The hotel is fairly nice. Room seemed clean, loved having firm + soft pillows on the bed. The breakfast was fine (scrambled eggs, sausage, biscuits & gravey, toast, bagels, fresh cinnamon rolls. There were also some pancakes.
The windows were not sound proof enough. Heard cars on freeway all night.
There is a great Anthony's seafood restaurant just across the parking lot.

The quality of this hotel is well below average. For the price I paid I expected a hotel slightly above average but this Holiday Inn seemed closer to motel standards. I'm used to high quality hotels, so maybe I'm just being biased, but this place looked like a dump in many ways. The TV didn't have movie-purchase ability, it was just a regular TV so that was my first hint that something wasn't quite on the mark. Overall, I guess this hotel would've been okay if it had cost half as much. But for that price... It was a rip off.

I stayed at the HI Express - La Mesa for four nights while I was on a business trip. Maybe I was the last person to check-in for the single queen-sized bedroom. Regardless, I got the WORST room, which overlooked I-8. The hotel might as well be sitting in the middle of highway because the traffic buzzing by was incredibly loud. They really should invest in sound-proof windows. Anyway, the second I walked into my room, the loud noises were apparent. I called the front desk to see if I could switch right away. "I didn't touch anything, I promise!" I pleaded. She said everything was booked but she'd make a note of it and get me into another room as soon as possible. She gave me a sound machine, so my sleepless night was filled with sounds of ocean waves, then drizzling rain, and gear-changing trucks. The next day, I asked for another room, but once again everything was booked and the front desk lady said she'd make a note of it. I bought ear plugs at the nearby Walmart - that helped a little bit. Then, finally, the morning of my third day I was able to switch to a fourth floor room toward the back of the hotel. The front desk held my bags the whole day while I was on assignment and placed them in my new room for me - that was a nice touch. The paint might have been peeling a little bit but - thank goodness - I could sleep soundly! Once I switched rooms, everything else was great. Maria was very helpful in making my room switch happen.
The breakfast was yummy (warm cinnamon rolls and pancakes), the rooms were a little musty, and it's definitely not worth the price they charge. The hotel is owned and operated by Happy Team, Inc. Not sure if that's why it's not the new and clean HI Express that I'm used to, but their staff sure are happy...and some of them are even helpful!
Good luck if you book a room here. It's like a lottery system, and if they say your room number is 204, don't take the keys and run far, far away! You're better off sleeping under a highway bridge - at least that's free!

We checked in on a Sunday and as soon as we opened the door to our room you could smell cigarette smoke. Called the front desk and was told the prior guests probably smoked out on the balcony and some smoke had come into the room. Not true, the furniture smelled like smoke and was worn. The electrical outlet cover in the bathroom had a gap between the plate and the wall of about a quarter of an inch. Not a good idea next to running water. The guest room and hallways looked very worn. The carpet in the elevators was very dirty. The lobby looks great, but the rest of the place needs serious updating and painting. This property has been ignored. It's right next to Interstate 8, however, our room was in the rear and very quiet. This place did not meet our expectations. In fact, our next stay was at a Best Western which was alot cheaper and in much better shape. The staff at the Holiday Inn was very attentive and apologetic. Also, our room number plate had been replaced with adhesive numbers you would find at a hardware store.