Holiday Inn Express & Suites Defiance by IHG — Hotel in Noble Township

I am a very frequent HIE visitor as I travel for work and it is rare that I feel they don't earn a 5-star rating. Unfortunately, this location falls into that category. I was a late arrival (11pm-ish) on a Saturday night and had not booked in advance because I had no idea I'd be in that area until then. The parking lot was half-empty so rates/availability should have been a non-issue. The young lady working the front desk was very nice but advised she was new, so she had no clue about what CLC even was or if it was used there. I accepted that and said I'd need a room regardless. I couldn't believe the rate she quoted (more on that shortly) but it was late so I accepted and went to my room. The hotel overall appears clean and in good shape, but my room showed signs of neglect. There was a rather large rust-water stain on the floor near the rear of the toilet. The shower head needed a long soak in lime-away (not to mention that the shower head is mounted for people 5'8 or shorter). The AC was at 68 upon arrival but it was a bit warm in there, so I dropped it to 65 - only to wake up in the middle of the night and drop it down to 60 because it was still relatively warm. I didn't try the TV or microwave but the fridge worked well. I didn't get up in time for breakfast but I'm going to assume it was the typical high quality of HIE. So here's the thing, my final rate was just short of $180. There were no special events; I would be in the room for 12 hours; There were obviously multiple rooms available; and the room was not in great shape; and I'm a Spire Elite member (not asking for special treatment, just showing that I have plenty of experience with HIEs). $180 for this place is...

We checked in very late Tuesday night before Thanksgiving. The young lady checking us in was super helpful, and breakfast person Susan seemed very organized, had great variety of breakfast items. The room was very clean and comfortable, we slept very well. However, after we left, we realized that we left a small 14 oz size round glass container with its nice silicon gasket sealed glass lid. I use them to store foods and reheat in microwave ovens on the road. We called a few hours later and asked about it, the clerk said no one turned it in. Very disappointed, we then remembered something a little odd. When we returned to our room after breakfast, a person with a notepad came out of the room next to ours, then went into the room across from ours. Usually, we see house-keeping in and out but have never seen a person in and out of rooms in this manner. If she was a person who checks the quality of housekeeping, then it seems any items left by the guests would be noticed. We have left items behind in other hotels in the past, they have always been mailed back to us by the hotels. So this lost and found service at the Holiday Inn Express in Defiance, Ohio is below average. We drove by the hotel today, 6 days later, on our way back home. My husband went in to see if anyone followed up on our container. Tanya remembered speaking to me about it but apparently no one cared to...

I've stayed at this hotel several times in the past year. I've returned because the experiences have been good. I had stayed at another hotel nearby, but changed to the HIE because the breakfast we better.

The bed is very comfortable as is the selection of pillows. Hotel is very clean, and the staff is friendly. Check-in seems to be longer than other places, so I would recommend that they find a way to streamline the process (I think it is held up by trying to get everyone enrolled in the "rewards" program.#.

This last visit I had a small problem. I was assigned room 317, and this room was next to the elevator / vending machines. When I first went into the room I noticed a deep loud hum that was truly annoying. When I inquired about getting a different room I was told that they were all taken. After looking around for the source of the noise I determined it was an exhaust fan above the vending machines. This fan was on a thermostat, so I turned the thermostat up to 80 degrees in hopes that I would get through the night without it coming on. Unfortunately I was awakened #startled) by the fan at 3:10 a.m. If you can, avoid the rooms next to the elevator.

All in all, a nice place to stay. Hotel also has a hot tub -- which is becoming an increasingly hard...