Holiday Inn Boston - Cambridge Area by IHG — Hotel in Somerville

My husband, our two young daughters and I checked in on 12/19. A polite but seemingly new gentleman working the front desk gave us free vouchers for breakfast because, as he stated, the card reader in the elevator was broken. He apologized and informed us the card would work for our room but not the elevator initially. This required us to have a staff member or other guests use the card reader in the elevator every single time we needed to go up to our room. He went into the back room to have a Mr. Omar (the shift manager I believe) come help. ||We then went upstairs to our room where there were large maroon stains on the carpet (blood?), hairs all over the bathroom floor/tub and one of the bed frames was broken. My husband fixed the bed and I cleaned the bathroom the best I could because we did not want to complain. As the day wore on and into the next day we quickly realized that the elevator wasn’t broken and we were the only ones who could not use our card to go up to our room. On 12/20 we returned to the hotel for the night around 1030pm and were quite frustrated to see our card still was not working. The four of us went to the front desk where my husband led the conversation by saying that everyone had been helpful but that we were frustrated that our key card still was not working. The woman working the desk went into the back room and out walked Mr. Omar. Mr. Omar immediately started belittling us stating that it was our fault that the card wasn’t working because we had kept the card in a wallet near credit cards; continuously pointing at a sign on the front desk stating that the sign clearly said this. When we pointed out that the sign actually said not to keep the card near electronics (not credit cards), that we always keep our cards in wallets without issue and reminded him that we were told upon being given the card that it did not work in the elevator Mr. Omar threatened, three separate times, to have us removed from the property; stating “I’ve had people removed for less.” He then proceeded to state he was “trying to protect the children” (our two girls) from their father as we were getting into the elevator. ||My girls and I were so upset by being threatened that my husband and I decided to pack up and drive the 2.5 hour drive home that night. As we were packing I called the guest relations line and was told I would receive a call back from management within 24 hours. ||At 1145pm we left the hotel: on our way out I stopped at the front desk and spoke with a different gentleman. I politely informed him we were checking out due to being threatened by Mr. Omar. He wished me a goodnight and we left. ||Since then we have called guest relations 2 more times with no return call from management. My husband called guest relations again today (12/28) and asked to speak with a supervisor who told him that it had been reported we were escorted off the property by the police and therefore they would not help us. My husband emailed the GM for this location, John Ionta, 3 times and called twice with no response. ||Not only were we threatened for asking why our card didn’t work in the elevator, this hotel has refused to refund us for the additional night we did not stay and now is slandering our names by saying we had a police escort off the property when this NEVER happened. This can clearly be proven by watching the...

This hotel had the potential to be excellent but a few minor things brought down my rating. First off, the lobby, grounds and room was beautifully updated and modern. There was a very nice looking restaurant/ bar with many flat-screen this like you would see in an upscale sports bar but it was only open for breakfast. We would have loved to dine in for dinner a few nights but couldn't because it was closed. This was disappointing because they website advertised it as an amenity and partially why I chose that hotel to stay. The rooms cleanliness was great.....except for 1 major thing....the carpet was so dirty. This was very surprising because everything else was so impeccably clean....even in places where you find hidden dirt. My kids feet were black after only a few minutes of being there. We had to wear our shoes all of the time. Other than that, everything else was clean...sheets were bright white, shower was stain free, lamp shades didn't have dust nor did any surfaces...etc. The TV had a great variety of channels and HD. The other thing that bugged me was for a 4 night stay for 4 people, they only gave us 1 of each of things like 1 roll of toilet paper, 1 shampoo and conditioner and only 2 coffee pods. You had to ask for more. They were very easy to deal with to ask but just seemed like they were skimping in that department and I had to keep calling for stuff over the course of 5 days. Nothing major, just an inconvenience. The pool was nice with a small basketball court and rock wall but alot of the games were removed such as ping pong and fuseball table due to covid. The hotel seemed to be full of families but surprisingly very quiet. Beds were comfortable enough for a good night sleep. I would stay again if in the area....great distance from Boston and easy navigation off of 93 but the neighborhood itself was nothing to write home about. Oh, also the shuttle they said was not in service due to covid but looked like they had 2 nice, newer vans for shuttling in the parking lot. Shout out to Royal Pizza next store who had an amazing menu and great food. Also a speedway gas station and liquor store on the next block in...

I used to stay here a lot before COVID, and this property's reliability and amenities were the reason why I became an IHG member and preferred this chain. It convinced me that IHG properties were always a safe bet, wherever I was. I just had my first post-COVID stay here, and oh, my, how the mighty have fallen.

They don't clean your room anymore. No matter how long your stay. You can request a "cleaning", but it has to be scheduled 24 hours in advance, and they just replace your towels and some of the toiletries.

Because of the above policy, the rooms are getting fewer cleanings in total, and the overall cleanliness of the rooms has suffered severely. I found my nightstand drawer full of moldy food. The desk chair cushion let out the smell of gym socks when I sat on it. The accent chair by the window was likely developing mildew.

I mentioned the food in the nightstand drawer when I checked out. The front desk attendant was polite and said she'd add points to my account, but they never seem to have posted.

The gym had no sanitizing wipes to clean the equipment, or paper cups for the water dispenser. I mentioned this at the front desk, and they said they'd refill them. Over the next several days, they never did.

The restaurant and bar is now closed at almost all times.

They have no shuttle anymore.

The pool at least still has water in it, but it has no regular open hours.

For what it's worth, the staff is understanding and polite, but that can't overcome the serious deterioration of the property and amenities.

Note that the location is great for my particular business destination (so I've marked that as a pro), but most visitors would probably consider this a poorly-located hotel, since it's mostly near warehouses and residential areas. It's about a 10-minute walk from an Orange Line station, which will get you anywhere in Boston promptly and cheaply, but much of the Boston area has even better access to public...