Holiday Inn Express Hotel & Suites Lancaster By IHG United States

Lancaster's BEST Hotel? Holiday Inn Express Review (Shocking!)

Lancaster's "BEST" Holiday Inn Express: A Review That Might Actually SHOCK You (in a good way?)

Alright, folks, let's talk about Lancaster. That charming, historic city, brimming with… well, let's be honest, sometimes finding a genuinely good hotel can feel like finding a five-leaf clover in a hurricane. So, when I was tasked with reviewing the Holiday Inn Express, I braced myself for the usual: bland rooms, lukewarm breakfast, and a general feeling of "meh."

But… plot twist… things got a little… interesting. Buckle up, buttercups, because this isn't your average fluffy review. This is the raw, unfiltered truth about my stay, complete with my genuine, sometimes-slightly-over-the-top, reactions.

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Accessibility: The Good, The Great, and the Almost-Perfect.

Right off the bat, let's talk accessibility. This is huge for me. I was beyond impressed to find [specific elevator details, like button placement and speed or a description of the ramp if present, to tailor it to the audience's needs]. They've clearly put some thought into making things… accessible.

On-site accessible restaurants / lounges: (Let's Talk About This!) The hotel does have a designated breakfast area that's accessible but a really, really small venue makes it a bottleneck, like trying to herd cats… maybe even un accessible during peak breakfast hours.

Wheelchair accessible: Yes! [describe specific areas like room layouts and bathrooms]

Rooms: A Tale of Two Worlds (and some seriously comfy pillows).

Okay, let's talk about the rooms. Mine? It was… fine. Clean. Relatively spacious. The bed? Oh my god. Those pillows were like sleeping on clouds spun from unicorn hair. Seriously, I could have stayed in bed all day. (And I may have, judging by the amount of time I spent rewatching old episodes of The Great British Baking Show on the surprisingly decent TV.)

Okay, real talk. The decor was… standard. Think "beige with a hint of beige." Not the most inspiring, but hey, comfort is king, right?

Available in all rooms: (I'll break it down for you, even the boring stuff!)

Additional toilet: No mention in room, so I'm assuming no.
Air conditioning: YES! (Praise the sun. Lancaster summers CAN get toasty.)
Alarm clock: Check.
Bathrobes: Nope. But hey, you can’t win them all, can you?
Bathroom phone: Who uses these anymore? (But yes, it had one.)
Bathtub: Yes, in the shower/tub combo.
Blackout curtains: Essential, especially if you're trying to sleep in after a night out enjoying Lancaster's bars. (Which, FYI, are pretty good!)
Carpeting: Standard hotel carpet.
Closet: Adequately sized.
Coffee/tea maker: Absolutely, and bless them for the plentiful supply of those little instant coffee sachets. (I'm a simple gal.)
Complimentary tea: See above.
Daily housekeeping: Super.
Desk: Functional. I got some work done.
Extra long bed: Didn't need it, but appreciated that they had them.
Free bottled water: Yes! Hydration is key.
Hair dryer: Standard, worked fine.
High floor: My room was on the [state which floor, if you noted it].
In-room safe box: Didn't use it, but it was there.
Interconnecting room(s) available: Probably, but I didn’t need one.
Internet access – LAN: No.
Internet access – wireless: YES!
Ironing facilities: Yes, and a bonus!
Laptop workspace: Desk and a chair.
Linens: Clean and comfy.
Mini bar: No.
Mirror: Yes.
Non-smoking: 100% (thank goodness).
On-demand movies: No.
Private bathroom: Of course.
Reading light: Present and accounted for.
Refrigerator: NO. I was sad.
Safety/security feature: Standard stuff, nothing to write home about.
Satellite/cable channels: Yes.
Scale: No.
Seating area: Yes.
Separate shower/bathtub: Shower/tub combo.
Shower: Worked.
Slippers: Nope.
Smoke detector: Yes.
Socket near the bed: Crucially important!
Sofa: No.
Soundproofing: Decent.
Telephone: Yes.
Toiletries: The standard hotel-brand stuff. Decent, but I'd bring my own.
Towels: Plentiful and fluffy.
Umbrella: No.
Visual alarm: Probably.
Wake-up service: Yes, but I never used it.
Wi-Fi [free]: YES! (More on that later!)
Window that opens: Sadly, no.

Internet (and the all-important Wi-Fi): Praise Be!

Free Wi-Fi in all rooms!: YES! And it was actually fast. I could stream videos, catch up on emails, and even participate in a video call without wanting to throw my laptop out the window. This is a huge win.

(Seriously, other hotels, take note. Bad Wi-Fi is a dealbreaker!)

Internet Services:

Internet : (Did I mention it was free?)
Internet [LAN]: NO. (Who even uses LAN anymore??)
Internet services: They've got it all.
Wi-Fi in public areas: Yup, and it seems to work well in other areas of the hotels from what I could tell.

Dining, Drinking, and Snacking: Breakfast Blues (and the occasional happy moment).

Alright, let's be brutally honest about breakfast. The Holiday Inn Express breakfast is… well, it’s what you'd expect. The usual suspects: cereal, pastries, scrambled eggs (that taste like they might have been made the day before), and some pre-packaged yogurt. Nothing groundbreaking.

Dining, drinking, and snacking:

A la carte in restaurant: Nope.
Alternative meal arrangement: Not sure.
Asian breakfast: Doubtful.
Asian cuisine in restaurant: Nope.
Bar: No.
Bottle of water: Free in your room!
Breakfast [buffet]: Yes, and yes…
Breakfast service: Yes.
Buffet in restaurant: Yep.
Coffee/tea in restaurant: Yes! (Mostly coffee.)
Coffee shop: No, but the breakfast area has it.
Desserts in restaurant: Not during my stay.
Happy hour: Nope.
International cuisine in restaurant: No.
Poolside bar: No, although the hotel doesn't have a pool.
Restaurants: Just the breakfast area.
Room service [24-hour]: Nope.
Salad in restaurant: No.
Snack bar: Not that I could see.
Soup in restaurant: No.
Vegetarian restaurant: Nope.
Western breakfast: Yes.
Western cuisine in restaurant: Yep.

It's functional, but don't expect a culinary revelation. I did manage to snag a decent piece of toast, and the coffee was…drinkable.

Cleanliness and Safety: The Era of Anti-Viral Cleaning.

This is where the Holiday Inn Express really shines. I'm a stickler for cleanliness, especially in these post-pandemic times, and I was impressed. The room felt spotless.

Cleanliness and safety:

Anti-viral cleaning products: Probably!
Breakfast in room: No.
Breakfast takeaway service: Nope.
Cashless payment service: Yes, and essential!
Daily disinfection in common areas: Seemed to be the case.
Doctor/nurse on call: No.
First aid kit: Yes, I'd assume, but I didn't need it.
Hand sanitizer: Everywhere!
Hot water linen and laundry washing: Yep.
Hygiene certification: Yes

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Okay, buckle up, buttercup, because you're about to experience my completely unedited (and probably slightly chaotic) take on planning a "perfect" trip to the Holiday Inn Express Hotel & Suites Lancaster By IHG. Let's see if we can actually make it to Lancaster in one piece, shall we?

The Unofficial, and Possibly Unstable, Holiday Inn Express Lancaster Itinerary: A Rollercoaster of Feelings

(Disclaimer: This is not a clinically sound guide. It's more like a series of mental Post-its stuck together with caffeine and the naive hope of a decent continental breakfast.)

Day 1: Pre-Trip Panic and the Illusion of Control

8:00 AM: Wake up. Or, more accurately, drag myself out of bed. The cat, Mittens, is already glaring at me for the disruption of her beauty sleep. I swear, she's judging my itinerary already.
8:15 AM: Coffee. (Essential. The coffee is the only thing that keeps me going.)
8:30 AM: Attempt to look at the Lancaster trip. Okay, Lancaster. Amish country. Covered bridges. Chocolate! Sounds lovely, in theory. In practice? I have a sudden, irrational fear of getting lost in a cornfield. Or worse, accidentally joining the quilting bee.
9:00 AM: Booking.com! Yes!
9:30 AM: Research the Holiday Inn Express Lancaster. Okay, reviews are… okay. "Clean rooms," "Friendly staff," "Free breakfast…." Oh, good, breakfast. That's a win. My stomach is already growling in anticipation of those sad, but oh-so-satisfying, mini-muffins.
10:00 AM - 12:00 PM: Packing. Ugh. The bane of my existence. I will pack as if I'm going to go to the moon, leaving half of my clothes at home. I always do. It's a tradition.

Day 2: The Arrival (and the Quest for the Perfect Pillow)

7:00 AM: Wake up, after a night of fitful sleep where I am either lost underground or flying in the sky.
8:00 AM: Continental breakfast at the Holiday Inn Express. Okay, the mini-muffins are sadly just as sad as I predicted, but the coffee is hot and plentiful! Score! I'm also delighted to find out that there are scrambled eggs.
9:00 AM: Check-in! The front desk staff are indeed friendly. Possibly too friendly. Are they secretly robots programmed to spread cheer? I'm not ruling it out.
9:30 AM: The ROOM! It's… fine. Clean enough. The bed is… a bed. Now the REAL challenge: the pillow situation. This is critical People, you know some pillows are like clouds and others are like concrete slabs. I'm a pillow snob. This is the most important detail to consider.
10:00 AM: The first adventure. I'm off to explore something! A covered bridge, maybe! I just have to find my sunglasses and the courage…
12:00 PM: Lunch. Found a charming little diner. Food was alright. The waitress gave me some sass when I asked for more ketchup, and I loved it!
2:00 PM: I'm so lost… Where is the covered bridge? Okay, not ideal. I see a sign that says 'Amish Farm Tours' with a cartoon looking cow. Okay, here we go.
4:00 PM: Farm Tour. It was… fascinating. The work is hard, but the people are incredibly kind. It was amazing to have a look at the way they live. I think I want to buy a horse.
6:00 PM: Dinner. I went back to the diner cause it was cheap and easy.
8:00 PM: Back at the hotel. The pillows are not ideal.

Day 3: Chocolate, Chaos, and the Crumbling of Plans (sort of)…

7:00 AM: Breakfast. The routine. At least the coffee is dependable.
8:00 AM: Chocolate Factory! I have always been obsessed with chocolate. The best part was the samples. The worst part was the fact that I bought more than I will eat. It's okay.
10:00 AM: Okay, maybe just a little more chocolate.
1:00 PM: So, I'm supposed to be doing something. The original plan included a museum or something. The museum can wait. Okay, I just take a nap.
3:00 PM: I take a nap.
5:00 PM: Dinner. Italian.
7:00 PM: Going back to the room. I'm exhausted.
8:00 PM: Netflix.

Day 4: Departure and Existential Reflections (in the Car)

7:00 AM: The Usual. Breakfast, check out. The mini-muffins still haven't improved.
8:00 AM: Goodbye! I hope to visit Lancaster again.
9:00 AM: Driving home. I need to think. The trip, while certainly not perfect, was wonderful. I'm already planning my next adventure, to another land.
11:00 AM: Home

(Final Thought: This is how you really do it. Now, I'm off to book my next trip. Wish me luck!)

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Holiday Inn Express Lancaster: My Brain Dump FAQ (Because Truth is Messy)

So, is this actually the BEST hotel in Lancaster? (Spoiler Alert: The Title is Clickbait, Sorry!)

Okay, okay, let's be real. "BEST" is a loaded word. And a blatant lie, if I'm honest. The title's supposed to grab you – maybe it did. This isn't a perfectly manicured, PR-approved review. This is... *me*. My messy, overly-analytical, mildly-obsessed-with-comfy-beds brain in response to the Holiday Inn Express in Lancaster. Is it awful? No. Is it the Four Seasons? Absolutely not. It's...an experience.

Think of it like this: it's a reliable friend. Not your most exciting friend, but the one who always remembers your birthday and has snacks. You know? You're not going to be showing off that friend on your social media. You're going to give them some love though.

Let's Talk About the Breakfast. Because, DUDE, Breakfast is CRUCIAL.

The breakfast situation... it's a whole saga. Let's just say it's the main event in this review. My first memory is that it's *always* the same. Seriously. Scrambled eggs that could double as a building material (texture-wise, you know?), suspiciously round sausage patties, and those pre-packaged muffins that taste... well, they taste like nostalgia? Or maybe just processed sadness.

But! There's a toaster. And the coffee is hot. And they often have yogurt *and* fruit. It's a gamble, though. Sometimes the fruit is fresh. Usually, it's the half-hearted apples and bananas with a little bit of brown. If you are lucky, you'll hit a day where the berries are looking decent. It’s like playing breakfast roulette!

Okay, I digress. One morning, I saw a guy *absolutely demolishing* the sausage patties. Like, a mountain of them. I swear, he was going to take some back to his hotel room. I’m judging, but also, I get it. You have to grab what you can to survive!

What About the Rooms? Were They Actually Clean?

This is where I have to be honest. The rooms were *generally* clean. I have high standards, and I didn’t find any dust bunnies plotting world domination under the bed. But, oh my god, that carpet! It’s like the carpet has seen every spilled soda, every forgotten crumb, every existential crisis that every guest has had in Lancaster! You know that old saying: clean *ish*.

The bathroom? Usual hotel fare. Spotless. You know. No issues. Did I look for mold? Yes. Did I find it? No! They definitely care about getting the job done.

The bed? Acceptable. Pillows were comfortable. I always bring my own, but other people might find them nice. I had a comfortable sleep for the most part. They've upgraded the blankets with higher quality ones, too. I can't fault them too much on the sleep aspect.

Tell Me About the Staff. Were they friendly?

Okay, this is where things get interesting. The staff? They're like a mixed bag of very interesting people. Some are absolutely lovely, all smiles and helpfulness. Others… well, they might have clearly had a morning.

One time, I asked for extra towels, and the lady at the desk gave me a look that could curdle milk. But, then again, another time, I forgot my charger, and someone went above and beyond to help me find a replacement. So. The service. Like life. Up and down.

The cleaning staff, though? Always friendly. I almost feel bad for them. Always hustling. Bless their hearts.

Is the Location Convenient? Is Parking a Nightmare?

The location? Pretty standard. Not smack-dab in the middle of everything, but not the boonies either. Definitely a drive to get most places. It's that in-between spot, you know? If you drive. Otherwise, you should bring your walking shoes.

Parking is, thankfully, usually okay. Enough spaces, and it's free. Though, on one weekend, I swear the lot was more packed than a mosh pit. I have never seen so many cars. It’s a crapshoot depending on the time of year. If you're arriving late, you might be stuck with a spot a mile away.

So, Would You Stay Here Again? Be Honest!

Honestly? Probably. It's a solid, reliable option. If I need a place to crash in Lancaster and I'm not trying to break the bank or need a spa day, it's fine. It's like the basic jeans of hotels. Not fancy. But they get the job done. And for the price, it's competitive. Plus, I secretly enjoy the breakfast roulette. Sometimes. Okay, mostly.

But maybe, *maybe*, I'd check out the other options first. Just to be sure the grass isn't greener. The reviews online are so mixed, there is always a chance it's gone downhill

Any Wild Stories? Come on, you must have SOMETHING.

Okay, okay, one time... This is a bit of a rant, but one time I was there, and there was a guy on the elevator who was on his phone. I could hear every word. He was arguing with his wife about... something. The volume was insane. I'm not kidding. You could feel the tension in the air. By the time we reached the lobby, I was convinced I'd accidentally stumbled into a real-life soap opera. It's the little things that create memories.

I did a triple-take when I saw the guy from breakfast, who was taking all the sausages. Not sure what he was doing (or where he was going), but he was still there. I caught a glimpse of a car full of bags. He definitely wasn't traveling light. I hope everything was okay, I thought. Just a thought.

The story doesn't have a happy ending, or a real ending at all, but hey, that's life. And that's the Holiday Inn Express Lancaster for ya. Never a dull moment!

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