I'm going to cut to the chase and get right to the part about what you should know. I've stayed in this HIE for several years, sometimes twice a year, and I'm sorry to say that if I could find another place in Waterford close to my relatives, I wouldn't stay there again. The Good....1. The staff. While I found the staff to be very shorthanded (only 1 person on duty after 6:00 p.m.) everyone was helpful. 2.) Location...really, it's the only place in Waterford that is somewhat doable with family. 3.) Adjoining rooms...this is great if you have a family and want to be close. They are very accomodating and will try to get you adjoining rooms. The BAD...1. This place is simply just worn down and the owners have done nothing to update or refresh facility. This hotel used to be a smoking hotel on one side so there is a persistant smell of old smoke covered by lots of disinfectant and odorizer. Putrid. The rooms that use to be smoking are unihabiltable and we were successfully moved. The carpet should have come out long ago and all the linens changed as well as new paint. 2.) The bedding....just plain old and worn. We had to ask for an extra blanket and it was old and tough from the wash. We didn't use it. 3.) The wall unit air conditioners were loud and in one of our rooms would pop on and off all night waking us up. IN our second room the wall unit was broken and wouldn't shut off at all. We had to heat up the room and turn it off completely all night and stay under the covers. 4.) The pillows were horrible and lumpy. we were tempeted to go across the street to Meijers and buy new pillows. 5.) The T.V.'s...Well, I really dont care about not having a flat screen but these days when you walk into a room and see huge armoir and even bigger (deeper) old set, it is usually a sign that the hotel is not interested in updating the room. This would be a bigger deal to some but I thought I'd mention it. KNOW BEFORE YOU GO....Tip #1...The even number rooms face the parking lot and street which can be loud. The ODD number rooms face the back which is quieter. Tip#2...Stay on the second floor ONLY on the left side (right side facing hotel) in rooms #317-337 as these rooms were all NON smoking and don't have the puttid smell to them. Pick an odd # room which will be on the back. GREAT places to shop with Walgreens on next door, Mejier's across the street, Bob Evens family restaurant on a corner and lots of conveniences close by. I'm hoping the owners, who are lovely people, will read and put some money into this facility. It really needs to be brought up to Holiday Inn Express standards. Good Luck!

My third stay here, but only one night this time. Room was very clean, and again it was nice to have one as close to the pool as we did. Comfortable beds, and a decent nights sleep after a long flight. Breakfast was as usual the following morning, enough to keep me satisfied anyway.

I query the change of staff, because I have always found extreme friendliness from the staff here. Front line staff this time were merely efficient.

The rooms at this Holiday Inn Express aren't a good value. The going rate is around $110/night with the usual discounts from there, but still at $100 or more. It would be a good value at $70/night as the wireless is quick, though you do get bumped offline from time to time. The room is mostly clean, but the bed in my room was completely worn out. The bed was very very soft and had big body depressions from use. The TV in the room is an old 25 inch tube TV.

As some other reviewers have mentioned, there are smoke odor problems in the hallways and some rooms. My room did have a faint, though distinct, smoke smell. The hallways also had stained and worn carpet and are pretty dark.

Breakfast is slightly above avergage for this type of hotel, but does lean heavily on sugared items.

Overall, it is an OK place to stay, but not worth $100/night.

This is a very good 2-3 star hotel. The breakfast is good, the room is clean, service was good, wireless is free. Hotel was completely full tonight. A rarity during this recession in Michigan I am certain. The only bad: Room key kept losing its magnetism constantly... 2 times so far... And one night to go.