Holiday Inn Express & Suites Birmingham-Irondale (East) by IHG — Hotel in Irondale

Our experience at this Holiday Inn Express was mixed, with both positive and negative aspects. The location is in a somewhat unusual spot, with a steep and awkward driveway leading to the hotel. It feels like the hotel is perched on a small hill, with the entrance at the base.

Checking in was a bit challenging. We had reserved four or five King rooms but ended up with only two, as the others were given away. I'm unsure what caused the mix-up, but it meant some couples had to sleep in separate beds, which was inconvenient, though not a major issue.

The air conditioning in the dining area wasn't working, making the lobby and dining room hot and humid. On the plus side, breakfast wasn't crowded due to the uncomfortable conditions, but getting food was a sweaty experience. While not a deal-breaker, it was certainly an inconvenience. As someone who's worked in hotels, I understand how challenging it can be to maintain air conditioning in the South, and I hope they resolve this soon.

Regarding the room, I can only speak about mine and share photos. Given my experience with multiple hotels, I'm surprised at how this place passed inspection. My previous managers would never have allowed a room to look like this. However, it didn't prevent me from sleeping or using the bathroom. I'm just surprised maintenance hasn't addressed these issues, or that the hotel hasn't been penalized. Perhaps they have.

The bathtub was unpleasant, with hair and standing water when I checked in, as well as rust in and around it. Guests shouldn't have to inform staff of such issues; a good maintenance team would identify and resolve them before check-in.

Housekeeping also needs improvement, particularly regarding hair on the bathroom floor, where guests are likely to notice it. I strongly suggest management emphasize the importance of cleanliness in the bathroom to the housekeeping staff.

Additionally, our bathroom lacked soap. I'm unsure if this is a new policy or a housekeeping oversight, but several of us had to get soap from the front desk. On a positive note, it was Dove soap, which I appreciated.

One towel appeared to have a stain or sticky residue that wasn't removed in the wash, which should have been caught by housekeeping. The shower curtain was also in poor condition. No one wants to be extra cautious not to touch a dirty curtain while showering. If the hotel sees this, please clean or replace them.

The sheets and blankets were clean, which was reassuring, given my experience in hotels. The bed was comfortable, but the room was warm despite the air conditioner being set to 61 degrees. The air conditioner's cover was missing, and it couldn't keep up with the room temperature. However, considering the humidity in Birmingham, Alabama, in the middle of summer and the rain all week, it's understandable.

Other areas needing attention include the ceiling and walls, which require cleaning and repainting. While not a deal-breaker or major inconvenience, guests prefer not to see this. Overall, our stay was decent. I would consider staying here again, hoping these issues...

I want to talk about Holiday Inn Express & Suites. While I have enjoyed the chain in the past and even this summer, I must admit some of their locations could use an entire overhaul. There is no easy way to get them to correct an error caused on their end and frankly the use of their customer relations department is shocking. They will take your complaint as an escalation case, but you are still at the mercy of the involved location to correct the problem. The escalation dept will contact the location and try to get them to correct the issue, but it seems as if the escalation dept can only do so much. It's almost like the escalation dept needs a being higher than themselves so they can call in a complaint and receive an escalation case number in order for their client's case to get resolved. I know that sounds crazy, but I have been waiting an entire month for a refund, after multiple calls and case number assignments to the escalation dept and to the hotel. BTW, after a couple of days into the incident the hotel literally told me that the manager, who's name I will leave out, no longer works for the hotel 🤔 . However, that was not true she just didn't know how to correct the problem and error. Backing up a bit, they put an additional unauthorized charge on my credit card in their inadequate way of compensating my room. Yes, they did and that charge was for more than the original hotel stay cost. The hotel did not even tell me about that mistake which happened on the morning of our checkout as I was standing right there in front of the desk associate. The hotel manager who was responsible for kicking the can down the road in the first place should have compensated my room herself. It was she that told me that I would be compensated for the room the night before as she handed me towels to lay on the floor, instead she left it for the morning shift to correct. With no other rooms available, I stayed in a flooded room due to a leaking air conditioner. The entire carpet on the second half of the room was wet and the closer to the AC unit you got the more soaked the carpet was found to be. The hotel and area hotels were booked. The hotel knew before assigning us to this room that it was flooded because when we walked in there was a utility fan and utility cords set up to in an effort to dry out the carpet and the AC seemed to be cranked down to 50 degrees trying to help dry it out. They needed to turn off the leaking AC, extract the water, clean the carpet, and dry the carpet before assigning this room to anyone. Reservations had been made at least 2 - 3 months prior to our overnight stay in Birmingham. This chain customer escalation process is not user friendly when it comes down to taking care of customers. Every number for corporate that you call returns you to this same escalation department. So you'll never communicate with corporate. I stayed at their Holiday Inn Express & Suites Irondale location in Birmingham, Alabama on June 20, 2025. Posted...

Overall, I would say the hotel had pluses and minuses. (Plus) Location is nice and quiet up on a hillside. (Minus) Upon check-in though, my IHG account has “away from elevators” checked b/c I am a very light sleeper, but the room I was put in was immediately behind the elevator. (Minus) Also, the key cards did not unlock the door so we had to go back to check-in to get everything situated. (Plus) The lady at the front desk was very helpful and did her best to change my room to a more quiet one so I was appreciative of that. (Plus) It is a nice size room w/ lots of outlets/ports, and having a freezer compartment in the mini fridge is always a bonus when you have to keep ice packs frozen. (Minus) The paint peeling, that is hanging from the ceiling above the microwave/ fridge area needs repainting. (Plus) The a/c worked and got the room cold quickly. (Minus) The shower did not drain so we were in dirty, standing water when showering. I asked a housekeeper to have maintenance come, but they never did. (Minus) Our key cards stopped working a couple times, so we had to go back down the elevator to get them remagnetized. (Minus) I was a little irritated that the front desk clerks got irritated when we asked for more key cards. They kept telling us not to keep them in a phone or next to cards. Our key was not kept in either. The front desk should not get irritated when something is irritating and an inconvenience for a paying customer. (Plus) The cleaning staff was very friendly and accommodating to extra needs like clean towels and such. (Minus) There’s only one ice machine for the whole hotel and it was almost always out of ice. (Minus) There’s a bullet hole in the window in the room I stayed in. Hotel should probably get that fixed asap- Not a good look 😬. (Plus & Minus) Breakfast was ok. Had some really good things like cinnamon rolls, but the biscuits and sausage were always overcooked. Cranberry juice from the juice dispensing machine was mostly water. I was, however, still thankful breakfast was included. After checkout, when I went to leave, there was a taxi blocking my way of backing out. I realize the hotel has no control over this. (Minus) What I don’t think is necessary, however, is that when I went in and asked front desk if anyone knew where the taxi driver was, I think the comment of “We don’t have anything to do with that” can be left out. It’s just not helpful. I wasn’t being loud or belligerent. I simply stated I was running late and asked if anyone knew where he was. Anyone would be a little annoyed in that same situation. Another gentleman staying at the hotel was the most helpful in trying to find him to let him know. All-in-all, an ok stay. There are clearly some maintenance needs and front desk staff needs training on handling disgruntled customers, but cleaning staff was...