Have you seen The Thing? I'd pass on it

The Thing in Dragoon, Arizona has been featured as one of the Top 50 roadside attractions by Time Magazine. The synopsis given by Time for the attraction itself is very similar to my opinion of the bathroom – disappointment.

The Thing is heavily advertised. Though the exit for the attraction is Mile 322, billboards start going up around Mile 220. In total, there are about 22 billboards advertising; understandable for a notable roadside attraction, but with that much relative publicity, one would think they deliver.

When you walk into the actual storefront, the first thing to hit your eye is the sign to go into The Thing museum/walkthrough. I don’t every carry cash on me and I didn’t want to put just $1 on my debit card, so I forwent the museum walkthrough. Turning right after the main counter, I walked past rows of kitschy knickknacks to discover the sign for appropriate restrooms.

I nearly ran into the bathroom sanitation attendant as I went inside. Since it had just been cleaned, there was a pretty strong chemical (Pine-Sol, maybe) smell to it. I personally love the smell of cleaning chemicals, so it did not bother me.

Logic would dictate that since the restroom attendant had just finished cleaning, the bathroom would be squeaky clean. Not so much. The trash cans in the stalls – all without lids – still sat on the top of the toilets.

The sink still was noticeably dirty. I wasn’t quite sure if it was generally dirty or a cumulative buildup over time, but either way it was in obvious need of some TLC.

Additionally, there were no toilet seat covers. The final jury is still out on just how useful/effective toilet seat covers actually are, but I would consider them a necessity in a nationally-recognized roadside stop.

In contrast, the floors were nicely clean and the trash can for the main sink did have a lid and had recently been taken out.

The bathroom did have a changing station, which was nice considering it is a major rest stop for any travelers.

So – Let’s Break It Down

Cleanliness

2/5 The floors were nice and clean and the trashes had recently been emptied. But the buildup on the handwashing sink was disappointing. Since that’s the location where we are supposed to sanitize our hands, it is a critical place to ensure cleanliness

Smell

3/5 I personally love a chemically clean smell, but I can understand how not everyone would love it

Stock

3/5 Everything was pretty well stocked, but it was very disappointing that there were no toilet seat covers even offered

Space

4/5 The bathroom itself was great on space. The hallway leading into the bathroom was a bit tight, resulting in a near run-in with the attendant

Lighting

4/5 Pretty well-lit

Environment

3/5 If someone is stopping for the kitschy aspect of the roadside attraction, it may be worth it or a kind of cool environment. Since I didn’t go into the actual museum, the environment was so-so at most

'Wow' Factor

1/5 Nothing ‘wow’ about it, really. For a noted, high-traffic stop, I would have thought more would have been put into the bathrooms

So out of the potential 35 total, The Thing at Mile 322 in Arizona’s women’s restroom came in at 20. Much like review of the actual roadside attraction itself, the bathroom was a disappointment in terms of sanitation and overall stock. Personally, I would advise to make a stop elsewhere.

#TheThing #Arizona #I10