1.
Entry to the hotel.
Holiday Inn is a typical Airport hotel that sends
its car to pick you up at the airport and drive you back to the airport; the
one convenience that makes me put Holiday inn above the rest of the hotels
around it.
2.
Why are you in this hotel in this city?
For me it was a transit hotel to travel to Udaipur
for my birthday. So my only purpose, to select this hotel, was to overnight
stay. The hotel is located in Aerocity region which is quite a remote place
from most of the city but has an easy connectivity via Airport Metro. There is
also an accelerated offer going on which allowed me to gain 2500 bonus points
for this stay. Already I had an offer to receive 2000 points for bonus stay if
I stay for the weekends; but I was getting better bonus with Starwood
properties where I get 3x points’ bonus plus check-in bonus. I value starwood
points more than my IGH points. IHG doesn’t provide best price promise over
other OTAs and you would usually end up paying more than the rate you would find
on other alternatives which makes me less likely to sign up with this group.
The difference in prices is a little big but again I got it covered in bonus
points that I was getting from this stay. I won’t have chosen direct booking if
it weren’t for accelerated offer that I had signed up for. However, IHG keeps
running one of those bonus points every 3months and if you book directly, you
get promoted for frequent stay rank.
3.
Check in (Photos of lobby, Pictures of any decorative present)
The check-in was a breeze as there was no queue as
such. Being an IHG guest, I was greeted with higher prestige. The manager
himself came to greet me; which makes you feel like a big shot. I was provided
with a welcome drink token. As part of my stay, the manager included free
breakfast for which I can’t thank him enough.
Hotel was running optimally and hence I was provided with 2 single beds instead
of one king sized bed that I had ordered online. One thing lacking in this
hotel is prior calls to check on guests when they are tentatively arriving and
keeping rooms ready in advance. I reached the hotel at 11 PM and was completely
exhausted. I would have appreciated if my room could have been set in advance.
This is just a suggestion for them.
4. Journey from Reception to Room
The hotel is significantly big and it was a little bit of walk from elevator.
5.
Room
The rooms
in holiday inn are quite spacious and mattresses are extremely comfortable.
This is my 2nd Holiday Inn in India after Jaipur. I wish I had taken
a chance to review the previous Holiday Inn. I wasn’t writing these long
reviews then.
There was a small couch present inside the room. It wasn’t among the
comfortable sofas I have previously experienced.
Mattresses were soft and firm. There is a writing table on the right and luggage
rack when you enter the room. There is a study table which is large enough for comfortably
doing all sorts of works. The chair was slightly rocky but fairly comfortable
to sit on and work. As all my work happens on my laptop, I require sitting on a
steady chair or I am constantly all over the place. I need to sit at a work
table to get my focus tuned & get things done. If I am on bed, I get lazy.
6.
Pictures of Entrance, Minibar, Table,Bed, Sofa, Alarm, other electronics
7. Internet speed
I enjoyed a data transmission speed of around 2
Mbps in my room. I believe it is only for elite members that higher speeds are
reserved. It was an average speed for internet. I miss my European internet
speeds while staying in Indian hotels.
9. Toiletries
Like all IHG hotels in India, they also had
standard Biotique toiletries which I hate. I usually bring my own toiletries
when I am staying at an IHG one. I only like Biotique Orange which releases
citrusy fragrance. Normal ones are tad boring without any scent.
10. Food and Beverages
I am really sorry for not taking pictures of
breakfast. It was so crowded that it felt really awkward to take any pictures. Long
queues formed in everything and being in India, human hands were omnipresent
inside the hotel’s sphere and people cut lines everywhere. Maybe I will capture
it some other time.
11.
Service
I am overall appreciative of the service provided
in the hotel. Everything I asked for was present in few minutes. I know about a
scandal which happened at this hotel when someone’s car got stolen from the
parking area and they got an amount of negative press for not being present.
They didn’t have any courtesy to apologize to the guest. I myself was extremely
skeptical during the stay. But this night was all pleasant.
12.
Bottomline
I am really impressed by this Holiday Inn and it is
the best Delhi Airport hotel in that price range. Only hotel I find better in
this area is JW Marriott. I have not stayed in Pullman yet but all other hotels
are strictly average in this region. I have stayed in Ibis, Novotel, Lemon Tree
and Red Fox. I will definitely stay in this hotel whenever I am coming for just
a stopover. Until Aloft opens up, I would rather stick to staying at Holiday
Inn.