Candlewood Suites Apex Raleigh Area by IHG — Hotel in Apex

I was looking for two nights lodging in the area and decided on Candlewood because the rooms feature a full kitchen and I like that. I can bring awesome takeout instead of rolling the dice on whatever fast food is nearby. I prefer hotels like this and have stayed with several competitors including Marriott Residence Inn and Extended Stay America. My expectations were that Candlewood would have something of a beat-up, roughed-up look and feel and a slightly beat-up, roughed-up looking clientele since that’s been my experience elsewhere (Marriott to a much lesser extent than ETA). It didn’t help that a Google reviewer had conjured up visions of drug deals and fist fights in the parking lot, but there was a lot about that review that stood out as flaky so I decided to try this place anyway. Turns out that review was indeed all flake, no fact.

To my surprise, the hotel was nicer in every way than hotels I’ve stayed at that charge two or three times as much. My room was spotless, as were all the public areas I saw. Check in/out was a breeze, with friendly and helpful staff. The furniture, fixtures, appliances, even the flooring in my room looked sharp. The bed was comfy and overloaded with a kazillion pillows as is the fashion now. HVAC was unobtrusive and worked perfectly.

The bathroom had nicer cabinetry and appointments than I’d expect in this price range, including the elusive prize: decent towels! Relatively big, thick, absorbent, all cotton towels that actually dry you. Nearly instant hot water and plenty of it. The shower head was a little too “waterfall” for my taste (I like more force) but hardly worth mentioning.

I used the fridge and the microwave and a few dishes in the kitchen during my stay. All were clean and in excellent repair. Wireless Internet was fast to connect, very responsive and very reliable. I hate it when hotels say “available” and mean “extra $” and that’s not the case here. It’s included. I kept trying to find something to find fault with but failed. If you’re considering other hotels with these amenities in the area you need to look at this place. If you really want a “free” breakfast buffet this won’t work for you but otherwise this is a great place at a reasonable price. Check rates a couple of days before you check in - they may have dropped if you originally booked a few weeks ahead.

Either way, better than expected quality at a cheaper than expected price. Book before they figure...

I chose this hotel because they had a two room suite which I like to have with kids. I checked in on my phone so when I got to the hotel I told Jane, the front desk attendant, that I needed to complete my check in. She stared at me for at least 15 seconds before asking my name. Just silent. Got my room key, took my stuff up and when I get to my room I notice the door was never pulled close all the way, I didn’t even have to use my key to open it. Upon walking in I got a huge stench of smoke smell. I was trying to be optimistic and thought maybe it was just a stale room since they didn’t have the room air on! So i cranked up the AC and the smell was still there like smoke. Unfortunately I was in a rush to log onto my computer for a meeting so I didn’t ask for a new room, I just borrowed Lysol from someone and sprayed the room down to get rid of the smell. By the time my meeting was over i figured it had been too long since check in to bring it up so i dealt with it. Even though I had the thermostat at 69° the bedroom was still warm enough to kick the covers off. (My personal house stays at 75 so this wasn’t just what temp I’m used to.) Upon leaving, I went to get breakfast and come back to my key not working. I walk to the lobby and tell Jane that I think my key was already deactivated. She re-activated it and said if it didn’t work to tell the housekeeping lady who was on the phone a few rooms down to try her key. Of course it didn’t work and the housekeeping key didn’t work either. She told me the door was locked and I had to tell Jane so she could open it. I was confused how the door could be locked as we didn’t lock it. Well what she meant was the lock equipment died, so after 2 trips back to the lobby from the top floor Jane Had to bring a machine and get it open for me. Now makes sense why my door was never closed in the first place. Unfortunately this was not a pleasant stay at all and we will not stay again when we come back to the area...

I chose this hotel because they had a two room suite which I like to have with kids. I checked in on my phone so when I got to the hotel I told Jane, the front desk attendant, that I needed to complete my check in. She stared at me for at least 15 seconds before asking my name. Just silent. Got my room key, took my stuff up and when I get to my room I notice the door was never pulled close all the way, I didn’t even have to use my key to open it. Upon walking in I got a huge stench of smoke smell. Unfortunately I was in a rush to log onto my computer for a meeting so I didn’t ask for a new room, I just borrowed Lysol from someone and sprayed the room down to get rid of the smell. Even though I had the thermostat at 69° the bedroom was still warm enough to kick the covers off. (My personal house stays at 75 so this wasn’t just what temp I’m used to.) Upon leaving, I went to get breakfast and come back to my key not working. I walk to the lobby and tell Jane that I think my key was already deactivated. She deactivated it and said if it didn’t work to tell the housekeeping lady who was on the phone a few rooms down to try her key. Of course it didn’t work and the housekeeping key didn’t work either. She told me the door was locked and I had to tell Jane so she could open it. I was confused how the door could be locked as we didn’t lock it. Well what she meant was the lock equipment died, so after 2 trips back to the lobby from the top floor Jane Had to bring a machine and get it open for me. Now makes sense why my door was never closed in the first place. Unfortunately this was not a...