The hotel i was referring to was the Comfort Inn Lakeside (Houghton Lake, not the Comfort Inn on Cloverleaf in Houghton Lake. This Comfort Inn on Cloverleaf is a wonderful place for swim parties or to stay for awhile. I am so sorry for the mistake. I will definately look more closely before I comment.

It took almost 25 minutes just to try to get a room. It was 10:30 at night and the hotel was practically empty. Now I know why.
The girl behind the counter gave me hell about using my AAA card. Said my number was "invalid". After she faked punching in my card number. I said that ive been a member for years and this card does not expire till next year. She then says she does not have any "promotional offers available right now". She finally gave in and gave me the friggen 10% off. Then we went to check the room before we unloaded the whole van. Good thing! When I pulled back the sheets on one of the beds it was DIRTY! OMG. My husband and I could not believe what we were seeing. it was as if someone slept in the bed for a few nights and housekeeping just pulled the blankets back up and made the bed!
If you have to stay in the area.... drive to Grayling and stay in the Days INN.

We've stayed here often over the past couple of years and were always pleased with the consistency of the hotel and the value for price. When we pulled in the parking lot was pretty empty, which was surprising, and the sign announced it was now a Comfort Inn (I booked it in May as a Holiday Inn Express through their website).

Our room was missing a remote and the air conditioner emitted room temp. air so the clerk kindly moved us to another room - he did try to fix it for us first but admitted he really wasn't knowledgeable about air conditioners.
Both rooms were very clean and the beds were comfortable. The staff was helpful (remote, extra towels, air conditioner, new room) and nice. The breakfast: biscuits, gravy, eggs, bagels, toast, cinnamon rolls, cereal, milk, muffins, juice, coffee. The lady who manages the (small) room was very kind. We were eating about 1/2 hour before the room closed and she was asking those coming in if there were others in their party still to arrive. She went on to make more eggs and cinnamon rolls for them, as these were almost out. The washer and dryer we used worked fine. We did not use the pool this visit.

The hotel is looking a bit worn on the outside and on the inside, especially the back stairs. The back door, which you are supposed to unlock with your key, is not secured and can be opened by just turning the handle. One lone sprinkler never turned off the entire we were there. The landscaping could use some TLC

My impression is that as I HiExpress, I would have been disappointed. As a Comfort Inn, it was as to be expected. Funny, isn't that? We will be staying there again next weekend because a $60 clean and decent room with a free breakfast suits us just fine - we're out on our boat all day anyway. It will be interesting to watch what happens in their transition from a HiExpress to a Comfort Inn - and we will base future stays on that.

For now, I would recommend it.

Stayed there with my wife while on business in the area. As a Priority Club member, we stay at Holiday Inn Express hotels quite often since the standards are consistent and they provide good value. I thought that I had really hit the jackpot when I booked a room at the AAA rate of $ 71.96. What a disappointment! It wasn't worth it. It is by far the worst Holiday Inn Express we've ever stayed in. The room smelled bad, the carpet was worn, the bedding was old and uncomfortable. The breakfast room was small and very basic. The selection was poor. We felt bad for the kind lady looking after the breakfast room. We will never stay there again.