Holiday Inn Krakow City Centre by IHG — Hotel in Krakow

This review is a long time coming, but we were there just before Europe closed down in March 2020. As I was arranging a 'trip of a lifetime' to Poland for my Mum, who has a great love for the Composer Frédéric Chopin. I chose Holiday Inn Krakow because, quite simply, it had the best reviews, and I needed everything to be perfect. It is also right near the spectacular Old Town, which is the best I have seen anywhere in the world. Whilst we were there, they were renovating the Lobby, and had a makeshift Front Desk and Restaurant, but that didn't matter at all. They were very welcoming when we arrived, and the day prior, when I emailed to request an Airport pick-up. It was done promptly, with all details listed, including the price. A very nice driver met us at the Airport on foot, and advised us to wait whilst he retrieved the car, in case we become cold. Our room was comfortable, and even included bathrobes and slippers. During our stay, my Mother hurt her Ankle (the surfaces can be a bit uneven in the Old Town), and the Hotel staff were absolutely amazing. Being quite distressed, I asked for their advice, and they were so kind. Agnieszka made telephone calls, and offered advice on where to seek help (and the costs and time involved). She left a message for Robert, who was going to be on duty in the morning, and he came to our room to ask what he could do to help. In the meantime, the restaurant staff were making ice-packs for me, and the hotel loaned me a wheelchair. I was even offered a room change, in case the wheelchair didn't fit. It did, which says something about the good size of the room. We were also allowed to take the wheelchair out sightseeing, so Mum could still enjoy Krakow. Robert was kind enough to book train tickets to Warsaw for us, and recommended the best service to take. It was so much appreciated. I honestly can't thank the staff in this hotel enough. They were absolutely first class. I hope that we will visit again one day, and look forward to seeing how the hotel looks, post renovation. I wouldn't consider staying anywhere...

We arrived at the hotel shortly before midday. We were a party of 8 men on a weekend away celebrating a couple of birthday milestones within our group.

On arrival, only two of our rooms were ready, so those of us who did not have rooms left our bags in one of those that did and we went out into central Krakow for a couple of drinks. This hotel is located a couple of minutes walk from the centre of Krakow.

When we returned to gain access to the final two rooms, it seems that we were fortunate to get higher standard rooms than we were expecting, possibly because there was a conference taking place at the hotel for the duration of our stay. This conference did not impact us in any way.

The room I stayed in was a deluxe studio. It was what I would call large! It had a comfortable double bed as well as a fold out for a third person, so I didn't have to share a bed with my brother!

The room was modern, clean and comfortable with plenty of storage space. The bathroom was clean with a good selection of toiletries. Towels were changed regularly.

One particularly nice touch was the after dinner mint which appeared on our pillows at the end of each day. There are complimentary tea and coffee making facilities and complimentary bottled water provided daily.

Free standard WiFi was available throughout the hotel. You could pay for a faster service, but the standard offering was more than sufficient for our needs. Up to 3 devices could be connected in the room.

The public areas of the hotel were clean and comfortable. We didn't have any meals included in our deal so we did not eat at the hotel at all. We did use the hotel lobby bar a couple of times. The ambiance was quite pleasant.

I'd have no problem in recommending this hotel if you are thinking of staying in Krakow. It has a great location for access to the town centre and exceeded my...

We chose Holiday Inn Krakow Centre for our stay due to our membership with the IHG loyalty program, which typically comes with room upgrades. While we believe we did receive an upgrade, it didn’t feel particularly special—the room was only slightly larger than standard.

The air conditioning system was confusing and not user-friendly. The instructions displayed a different temperature than the actual unit’s range (-3/+3), and it was also quite noisy, which affected the comfort of our stay. Another letdown was the hair dryer, which was a built-in unit in the bathroom. A 5-star hotel should provide a proper hair dryer and a designated beauty desk for guest convenience.

The entrance setup was also inconvenient. The barrier to the hotel didn’t seem to work, resulting in taxis dropping off and picking up guests on the street, which wasn’t ideal. We were also drawn to the hotel by images of high-class dining options, but when we inquired, staff informed us there was only a bar with a standard menu. This was disappointing and didn’t meet the expectations set by the promotional materials.

On the positive side, the hotel was clean, and the rooms had effective noise cancellation. We appreciated the ample supply of towels and bathrobes. The breakfast was a highlight, with a wide range of delicious options, and the reception staff were friendly and helpful. There’s also an outsourced spa within the hotel, though we didn’t get a chance to use it. However, I didn’t see a swimming pool anywhere—either it was hidden or non-existent, which was surprising for a hotel with a 5-star rating.

Overall, while there were some positives, this property doesn’t live up to a true 5-star standard in my opinion. It’s more fitting for a 4-star rating, given the areas where it...