Hotel Review: Vanguard Motel

The Vanguard Motel located at 711 N La Salle St. Navasota, TX (936-825-6497) was built circa 1988 and is run by a local family. I was looking for a place to stay for two nights in Navasota while I joined a photo group to explore the city and take pictures. Because I waited until the last minute to look at hotels all of the chain hotels were booked up or would cost well over $100 a night which I didn't feel like paying. A google search of Navasota lodgings introduced me to the Vanguard. I tried researching it however there isn't much on the internet about this place. This presents a problem for travelers who use the internet to learn about as much as they can before making their choices. Until now the only photograph of the place was on google streets. This didn't help as I wanted to know if I was going to stay at a local meth & prostitution den or just a small, inexpensive motel. I took a chance and booked it for two nights over the phone (you can't go online and book and you can't find this motel on sites like expedia). I arrived late in the evening thanks to a nail in my tire. The staff was friendly however they must have just cooked something funky due to the smell in the lobby. I just prayed it didn't follow me to the room. When I entered the room I was pleased to see that it was clean. It was very small with a king sized bed, a medium sized TV set, a microwave, small refrigerator, and a coffee maker. In my humble opinion these are the bare necessities plus a little extra and for roughly $50 a night! The downside is I couldn't get a wi-fi signal even though my Iphone said there was an unsecured network nearby (I don't know if it's the hotel's or some nearby business). I enjoyed my two night stay here. I had no trouble sleeping and neither the traffic on Hwy 6 nor the nearby train tracks disturbed my sleep. I recommend this motel if you're staying a short time and don't plan on remaining in your room very long. This is well worth the price. If you have to stay inside and work on the internet I suggest you go further out to Hwy 105 and stay at the pricier hotel chains. I hope this review and pictures help the next traveler researching this motel to make their choice.