Holiday Inn Express Rochester South - Mayo Area by IHG

I really like the Lakeview room layout here. For a single business traveler, it works much better than a suite, in my opinion. Hotels keep upgrading me to suites, where the bed doesn't line up with the TV and there's another TV facing a worn-out couch I won't sit on. The Lakeview room is set up with business travelers in mind.

It was quiet at night and in a good location. The fitness center equipment worked, the pool and hot tub were sufficient, and the room had a Keurig, working fridge, and nice bathroom. There was hot coffee and a good breakfast too. My whole experience at this hotel was great.

The smell in our room became unbearable when my son started to open the pull-out couch, so he ended up sleeping on top of it with extra sheets and blankets. We were a family of five staying June 21-22, 2025, with two service dogs, which we told staff about at check-in. At first we thought the strange odor might be from cleaning, but it never went away. The front desk employee seemed surprised we were there and said she still had our room cards in the check-in box, even though we had checked in hours earlier. That lack of communication was concerning. She had no cot and no suite to move us to. She offered another room, but said we'd have to pay for it, even though the problem was with our room. We were due to check out the next day. A week later, my husband noticed a $150 charge. When I called, I was told it was a cleaning fee for the service dogs. I said they could not legally charge that under ADA rules and asked for it to be removed. The employee couldn't do that and told me to call back for a manager. The manager first called it a cleaning fee, then, after I raised the legal issue, said it was a damage fee because we had left poop in a bed. We had not left poop anywhere, and we try to leave rooms in the best condition we can. He was rude through the call, told us we'd have to fight them in court, then hung up when I mentioned the odor and wondered if the poop had already been there. Several more calls went unanswered, and messages weren't returned. My husband contacted Corporate, who also tried reaching the manager a couple of times and got no response. After weeks of trying to sort this out with the property and Corporate, nothing was resolved. We've stayed with Holiday Inn for years without problems, but this was awful. We won't come back to this location, where we felt taken advantage of and treated rudely, and our family will switch to another hotel chain.

The staff were lovely, and breakfast had a nice range for a complimentary meal. We also liked the location: parking is free, shops and food are nearby by car, and there are lots of places to walk in the area, though it's not really walkable to the shops. The pool was refreshing and the hot tub temperature was just right, even though its paint is chipping. We'd been here in August and liked it enough to choose it again, but this stay was a bit of a letdown. Vehicles and car alarms made it noisy outside. Our door lock stuck, the bathroom tissue box was empty, and the shower wasn't clean, with hairs and a strange red stain. We'll see how the next visit goes.