Toms River, New Jersey hotel rooms at the Independent

"The property was extremely outdated and clearly in desperate need of renovation and overall modernization. While the staff was friendly and courteous throughout our stay, their kindness unfortunately could not make up for the poor condition of the hotel itself. The air conditioning in our room barely functioned and never cooled the room properly, even with the fan running continuously, making it very uncomfortable to sleep. The bathroom was also unacceptable from a cleanliness standpoint, with visible urine stains on the walls and a general lack of deep cleaning and upkeep. To make matters worse, the shower curtain completely fell down while my wife was showering, which only added to an already frustrating and unpleasant experience. The towels and pillows provided felt extremely low quality and uncomfortable, making it difficult to get any real rest. Noise was another major issue, the walls and ceilings seemed paper thin, and you could hear virtually everything happening around the hotel at all hours. Overall, this was easily one of the worst hotel stays I’ve experienced in a long time. The only real positive was the convenient location, but unfortunately it was nowhere near enough to outweigh the many issues with the property itself."

"Really nice hotel! Room was clean, staff was great, room was great! We would happily stay here again."

"This is an okay place to stay for a night. It serves its purpose. "

"The room was clean and spacious. The only complaint about the room was ants. I went to the front desk and was offered bug spray and to leave a note for the morning staff. I had Lysol so I didn’t bother but when they were there the next day I went back and they thankfully had a plant based one. I was traveling with children one being a toddler. The water smelled a little funny but the hotel might not be able to control that. Breakfast wasn’t extensive but it worked so you don’t go hungry. Staff was friendly and they even had complimentary glasses of wine in the lobby one night. We were out most of the day so we didn’t get to see what was around the hotel but there were a couple decent food options. Overall I’d stay again if in town for the same event next year. "

"This is an old-fashioned two-level motel, with outside stairs and a narrow catwalk to your second-floor room. It showed signs of wear, of course, but everything was neat and clean. The room was a nice surprise; the rug looked new and the beds were comfortable and attractive. There were no offensive odors and everything was clean. The biggest problem was that there wasn't much "everything". Room was pretty small, with no hair dryer, no coffee, no shelf in the bathroom, no phone to call the front desk, no ice machine; the internet was rated "slow" by my phone system. And we never did figure out how to change the heat (it was stuck on 65 F on a cold, rainy night) and the blanket was summer-weight. It was not miserable, just minimal."

"Beautiful property and incredibly kind staff."

"The property was great."

"Great stay at ocean park inn,clean ,nice vibe about the place..Dom is a great host ,kind and friendly..I highly recommend staying here..and I'll definitely be coming back again 😊"

"Price is high for what they offer"