Holiday Inn Express & Suites Cartersville by IHG

I’m a loyal IHG customer and stayed at locations around the country for a previous travel job. We were here a year ago and things were fine apart from marijuana smoke nearby that the front office employee wouldn't address, and a fire alarm in the middle of the night. The manager called afterward, apologized for the alarm, and said he hadn't heard about the smoke. He hoped it wouldn't put us off, and I told him we'd return. We did, but this visit fell short. The room itself was fine, but my requests for a high floor and a room far from the elevator were both missed. There was no proper chair, just what looked like half a twin bed against a blank wall. Watching TV or talking to anyone meant turning my head, and my neck got sore. At breakfast, the butter was across the counter from the toast. There were orange, apple, and cranberry juices, but I'd trade one for iced tea. I don't drink coffee, and during that awful cold snap there wasn't even a hot chocolate packet by the coffee. The front desk man wasn't welcoming, didn't smile, and didn't acknowledge my IHG status. When I went to get a receipt at checkout, he gave it to me without asking how the stay was or even smiling. Come on, you can do better.

The room was spacious and the bed comfortable, and breakfast the next morning was good with fresh food brought out. Check-in was quick, and the receptionist on the night of 10/3 was really friendly. The hotel is newer and handy to the highway. There was a slight musty smell when I entered, though it faded after I cooled the room. In Room 411, the bathroom sink drained very slowly and might have overflowed if left running for a minute or so. I moved the stopper up and down, which helped a little, but it probably needs maintenance. Good stay overall, and I'd come back if I were in the area.

My husband stayed here for a week for work and found it very nice. The place is in the middle of a complete renovation, and the new rooms are great.

We'd unpacked in our room around 9:30 p.m. when a large cockroach crawled up the wall. They moved us to another room, where the blinds were held together with packing tape and one blanket had a big tear. The third room was at least okay, but we weren't prepared to move all our stuff into three different rooms that night.