Holiday Inn Cleveland-S Independence by IHG

The biggest nuisance was the noise coming through the thin door to the hallway and the adjoining room. Both nights I could hear conversations in the hall and the neighbor's TV. The A/C fan was loud, but it helped drown things out while I slept. The blackout curtain worked great. My bed was comfortable and there were lots of pillows, though they were flatter than I prefer. The room itself was spacious and clean, with plenty of hot water and A/C that worked well. Checking in was fairly transactional: after checking my ID, I was handed a key and had to ask how to get to the room. I especially needed directions because the first ball was headed to a different hotel. For the price, I was surprised by several things I noticed on closer inspection, particularly given HI's reputation. There was missing art and a missing utility cover. The tub spout was coming away from the wall, with gaps where the caulk had pulled loose. The sink faucet was more inconvenient: unless turned all the way on, the water ran onto the counter and flooded the vanity. With it fully on, I had about 1.5 inches of space to wash my hands without knocking my knuckles against the back of the sink. It worked, but it was a strange setup. It was a comfortable, clean, enjoyable stay in Cleveland, and overall, fine.

The property used to be very nice, which makes its poor management a shame. Now there's trash all over the hallways, including bags of it, and the ice machine by the pool was leaking water onto the floor. My wife slipped there. The staff didn't seem to care and were rude, yelling at people. Maybe the club in the lobby is why, but it feels tacky. I didn't come here to stay at a club. The place feels dirty, and it seems like the owner and staff take no pride in it.

We had stayed after a work party our company held at the hotel because of the snowstorm. At 4 a.m., while my friend and I were alone in our room, a man knocked repeatedly at different times. He kept speaking through the door, asking for a charger and saying he wasn't trying to do anything weird. It was very disturbing, especially since he knew two women were in the room. We called the front desk to ask for another room. The woman was dismissive and said she thought the stranger was fine, since he'd been downstairs getting a charger and hadn't raised a concern with her. She said we could stay in our room. When I told her we were uncomfortable, she got upset, said, “Fine, I'll give you a new room if you come down here,” and hung up. The man was at the counter when we came down for a new room, and the desk employee told him about our complaint. That escalated things instead of keeping us safe. Our friend later went down to tell her she'd handled it poorly and that the man shouldn't be allowed to stay there. The employee called her names and cursed at her several times. I'm mind blown by the customer service. We also called the manager for multiple days, but she still hasn't gotten back to us.

The room problems didn't help: our heater and A/C wouldn't shut off, and it was so loud my grandson said it sounded like a jet engine. The carpet was ripped and could trip someone. One family had to change rooms because their pull-out couch was stained with who-knows-what, and other guests were moved because their rooms smelled as though someone had smoked in them. We booked because this hotel was listed as a “stay to play” option for our youth hockey tournament. From arrival, staff were rude to both the children and adults. I've been involved in youth hockey for over two decades and have never experienced this kind of treatment. They took our money and the fun out of the weekend for the kids, which is the whole point of these tournaments. The way our group was treated was unacceptable and completely unprofessional. If the owner can't handle families and youth sports teams, they shouldn't sign up as a “stay to play” hotel. It's a disservice to the children, parents, and tournament. Never again. If I could give zero stars, I would.