Holiday Inn Express Reviews 700

Absolutely disgusting behaviour by a Holiday Inn (so called manager)) He clearly doesn't have an ounce of hospitality in him. Will never book again and hopefully others boycott the hotel chain/group.

Disgusted that a company in the UK can turn away a fellow human being (irrelevant of his status, HE IS A HUMAN BEING), from a room that had already been paid for??

It was -6 that night on the streets of Manchester, the rooms had been booked and already paid for, what sort of draconian 'rules' does Holiday Inn Express have to turn a person away from a booked contract?

SHAME YOU YOU GUYS. Will make sure i never book with Holiday Inn Express!!

After reading how they treated a homeless person. I thought only right to post the article here. This will let customers know exactly how they treat people. A homeless man has said it is "disgusting" a Manchester hotel refused him entry, on a night when the city faced sub-zero temperatures, due to being homeless.

Calumn Donaghey, 30, was one of two men to be turned away from the Holiday Inn Express on Oxford Road, Manchester, despite having pre-booked rooms - after being told the hotel's policy did not "allow" homeless people to stay.

"From the look of myself you'd never think that I was homeless," he said. "So to make that judgement and reject us straight away - I think it's disgusting really," he added.

A Holiday Inn Express spokesperson has since apologised and said the incident was "not in keeping with our policy of welcoming all".

The rooms were booked by Amanda Thompson, who volunteers for charity Two Brews told BBC Radio Manchester, as well as paying for the two rooms she also paid a damage insurance deposit of £100 per room.

Calumn, who has been sleeping rough for eight years, said: "It made me feel inadequate."

"I didn't feel good enough for that hotel. As a homeless person, I was made to feel embarrassed," he added.

When Calumn arrived at the hotel on Monday evening, the temperature in Manchester had reached -6C.

"It can be quite scary sleeping on the streets in this weather," he said.

"I'm someone that's been adapted to the streets for a while - but I've cried sometimes, I've been that cold."
Calumn also said the incident made him feel "a bit down" and "categorised".

After being turned away from the Holiday Inn Express, Amanda made another booking at a Travelodge in Moss Side, who welcomed the group.

Calumn said he was relieved to know he had somewhere to sleep that evening.
"As we got there, I won't lie, I let out a sigh of relief to myself because I had a roof over my head - somewhere warm," Calumn said.

A Holiday Inn Express Manchester spokesperson has since apologised.

The spokesperson said the incident was not in keeping with company policy and "should have been handled differently".

They added the hotel was "taking steps internally to strengthen our training".

But for Calumn, the promise of internal training is too little too late.

"They should've done that in the first place," he said. "If they had anything about them maybe they'd make contact with me personally to apologise and assure me it will never happen again."

During the Covid-19 lockdown, the Holiday Inn Express in Gorton area of Manchester, was used to house hundreds of homeless people who were later made to leave because the government stopped funding.

09 January 2026

Calumn Donaghey, 30.

Credit BBC Radio Manchester

I stayed in
Holiday Inn Express & Suites Toronto Airport West the 16th of December 2025. Today it’s January 9th of 2026. It’s been well over three weeks. I still haven’t received my deposit back. Avoid this company.

Just seen that this company refused to let 2 homeless men stay there regardless of the fact the rooms had been paid for , shame on you for putting them back out on the streets in -6 conditions

Disgusting company! Refuses homeless people - even though room paid for. Expects them to freeze to death in MINUS SIX degrees!!!! Avoid!!

Threw two British men on the streets, to possibly die, despite paying for a booking. It was -6 degrees. The manager said in the past, doing a different job, he had seen them sleeping rough. This, he said, was against company policy.

This is the same company housing illegal migrants. Scandalous.

Shame on you holiday inn express manchester for not letting two homeless men into sleep despite taking their bookings...
Shame on your lack of care, lack of love and lack of compassion at a time it was freezing outside...that receptionist needs a lesson in what being homeless is about...

Holiday inn express have changed thier beds. The original beds were lovely king size beds and very comfy. Now they have the cheapest hardest queen beds that give the worst nights sleep. The fixed side tables have big gaps where a king size bed would have fit flush too: it’s such a shame as sleep is a massive point of a stay. Stayed in Cambridge express and won’t be back unfortunately

Used multiple times this month and overall very happy about everything with it. I just wish they had some vegetarian options in hot breakfast!

I had booked the Holiday Inn Express on 20 Dec and got confirmation one week before. when I went there on 20th they mentioned, yes there is booking confirm but there is no Room available after confirmation and they said look outside or seat in restaurant and if someone checkout early then will check... this is completely hopeless...hopeless hospitality.. i will suggest not to booked here.

Bedroom was immaculate. Breakfast was lovely with a nice selection. The ladies on reception in the day time were wonderful and very helpful, but you really need to sack your night porter/receptionist. He does your company “no credit”, is rude, offensive and would not allow me to enjoy the benefits I’d paid the same for as other residents. Put quite simply. That man should NOT be employed in the service trade.

I made a reservation Expedia for a 3-night stay at Holiday Inn Express & Suites Nassau by IHG, confirmation: 40893465. The reservation was made around 3:00am on Dec. 16th and I needed to cancel it about 3:00pm, because I was traveling with my grandson who lost his father and his mother changed her mind about letting him go after I sent her the traveling itinerary. Expedia has a no fee cancelation policy and I naturally assumed when I purchased the package with them, that included the airfare, the hotel and the protection plan. However, the hotel charged me a one night fee. Even after I called the hotel personally to explain the loss of my son and my wanting to give his son a nice Christmas in the Bahamas, they refused to reimburse the one night stay. I think their decision was heartless. My maternal family is Bahamian and when I travel alone I stay with one of them. But I was bringing my grandson and decided to get a hotel. My family couldn't believe the hotel management would do that. Needless to say I'll let people I know who travel to Nassau not to stay there. It's bad enough my grandson can't go on his trip, but I'm still stuck paying almost $300.00 for nothing.

Imagine not letting your staff take a day off to bury his toddler, this is inhumane behavior, and I will personally not support this chain. Even suspending the staff member upon him speaking up about his treatment is cruel, and it shows complete lack of general understanding and empathy towards a grieving parent.

Glad to see many others speaking up and supporting this parent in his time of need, when Holiday Inn apparently are completely unable to.

I wish nothing but the managment to feel the pain of loosing a 4 years old child and not being able to say goodbye!

Refused one of their workers a holiday…
Refused one of their workers a holiday date to bury their 4 year old daughter and made this worker work the day of her funeral. This worker later got suspended for this. Heartless company, you disgust me!

If I could give zero stars, I would. The way Holiday Inn Express treats its staff is completely unacceptable and deeply disturbing.
Management refused a member of their team time off that he was fully entitled to in order to mourn and bury his four-year-old child. This is not just poor management — it is a shocking lack of compassion, humanity, and basic decency. No workplace should ever place operational convenience above such a devastating personal loss.
A company that claims to value people should demonstrate that in its actions, not just its policies. The complete disregard shown toward an employee during the most traumatic moment of his life speaks volumes about the leadership at this location.
I would strongly urge senior management and corporate leadership to review how staff are treated and ensure that empathy, respect, and basic human understanding are not optional. Until this is addressed, I cannot recommend supporting a business that treats its employees in such an appalling manner. Holiday inn express Birmingham

I am writing this review with profound disappointment and moral outrage at the actions taken by Holiday Inn Express under the IHG brand—actions that represent not only a failure of hospitality, but a serious failure of leadership, ethics, and basic human decency.

This incident does not involve a guest. It involves one of your own employees—a man who was attempting to attend the funeral of his four-year-old child.

Rather than showing compassion, support, or even minimal human understanding, Holiday Inn Express chose to deny flexibility and, even more disturbingly, suspended this employee during one of the most traumatic moments a parent can endure.

This decision is indefensible.

No organization that claims to value people, teamwork, or “True Hospitality” can justify punishing an employee for prioritizing the burial of their child. A funeral is not an absence of convenience; it is a final, irreversible moment. Suspending a grieving parent for this reason reflects a corporate culture so rigid and detached that it has lost sight of the very humanity it depends on.

What is most alarming is not just the enforcement of policy, but the absence of judgment, empathy, and moral responsibility by management. Policies are written to guide decisions—not to excuse cruelty. Any leadership team with integrity would recognize that this was a moment requiring compassion, not discipline.

IHG frequently promotes itself as an employer that values care, respect, and inclusion. This incident stands in direct contradiction to those claims. If an employee cannot rely on their employer for understanding in the face of a child’s death, then those values are nothing more than marketing language.

The emotional damage caused by this decision cannot be undone. A suspension can be lifted. A paycheck can be restored. But the added trauma inflicted on a grieving parent—by their own employer—will last a lifetime.

This review is written not out of anger alone, but out of concern that such treatment of employees is allowed to occur without accountability. Senior leadership at IHG should investigate this matter thoroughly and reflect on what this incident says about the company’s internal culture.

A workplace that punishes grief is not a workplace deserving of loyalty, trust, or respect.

I strongly caution both potential employees and guests to consider whether this is an organization that truly stands by its stated values when those values matter most.

Refused one of their workers a holiday date to bury their 4 year old daughter and made this worker work the day of her funeral. This worker later got suspended for this. Heartless company, you disgust me!

AVOID!!! Denied an employee time off to go and bury his daughter, made him work the night shift before attending the funeral. Absolutely disgusting will never use this place like many others. Also fired him for speaking up, AVOID!!