The Stephen F. Austin Royal Sonesta Hotel

Stayed here for an event, it’s a nice hotel but there are definitely some things to note: First of all, they state the room comes with parking, however there is a $55 fee which I was not aware of. Even after this absurdly high parking fee, I constantly waited 10/15+ minutes for valet to take or drop the car. Everything this hotel does is upcharge upcharge upcharge. Want better wifi? Upcharge. Want water? Upcharge. Want parking? Upcharge. I connected to the wifi to do some work, genuinely the worst wifi possible. I then got onto the “premium” wifi network, which was exactly the same, could barely load a webpage, so steer clear if you’ve got work to do. The rooms are big but a bit tired, won’t harp on that too much as they had decent amenities in the room and great space, very comfy sleep. It is however quite noisy with the AC constantly kicking on and off (sounds like someone trying to get into the room). Overall, they need to be more transparent with pricing. No disrespect to the staff, they were all great.

Rooms are good, bed was comfortable. Breakfast isn’t included but was good and the service was great on May 23-24. The gym was 10/10 everything worked and they had everything you could need. The pool is a lap pool but nice to go into after workout.

I wasn't so sure about this hotel when I booked it, but it turned out to be an amazing stay! The rooms are spacious, clean and full of amenities. It was clean, well lit, and had tons of space, especially in the bathroom. The front desk staff and the bellhops were so friendly! This was my first trip to Austin and I would highly recommend anyone to stay at this hotel! I was a solo traveler here for a conference. It was walkable to a chick fil a for breakfast each morning. There are also plenty of restaurants to walk to for lunch and dinner. The bar district was just 3 or 4 blocks away, and I even felt safe to walk back from the bars at night.

We had such a lovely stay! The location is fantastic—just a short walk to Lady Bird Lake and the Capitol, which made exploring super easy and convenient. The hotel itself is absolutely worth the price. There’s a charming little restaurant downstairs that we really enjoyed, and the second floor has a beautiful outdoor area that’s perfect for relaxing day or night. Whether you want to unwind inside or outside, both spaces are equally inviting. The staff was incredibly kind and welcoming throughout our stay, which made the experience even better. Yes, there are a few extra costs like valet and a destination fee, but honestly, it didn’t take away from the overall experience. It’s a quiet, cute spot that was perfect for our weekend getaway. Would definitely stay here again! ✨

Giving a 5-star rating though our visit did not go without hiccups. Everyone was courteous and attentive. Food there was great. Location is awesome. Pretty much everything we wanted to do was within 20 minutes on foot. The only issue we had was that sections of our room had not been cleaned when we checked in. We reported this to the front desk the night of arrival and they immediately sent someone to take care of us. However, there was a language barrier which caused confusion, resulting in the room still not getting cleaned as requested. The following morning we were able to explain again to the front desk and then the ladies from housekeeping what he issue was. They did then resolve the main issue but ultimately left the room only about 90% clean. Not docking a star from the rating but communication with housekeeping could have been better.