Holiday Inn Express Hartford -

The location was pretty good, but that was the only plus. Parking outside cost $16 each day. The bed was extremely hard, the pillows were flat, and even the hottest shower setting was barely lukewarm. The bathroom floor felt sticky, and the walls were so thin I could hear people across the hall, above me, and in the room sharing my wall at all hours. Find another hotel.

AVOID! We came to Hartford for one night, but the place looked nothing like the photos. The lobby felt tired and poorly kept, with beanbags that made it look more like a college dorm than a hotel in a capital city. After checking in and paying $15 for parking, we took our bags up to the ninth floor. The room smelled strongly of bleach mixed with urine, had dust on every surface, and worn carpet. It looked like a cockroach could crawl across the floor at any moment. The on-site garage was in awful shape, with crumbling cement, an unsafe look, and maybe 15 spaces total. We decided to cut our losses and leave. The front desk man wasn't helpful when we said we didn't want to stay. He just said that since we'd booked with credit card points, he couldn't do anything. At almost 10 p.m. we called the Marriott around the corner, and luckily they had one room left. Now I have to try to get my money back through my credit card company, though I probably won't. 150% AVOID.

We were in room 408 for a concert at the XL center, which was only a few minutes away on foot. The breakfast was decent, but we won't return. The whole hotel was drenched in a scent like public restroom air freshener. Our beds were uncomfortable and the pillows flat. The bathroom was in poor shape and smelled a bit like urine. It had no exhaust fan, and the ceiling had significant cracks. The room's flooring was filthy, and the outlets by the bed didn't work. The garage was extremely narrow and hard to maneuver in. When we arrived, the room was 75 degrees because the curtains were open and sunlight was coming in. It took a few hours for the AC to cool things down, since it barely blew any air.

The location is excellent and breakfast was fine, but this isn't a boutique hotel. The TV picture didn't fit the screen properly, and the old remote barely responded. There was hair left by previous guests on the shower wall, cracks in the ceiling, and dirty, old caulk in the bathroom. The fixtures and hinges were rusted, and the floor tiles looked at least 30 years old. The beds were very uncomfortable, like Motel 6 futons. I could hear toilets flushing in lots of other rooms.