 3* stay. If my first experience had been like my last, I probably wouldn't have booked again. The first stay, I felt I got a value. Not so on the second. The outdoor property areas are stunningly beautiful. The breakfast was above average with fresh blueberries & strawberries available, ham/egg/cheese croissant sandwiches, different juice options. We did not try the wine/cheese from 5-6pm either time. If we return (we have family in NWA), we will probably stay there again. At the time of booking an King JACUZZI suite was $150 additional per night, as I have a jacuzzi tub at home, I didn't think it worth it to me. Re-evaluating that...and I'd probably see if I could snag one of the special rooms like the Remington suite for comparison sake. The Hawthorne was near the room we stayed in the 2nd stay and is probably in need of TLC, being in the older section of the hotel. My guess. I wish there was a way to book the 2nd floor King suites, instead of potluck 1st floor King standard rooms with tiny bath. ONLINE. Rates both times were $30 night below Holiday Inn Springdale. P.S. As this is an Ascend Hotel, I had attributed my first upgrade to my CSR credit card benefits. Perhaps mistakenly? Hotel did not appear to be full either time, based on parking lot & breakfast company. "