Holiday Inn Express Columbia East - Elkridge

We were happy with our four-night stay while moving from an apartment to a house. It was one of the cheaper local options for sleeping four. Check-in went smoothly, and adding a night to our original three-night booking was no problem. The room was clean, and the blackout curtains were really nice. Breakfast was free, with three heated choices like eggs and meat, plus oatmeal, cereal, yogurt, bagels, juice, coffee, and more. We didn't use the amenities, so I can't speak to them.

The room and our key cards gave us trouble. Our cards wouldn't work for the room door or gym, and even after they were reprogrammed, one still failed, so we gave up. The pool was closed, and the tiny gym had a treadmill and elliptical that wouldn't power on. On the plus side, the hotel was quieter than many others, with little highway noise and quiet halls at night. The room was as expected, clean with a few cosmetic flaws that weren't alarming. Breakfast was tasty, with eggs, pancakes, muffins, and more. It wasn't a terrible one-night stay, but full price for an average visit with unavailable promised amenities wasn't great. IHG gave me some bonus reward points after I contacted them, so at least that helped.

I chose this hotel specifically for the indoor pool, which was a deciding factor. The pool was advertised on every booking platform, including the IHG app, but after check-in the front desk told me it wasn't operational and staff said it had been closed all winter. That wasn't disclosed before I arrived. I checked out about an hour later and booked the same brand a few minutes away, where the indoor pool worked. Before leaving, I was clearly told I wouldn't be charged, but later received a cancellation email saying I had been charged. The whole situation was misleading and disappointing, especially since the advertised amenities influenced my booking.

Our soccer team was here for a weekend tournament, and the stay was disappointing. I called a few days before arrival to check that the pool was open, and nobody mentioned a problem. Once there, we found the heater was broken, the water freezing, and cold air from the pool room's AC blasting in, so we couldn't use it. We'd planned team time around the pool, and it threw off our schedule. Staff communication was unprofessional, too. One employee spoke directly to our children instead of addressing the adults. The hotel wasn't transparent or providing the basic experience we'd been promised. I wouldn't recommend it, especially to families or teams traveling together.