Holiday Inn Express & Suites Chicago North-Waukegan-Gurnee by IHG — Hotel in Waukegan

We had a family event in Illinois early on a Sunday morning and we live only an 1 hour 15 min drive from this hotel. Because of the time change and how early our family event was the next AM, we decided to take our kids for a fun overnight in a hotel for a mini staycation. My criteria were: affordable, free breakfast, enough space for our family, and a pool! This vacation was unlike most in that the hotel was the destination. Our kids were so excited to swim. As soon as we entered the lobby, they said they could smell the pool (chlorine) and ran over to look at it. We got up to our room and my husband and I privately talked about how gross it looked. I went back to look more closely. The pool/hot tub area was warm and steamy upon entering and the temp was 84. But to me, it felt like a gross, gym locker steamy feeling. The pool water was the most disgusting I have ever seen. Multiple hairs upon the top, a gross plastic cup floating around, and a bandaid on the pool deck and towels lying around. You know how you want a pool to look clear and inviting so you can dive right in? This did not look like that. Also not sure what was going on with the renovations in there but all around the vents in the ceiling, the drywall plaster looked gross and falling apart. We decided not to use the pool, and the kids were super bummed, but it was a $xxx lesson in coping with disappointment, so thanks for that. Next time I will just drive if able, because as I mentioned, we lived close enough to drive, but just wanted to have a fun time in a pool. sadly, it didn't work out. I didn't talk to the staff because it was so gross I didn't even want to expend any more mental energy on it or think about how nasty it was. The gross pool made me scrutinize my room more closely. We were in room 313. The door trim on the room interior on the hinge side was missing. I noticed a q tip shoved between the sink counter and backsplash on the right side of the bathroom vanity. I noticed hairs in places and tried to convince myself they were mine but I am not sure. The couch bed was all yellow. It looked gross to me. When we opened it a weird mushroom ring fell out. It was a similar style to a claddagh ring but instead of hands and a heart it was a mushroom ring, it made me wonder who slept on the bed last before my child did. Also our room had two tvs but they had to be on the same station. My husband said they were on the same tuner. So we had to watch Disney jr too. Also the conditioner was running out in the shower and only three big towels in the room. Pros: the two queen beds were comfy and they "looked" clean. Lots of lighting options in

the room. The breaskfast looked good but we were in a rush so had to grab and go. Hotel staff seemed friendly although we did not

interact much. Ample close parking. Hotel was quiet. Slept good except for ansiety about grossness and germs. Has potential if it was clean especially the pool! (Disclaimer, These are my opinions and descriptive words used such as "gross" are opinion words subject to multiple...

This location is excellent for families attending navy boot camp graduation at Naval Station Great Lakes. The front desk offers a flyer with important information regarding the graduation. There is also a shuttle that drops off and picks up right outside the base gate. I found this to be very thoughtful because this saves time from having to line up the morning of graduation and wait to have your vehicle inspected prior to being allowed on base. You have to sign up for a slot for the shuttle at the front desk and they fill up fast. There is also a Walmart and several fast food/chain restaurants nearby as well as a casino if you get bored at night. ||Staff here are friendly and helpful. They are quick to smile and greet you and are overall pleasant.||Breakfast buffet, I would say, is above average for this tier of hotel. There is an assortment of bread and pastries, a machine that makes fresh pancakes, yogurt, oatmeal, eggs (although definitely not fresh), sausage patties, biscuits and gravy, and cereal. ||On the day of the graduation, they live stream the ceremony downstairs for those that did not get a ticket to attend. They also offer a hot dog social at 11:30am for families returning to the hotel with their newly minted Sailors. Cookies and lemonade as well as chips are also on offer.||Now on to the bad. The hotel is a bit dated. There wasn't anything falling apart but the decor and furniture have definitely seen better days. Throughout our stay, the right elevator was always out of service, leaving only one operaple elevator. As luck would have it, that elevator went out of service too. This meant that we had to walk up to our room on the 4th floor with kids in tow. I was not too happy about this as I had to go back and forth a couple more times that night and the next morning. When I asked the front desk when they planned on having it fixed, they said it would be sometime tomorrow. I didn't feel that was an acceptable answer because what if there were elderly or disabled people that relied on the elevator? How would they get to their rooms? I feel that having both elevators out of service would warrant an emergency repair call even if it was after-hours. ||The next morning at breakfast, I brought back cereal and milk for my son. When I poured the milk into his bowl, it was chunky! Obviously spoiled and rancid even though the expiration date was still a week away. This implies that it was not stored properly. I went back downstairs to tell someone in the dining room and they gave me another milk but I was too skeptical at this point. They did say they would throw out the batch that was in the fridge but I wonder how many other people have already consumed this spoiled milk?||Overall, I would give this a 2.5 based on its location, the breakfast buffet, and the accomodations for families attending graduation at the navy base. However, if I had to come back I would probably choose one of the several other hotels...

For the building to be slightly below par compared to other Holiday Inns, I would expect better customer service. The rooms were run down, carpets dirty and stained, air conditioner water leaks on the A/C unit and the ceiling BUT the sheets were clean. The parking lot outside had trash EVERYWHERE. So the curb appeal wasn't welcoming. The beds weren't as comfortable as they usually are at Holiday Inn. The walls were paper thin so you could hear all the noise from adjoining rooms, the hallways, and the lobby. Due to the pandemic, the breakfast was a grab and go bag which consisted of individually wrapped bagels, cream cheese, jelly, muffins, yogurt, oranges, and juice. The breakfast was okay considering the pandemic. I do give them an A for the fact that they did use individually wrapped items maintaining a level of freshness. However, I paid way more for the room than it was worth. I paid for the Holiday Inn logo on this one. Could have found better rooms for the upper end price that was paid. When I booked the room, we were visiting Foxlake, Illinois. When I called the 800 number to book the reservation, I was informed that this hotel was 2.92 miles from Foxlake when in actuality, it was 17 miles away. The morning staff were very professional and courteous but as I mentioned in my review, the evening staff were VERY rude and unprofessional. The attendant argued with my husband when he asked for 2 additional towels for our room. We had 2 adults and 3 minor children. There were 3 towels in the room. The attendant seen us walk past her to our room. 2 minutes later, my husband went down to ask for additional towels. She informed him that "maximum occupancy was 4 per room." He told her we had 3 children and needed additional towels. She continued to argue with him over the 2 towels as she was looking up our reservation to see if we added the children to the room (which we did). This to me was and is unacceptable. I will not book another reservation at this hotel. I am usually not this critical. As I stated, this is the worst hotel stay overall that I have ever had....