Holiday Inn Express and Suites Lubbock Southwest W

The breakfast was one of the few decent parts: there were hot and cold choices, and the woman working that area was wonderful. She checked on people at the tables and kept the warm platters filled. The location is convenient for the highway, but the front desk service and the condition of both rooms will keep us from staying here again, even though we'll be visiting Lubbock often. We booked two rooms for the weekend while moving our daughter to college, and neither TV worked. Everything was plugged in. When I told the clerk, she said housekeeping sometimes moves things and interferes with reception, which was hard to believe. I also mentioned it to the morning clerk, who only asked whether the night clerk had tried to fix it. One room had curtains ripped all the way down the middle.

The room didn't match what the IHG app had shown when I booked: it was supposed to be a king suite with a separate living area, a full-size couch, and an in-room hot tub. There was no living area, just a single chair, though there was a hot tub. Its pump made a terrible noise and the broken stopper let water out. There were broken windows at the hotel, the lobby smelled awful, and a side door was repeatedly propped open with a rock. I arrived at 6:30 p.m. and checked out five hours later. Sleeping in my car was better. I wouldn't recommend this place. I'm very disappointed that IHG lets it misrepresent its rooms and operate with so little professionalism and security for guests.

The people were great, and the room was pretty clean. Breakfast was spotless, and the hostess was wonderful. The room itself felt tired and worn, though. I understand it's due for renovation in the near future, probably after college football season. My shower head was so clogged with mineral buildup that I couldn't get a decent shower.

Getting checked in took a long time, with just one person at the desk after 3 p.m. The location was hard to find in the dark, and service once checked in was no better. The desk clerk was slow, rude, and unfriendly, complained about her rough day and how long she'd been awake, and seemed bothered whenever I needed help. She couldn't handle more than one person at a time, and I had to go down to the desk four times for help. She said she'd come upstairs once, but never did, so I went back down and waited in line again. There was only one employee, and I couldn't get anything brought to the room. The room problems started right away. My first room had no phone or TV remote. I went to the store and came back an hour later, but the hotel had no spare remotes. Without one, I couldn't turn on the TV or change anything. The room number and last name also wouldn't work to log in to the free WiFi, and the room phone was broken even after I tried calling three times. I moved to a second room, and it was even more run-down, dirty, and short on amenities. I was in two rooms that evening, and both were filthy and had issues. The shower head looked as if it had never been cleaned, and I wouldn't feel safe showering under it. The bed linens were dirty and made my legs itch. I've never had that happen at a hotel, and even took an antihistamine. I got red, itchy thighs and itching all over my body about ten minutes after arriving. I'm pretty sure it was bed bugs, though I can't say for certain. The beds squeaked whenever I moved, so I got no sleep. There were just two lamps and none of the light switches worked. There was no overhead light when I entered the dark room. The air conditioner was extremely loud, not like white noise, and the toilet was very low to the floor. The curtains were off their hooks and wouldn't stay closed to block the light. The room was so bad I seriously thought about sleeping in my car, but I'd paid $100 and was too tired to keep driving. It wasn't worth more than $50, and I wouldn't stay again even for free. This was the worst Holiday Inn Express I've stayed at in the USA, and the worst hotel experience I've had for customer service and rooms. Holiday Inn Express used to be my favorite chain. Even Motel 6 has a working TV. I usually prefer any Lubbock hotel to this one. The bad reviews are right. I wouldn't spend time writing this if it weren't true, and the photos I took in December 2025 show both rooms. Read the reviews and look at the pictures. Whatever the price or deal, stay away.