Holiday Inn Express - San Diego

After leaving the Four Points, I headed over to the Holiday Inn Express for a one night stay. The Holiday Inn

Express is a seven block walk uphill - it was a true work-out. 

I arrived at the hotel slightly before Noon and was told that my room was not ready. I was asked to come back after 3 pm, but asked if I would like to lock-up my luggage. I kindly accepted.

I left to find brunch and start my food adventure (more about that this weekend).

I arrived back at 5 pm. The front desk attendant was upbeat and warming. I was given a room on the third floor, the top floor. My room was the closest to the elevator which I thought meant noise all night. That was not that case, I did not hear the elevator once.

As I entered the room, I was shocked by the size. It had a king bed on one end of the room:

The other side was a living area with a coach, a desk and dresser with a TV on it:

This is where I found a bottle of water and a bag of cookies:

And a card:

This small step of the card made me feel special and shows a major difference between my stay at Four Points and the Holiday Inn Express. At the time, I did not have status in either Priority Club or Starwood. However, the staff at the Holiday Inn took the time to leave a note. It is the small things that make a hotel experience amazing. 

The bathroom was small, but sufficient for one person. If I was traveling with another person, the two of us could not be in the bathroom at the same time.

The toiletries were nothing to write home about (but I will anyway):

My room had a long balcony

I didn't sit out there, because the view was of other buildings:

The hotel had a small bar area, but I never saw a bartender or anyone hanging around there

Breakfast was included in the price of the room. I had a hard time finding where breakfast was served. After asking, I learned it was downstairs. Wait! This place has a downstairs. In deed it did:

The dining room could hold about 50 to 75 people. The breakfast bar was small and could get crowded:

Here is a sampling of food:

                                      

The food selection gave you a variety of choices. The staff was nice enough to give me a doggy bag for me to take a sandwich for my flight home.

I received another card from the staff in my bill thanking me for my stay.

Would I stay at this hotel? Yes. The property may have worn down, pretty far from downtown, but the staff made me feel like home. There small little efforts made the whole difference.