Holiday Inn Houston NE - Bush Airport Area by IHG

The only real plus was being close to the airport and having a shuttle. I stayed less than 10 hours, which was lucky, since this was the worst of the three hotels I used on my Houston trip. The HVAC was the loudest I've encountered in years of travel, and its vent blew toward my head while I was lying in bed. The bathroom faucet was noisy too, with a lot of resonance. The bathroom mirror had four LED lights: two worked, one was dead, and the last began blinking after a few minutes. At 4 a.m., the parking lot lights outside my room were too bright. The curtains were fixed at both sides, so the blackout curtains couldn't be closed. There were two sets of bathroom outlets, but only one set had the required GFCI. Neither had power, and the GFCI outlet couldn't be reset. I think that's unsafe and against the law. You can't really get around without a car. Don't be fooled by the maps, there's not even a pavement to the nearby Shell convenience store.

The room and facility were clean, but that doesn't make up for the way this was handled. I chose this IHG property because the advertised hot tub was the deciding factor. My daughter had just won NCA after an intense competition and was extremely sore, so it mattered a lot to us. Nobody mentioned when I booked or checked in that it wasn't working. We only found out when we went to use it and discovered ice-cold water. At the desk, I was told to speak to a manager in the morning. There wasn't one available then, and another employee said it was “above his pay grade” and that I should have called ahead to check. Guests shouldn't have to verify that advertised amenities work. When I eventually spoke to a manager, she said she'd “check and see what could be done,” but there was no immediate fix, real accountability, or meaningful follow-up before we left. If a major amenity is out of service, guests should hear about it before booking, or at least at check-in. Very disappointing experience!!!

I arrived after midnight on 5/22 expecting to check into a room I thought my husband had reserved for me. It turned out he had accidentally booked it for the night before. The desk employee couldn't clearly explain what had happened, and as I kept asking, he got visibly upset, slapped the table, said there was no room, and told me to leave. It was the middle of the night and I had nowhere to go, so I asked if I could wait in the lobby until my early appointment before flying home that afternoon. He threatened to call the police if I stayed. I called my husband, and we realized the booking mistake. I apologized to the employee and explained that I desperately needed a room to rest. Then we were told one could be provided, which left me wondering why I'd first been told none were available. I felt unfairly treated and met with needless hostility, as if I were causing trouble or needed police involvement. Poor communication and a lack of patience made this much worse. The front desk needs more training.

The laundry is conveniently placed, the rooms were serviced well, the gym was sufficient, and the showers were good. The free internet was actually decent, too. Breakfast costs $14-17, even though the exact same thing is free at other Holiday Inns. That's an automatic two-star reduction for me. If the price doesn't bother you, it's not a bad stay.