Holiday Inn Express & Suites Silver Springs-Ocala by IHG — Hotel in Ocala

I would give 0 stars if I could, I unfortunately saw so many good reviews and 4.5 star rating without first reading the bad one’s AFTER having already booked my room I read a bunch of the bad reviews and consistently saw people talking about the AC being broken or shutting off all night, Well I was a little concerned but after seeing so many good reviews I was hoping it was a fluke thing or maybe the room they stayed in I’m in (227) by the way not that it matter’s well we set our AC to lower temperature as most people do and went to bed woke up only a couple hours later at 2:00am covered in sweat the AC was OFF and the temperature was changed to 78° I thought omg I hope this isn’t going to keep happening as I recalled all the reviews stating it’s over and over well I set it even lower to 66°thinking in case it does I want to cool the room down enough prior then I went back to sleep only to wake up again covered in sweat at 2:28am now I’m pissed so this time I started telling my boyfriend who got up and says it’s OFF AND AT 78°!!! I said Yes that’s where it was when I got up last time he was like that’s not what I set it to when we went up bed, I said I know so at this point I begin calling the front desk whom by the way does NOT Answer the phone, So we layed back down as he layed back in the bed before even falling back to sleep the AC cut off again this is only 5 minutes later, so now I’m even more pissed tried the front desk again still no answer so I get up and dressed and walk down there no one is sitting in sight she’s off behind a wall, I said excuse me and she comes up and said yes how can I help you? I said the AC is not working it keeps cutting off. She replies the system was doing an update, I said well it’s been shutting off over and over she repeated herself (The system is doing an update) with a snide attitude, I then said so it’s not going to do it anymore she said that’s correct then looked at her computer screen, I said okay thank you and walked away.

Rewinding to other events to note prior to this pulling up to this hotel the front desk girl who was working the earlier shift was standing out front smoking a cigarette in the front of the building not very professional but whatever and she was back out there when we went to leave again for dinner, at which time there was a couple police out front speaking to some questionable looking people not that it matters but (White) questionable looking people, after this coming back from dinner we get in the (Only) Elevator and it smells like someone had just hot boxed it with WEED, I am a chronic Asthmatic who was literally just hospitalized on 03/12/25 in ICU on a ventilator fighting for my life so SMOKE of any kind bothers my lungs not to mention I shouldn’t have to get high by contact buzz in an elevator of a room I payed $166 for ONE NIGHT IN, Boyfriend mentioned booking another night and thankfully before even knowing about the AC I decided to book at the Hilton downtown instead, I have now been laying here typing about 30 minutes it’s 3:06am the AC is staying on so clearly “THEY CONTROL IT FROM THE FRONT” Listen if you’re trying to save money this “IS NOT THE WAY” because I would have booked a second night following tonight now that’s booked at a competitor hotel that’s $166 you just lost from one night to save a few dollars with AC CONTROL, You’re losing GUESTS which keep consistent revenue, not to mention if enough people keep leaving reviews that all MATCH people will start to see that trend and refuse to stay here this hotel will lose more revenue by far than what you’re saving by controlling AC temperatures in guest rooms this is FLORIDA and it’s JUNE it’s hot this is not HOW you run a hotel which is meant to be a relaxing experience away from home....

In summary - a decent place to stay with clean rooms, great staff, but a somewhat sketchy location.

Rooms - smaller in size, but very clean. The property in general is showing its age, and the room is no different, The towels and bed linens were clean and in good condition, but the bed itself was old and needs to be replaced (you can feel in innter springs in some places). To close the bathroom door you had to lift it because it was sagging. There are numerous scuffs on corners and the furniture and the flat screet TV while working was older and lacked a good selection of channels.

Service - This property has first rate staff. Hands down the best part of this hotel are the people who work there. The staff is friendly and quick to offer assistance. The grounds are clean, no litter, overflowing trash cans or graffiti. The hotel breakfast was exactly what you would expect, sausages, scramble eggs, premade and reheated stuff that you would buy from Costco. I ate it for 7 days and there was enough variety to keep me going.

Location - Well its not the greatest neighborhood, but its not like there are a lot of homeless people or others hanging on around the sidewalk. During the day time it seemed perfectly safe and we walked to the Silver Spring Metro Station with no problem. The biggest problems is there are very limited restaurant options in the immediate neighborhood that you might want to go to so be prepared to drive. There is a large Ethiopian community in Silver Spring so a lot of the nearby restaurants were Ethiopian. There is a KFC down the street a bit but that's pretty much it.

I don't know if this would be my first choice of hotels. My trip was a last minute thing so my options were limited. But depending on price and circumstances I would...

We were greeted promptly and politely at arrival, the room was ready. Plenty of parking at the hotel, and right outside the reception door. Room was a Queen Suite, with two Queen Beds and a full sofa bed. It was a great size, clean and obviously recently renovated, apart from the air conditioning which was surprising. The room's A/C worked fine, but the unit was under the main window, and within 2 feet of the end of the bed. When the A/C turned on it was loud to start with, then calmed down, but this was enough to wake us during the night. Also, with the A/C blowing directly at the bed the person sleeping on the window side was freezing, while the rest of the room was a good temperature. It also meant there was very little room to walk down the side of the bed by the window and A/C unit. The breakfast was still a buffet, and free gloves were supplied and mandatory, which was great. The pancake machine was awesome, but the sausage patties tasted like cardboard that had been sitting in the heating tray for a few days. Seating was a challenge if we went down after 7:30am. But the lady helping out in the area was very nice, and chatted to us and the kids. We had to ask for extra towels (only 3 sets supplied in the room), and an extra set of sheets etc for the sofa bed. The gentleman that was on reception when i asked for the sheets and towels was less friendly, and had his mask barely covering his mouth. He didn't offer to bring them to the room, i had to wait about 10mins for him to come back and give them to me. But on the whole it was a nice hotel, reasonably priced and in great proximity to...