Holiday Inn Express & Suites Bryan - College Station by IHG — Hotel in Bryan

I stayed at this hotel on May 22, 2024. My issue with this hotel is the rudeness of the manager, Rachel. When I made the reservation while on the road, late at night, I thought I was making the reservation directly through Holiday Inn Express in Bryan. The representative I spoke to assured me I was talking to Holiday Inn Express and even pretended to look up my member number and give me a member rate. I was actually speaking to Reservation Counter which charged me 47% more than the actual room rate. I was able to get a print out of the rate I should have been charged, although the manager objected to giving me this information. If you get scammed by Reservation Counter, you will get no help from Holiday Inn Express, even though they benefit financially from these scammers. Rachel was very cold and unsympathetic and she did not even try to help me. My point is that Holiday Inn Express willingly accepts these reservations, knowing their customers are being scammed. I do not have a problem with a third party reservation agency, provided they tell you they are a third party reservation agency and they will be charging a fee of $__ for their services. Reservation Counter lied about being Holiday Inn Express and at no time mentioned any kind of fee for their services. The Holiday Inn Express in Bryan happily is a party to this scam because it gets their rooms booked. Don’t expect any sympathy from Rachel; she could not care less.

Update: Rachel’s confusing, but callous reply just proved my point about how little she cares when her customers are scammed. On May 22, I looked up the number for the Bryan Holiday Inn Express, in the dark, in a moving car, with the internet going in and out. I found a “Holiday Inn Express” website with what I thought was the direct number to the Bryan Holiday Inn Express. The person answering told me they were Holiday Inn Express and never stated they were a third party reservation agency. They also never disclosed I would be charged a booking fee. Reservation Counter misrepresented who they were from the beginning to the end of the conversation. The point is that Holiday Inn Express allows Reservation Counter to book their rooms, knowing they are masquerading as Holiday Inn Express, knowing they are not disclosing booking fees, knowing they are over-charging for rooms, and knowing they are hiding booking fees as taxes. Holiday Inn Express profits enormously from this arrangement because they get their rooms booked and they don’t have to give their club members points for the stay. I was charged $136 for a $92 room. If Rachel could do simple math, she could calculate that the difference between $136 and $92 represents a 47% up-charge. If Rachel could be factual, instead of emotional, she would also know that I am asking to be reimbursed for the $44 in “taxes and fees” that were not disclosed to me at the time of the booking. I am certain Holiday Inn Express, as a business partner with Reservation Counter, could get that out of them if they tried. Holiday Inn Express has no problem benefitting from unscrupulous booking agents who fill their rooms. When you fall for it because you are tired or not attentive enough, they blame you for getting scammed while they count the money they just shared with the scammers. Nice try, Rachel. Holiday Inn Express is in bed with scammers and you know it.

Further update: I would think the incestuous, corrupt relationship between hotels, like Holiday Inn Express, and third party reservation agencies could be ripe for a class action lawsuit, if any attorneys would like to take that on. The practice of ripping off the consumer is so pervasive in the industry. Even Rick Steves has fallen victim to the scam. Reservation Counter has an average one star rating on Google, with 634 reviews. Pretty much every review is a repeat of my story. If hotels demanded complete transparency from third party reservation agencies, a lot of these...

Upon check in around 8:30pm, with Mathew, which by the way was exceptional at customer service throughout my whole stay, I settled in for the night. In the early morning I discovered that my dog would not be out of surgery until around 5 pm that day. I asked for a late checkout and was "granted" a 1 pm even though as a reward member it states 2 pm is automatically given. This would have been helpful to keep me out of a hot car during a triple-digit heat wave. So I checked out and was surprised to learn I needed to stay another night after 7pm. I rechecked into your hotel and since I was staying longer than originally anticipated I needed to do some laundry. I asked Mathew where the laundry facility was and was told it was down stairs, and only took quarters. So I asked for some and was told there were none. So I went up to the next exit and proceeded to go from gas station to store to store to find someone who could give me quarters, 45 mins later I was back at the hotel. Because of my health and lack of sleep over my dog, I was in need of some creature comforts, like clean clothes, to be able to handle the obligations that were going to be required of me to help get back home and aid in his recovery.
Upon getting my clothes in the wash and starting the cycle I was having difficulty getting more than 50 cents into the washer and the coin return was not working. I talked to Matthew and he promptly looked for the key as it appeared the coin box was full. He texted you and was given the message of "the key being in the safe locked in my office and I will be in at 7 am, besides the box had been emptied last week". Considering you have only one washer and one dryer for what I calculated to be over a hundred rooms I find that your 1 a week to be very inadequate. Especially considering there were at least 2 dozen construction workers and landscapers at breakfast each morning. So I had to wash a full outfit in the sink and hoped they would dry by morning. When I finished with this task it was late and I was reaching an emotional breaking point. I also discovered that in room 429 the layout of the furniture blocks your air conditioning unit and thus needed to be moved. So in spite of my physical limitation I was moving the furniture away from the unit completely. My clothes were not dry in the morning which prompted blow drying them individually after another night of very little sleep.

I was dressed and ready to meet with you at 7:20 but was told by your Front Desk attendant that you were not in. I rechecked at 8am and asked for your contact information, which I was given rather hesitantly the address I am sending this email to. When asked when you would be in I was told, "I do not know. She will be in when she comes in." I found the email address I originally given and this was sent to was invalid, upon searching your website the one listed also was invalid. If it was not for your Night Staff, Housekeeping, and Breakfast Attendant, your reviews would have led me to find a different place to stay. Customer Service is the only thing you have nowadays considering how many places there are to stay in Bryan/College Station. If I am ever staying another night, I will...

THIS IS AN EMAIL I SENT TO ANTHONY AGUILAR AND HAVEN'T RECEIVED A RESPONSE

Hello,  I am a guest at the Holiday Inn Express in Bryan Texas. I am booked from April 30-May 2, 2021 and I am staying in room 201. I was treated with so much disrespect and dis-courtesy this this morning I am reaching out to tell you of my experience. The way I was treated this morning was horrendous.

 I have asked the manager,  Rachel Thweatt, to please not delete any front desk security video from 4:45 this morning to 5:30, Saturday May 1, 2021.  I was first  ignored and talked down to when I inquired where I could go to get coffee around 4:45-5:00 AM this morning. I went out and purchased coffee and when I returned I asked the night employee for her name. She did NOT answer nor even look up from the computer. I waited several seconds and asked again. She then held her palm up and out towards me and said "talk to my manager" without even looking at me. I asked again and again she refused to give me her name, or even acknowledge I was speaking to her. I then went to the elevator and before entering it asked her "so you are refusing to give me your name" and once again she would not answer. PLEASE REVIEW THE SECURITY VIDEO TO SEE THIS ALL HAPPENED AS I HAVE STATED HERE!!

Even when I want to the manager a few minutes ago to tell what happened the manager was very nonchalant about this incident. THIS ENCOUNTER WILL BE ON SECURITY VIDEO AROUND 7:00-7:15 AM. The manager,  Rachel Thweatt, did and said nothing to this employee about this incident.  You will see on the video me pointing to the employee while talking to the manager saying to the manager "look she's laughing right now about this."  She obviously thought my complaint to the manager was funny.  At this point I requested a phone number to a regional and/or district office the manager told me she could only give me an email address. I certainly would expect more professionalism from a manager than what I received from Ms. Thweatt. That is why I'm reaching up to you here. I have never in my 62 years on this earth been treated this rudely, especially in a business that is about hospitality! I feel I deserve an apology from this employee and the hotel itself!! Thanks in advance for your quick attention to this matter I await your reply. 

Sincerely,

Rody...