Gillette Hotels with Pools

Some cosmetic challenges aside, we felt mostly comfortable for our two night stay. An interstitial lack of security on external doors. Was nice to be able to open windows in the room. Adjacent restaurant was nice for convenience, and had some great staff. Heat lamps are a bit too intense for breakfast buffet, but warm food is better than no food.

The check in was very nice, everything was in order. The young lady was professional and efficient. The room had what it needed, but was a little rough around the edges, some wiring was exposed under the tv with some sort of AV system. It didn’t appear to present any danger, it just looked sloppy. Breakfast was okay, to brand standard, I expect. The woman running it was keeping up and was pleasant. Housekeeping was the disappointment, but not for the reason one might think. One of the housekeepers is walking down the hallway with a LOUDSPEAKER on her lapel, playing music. Two other housekeeping staff are with her. Marriott has been in the hotel business some 66 years and somehow they haven’t got it figured out to train their housekeeping staff to make sure they are not walking down guestroom hallways with loudspeakers blaring music? Two coworkers are with her, they don’t say anything. It is pretty unbelievable. They supply beds to sleep in, desks to work on, and the staff does that. It is not a street carnival. Also, there was a storm, nobody shoveled any part of the sidewalk for the morning. The hotel beside them had their sidewalks clean.

Clean and comfortable. Those are the two words I would use to describe the Holiday Inn Express in Gillette. While the rooms are older and need a renovation, my room was extremely clean. Probably the cleanest Holiday Inn Express that I've stayed at in a while. Absent a renovation, some minor updating would help. The TV in my room was from 2011 -- as in 12 years ago. There was no smart TV capability. A new TV would help. Also, all of the wall art looked from the mid-2000s. I don't mind the color scheme but the art on the walls throughout the hotel just feels dated. It wasn't even that great to begin with. Those things aside ... The hotel itself is a slightly older Holiday Inn Express. For example, there's no market or pantry. The breakfast area is small and be cramped on a busy morning. Staff were polite. The breakfast offering was one of the better Holiday Inn Express breakfasts I've seen in a long time. I appreciated that they had eggs whites and turkey sausage -- two items that many other Holiday Inn Express properties seem to have eliminated from their breakfast offering since the pandemic. while. My only complaints besides the old TV and ugly wall art? 1) Despite having IHG Diamond status, I did not receive a suite upgrade. Every category of suites were available during my stay. But the front desk never offered an upgrade. Upgrades are a defined benefit. 2) No bar of soap was provided in the bathroom. 3) The bedding wasn't the typical Holiday Inn Express bedding. The duvet cover was that textured sheet you see at Marriott's Courtyard and Fairfield hotels. 4) No newspapers in the lobby. 5) In-room lighting was horrible. Instead of one or two central overhead lights, there were at least five lamps each with their own switch. All things consider, there aren't many good hotels in Gillette. If I was in the area again and the rates were fair, I would return. I would be more likely to return if the hotel was updated and the management recognized IHG status by providing an upgrade.