Holiday Inn Express Dwtn/Ashley River, Charleston

My wife and I went to Charleston for the first time on our 9th wedding anniversary and stayed at this hotel. We both enjoyed are stay here. We had a double bed although I requested a king through the company (festiva resorts) that reserved the room for us. The room was clean and even had flat panel TVs. I was under the impression that the breakfast bar was included until the waitress broke my heart and told me it costed $10. We only ate there once. Other than that everything was good. The staff was nice and friendly at check in and check out. It was a pleasant experience for us.

I use to work at the Best Western, and I would never stay at any of them. The quality of service that the front desk staff give is poor. Steven Smith would check people into rooms he knew wasn’t up to hotel standards. When I asked him to take a room off market, because the locks were broken. He sold it to a guess, causing various problems for me. Why would you do that to someone, and risk there saftey. Sara Dykej the other agent fiancé brought her dog to work, two hours before she got off. How professional is that. I have worked at two hotels before Best Western, and it was the first that was a horrible experience. Guess who face the back side of the parking lot get a dumpster view. Sara likes to make them aware of the bed bugs in some of the rooms. Other than that, during my time there, I started having really bad headaches, only when I was there. They were causing me nausea. I had to leave work to go the emergency room. I think the building has mold or something. I haven’t had any headaches since I have departed. Let’s not forget the two rats they found in the restaurant, the same restaurant with an A on the window. Do not stay here. Most likely you will have several problems, some maybe life threatening. I'm not mad, I'm just honested.

I just need to clarify something that many people keep posting in their reviews. Obviously many tourists have no clue when it comes to Charleston geography. This hotel is indeed in DOWNTOWN CHARLESTON. When you cross the Ashley River, you are in Downtown Charleston. You may not be in the historic district, but you are downtown! Also FYI, this property recently converted from a Howard Johnson's to a Best Western.

We stayed at the Best Western Downtown. It's kind of a misnomer... it's not downtown. It's about 2, 2 1/2 miles from downtown, further if you plan on doing anything touristy. When you factor in $15-16 per day in cab rides, you end up in the range of some of the hotels in the historic district (which probably include breakfast, too). Service was iffy, depending heavily on who was manning the desk. Gwen was wonderful! However, when we first checked in, the person at the desk was ignorant of the basics of Charleston. When we asked where the nearest bus stop was, we were informed that their was no bus. Strange... the next morning when we were walking what was promised to be ONE mile to the aquarium, we were passed by numerous bus lines, including one that stops right in front of the hotel. While the pool was nice, it needed to be opened before 10 am and past 10 pm to be of real use. Internet connection was really fast. Balconies are not worth writing home about... probably 12 inches deep and ours had empty beer cans strewn about when we checked in. At least we found a really good rate online... I would not stay here for more than a weekend, since the nickel and diming at the Best Western adds up. MAKE SURE you ask for the room safe fee back at the end! Also, we were informed that we would be assessed a $250 cleaning fee if we were found smoking anywhere on the premises... that night, naturally, we saw the employees of the hotel smoking by the pool. Make sure to ask for extra coffee if you are a coffee drinker, as the room is only stocked for 2 cups of coffee, one per person if you are a couple, and it is quite annoying to run down to the lobby for extra coffee packets before you are properly caffeinated.

This hotel needs a good overhaul. The rooms were clean but the furniture and bathroom was in worn out condition. I knew I was in for a "treat" when we were walking to our room down the hallway and noticed how worn out the carpet was. The staff was friendly and helpful with any questions about Charleston. If the onwers could just do some improvements this could be a nice place to stay. We were not impressed either with the overpriced breakfast buffet they have on site.

This hotel was so awful. i have never stayed in a Howard Jhonson before and if they are not all like this one, it's too bad, because I will never choose to stay at another Howard Johnson hotel again. i will be scared of a repeat experience. The rooms were small, dark and had a terrible view. They desribe it as riverview, but fail to mention you'd have to be on at least the 6th floor and pay EXTRA!! Which i don't think this hotel deserved the 112.00 that I spent on this room; I think it should have been 45.00, maybe 60.00, but certaintly not 100.00. The drink machines took money for an OVERPRICED drink (1.50 for a 20oz)We ended up having to leave the hotel at about 11:00pm just to get something to drink. And then they had an iron (very poor, bring your own iron/ironing board) straped to the ironing board which took up space, the showers are dirty....I could go on and on, but I won't. Stay at your own risk. i will never return, I should have took heed to the previous posts about this hotel, but tried to give the benefit of the doubt and form my own opinion.....Not Good.

The front desk is very unorganized and had our daily rates incorrect. I had to show them the confirmation print out for them to decrease the second day's rate. Rooms were not clean. There were multiple stains on the ceilings. Stayed in two rooms. Both shower faucets leaked. Ice machine on 4th floor broken. Had a roach walking on the wall of the room when we walked in on check in. They put us in a room that been reassigned to someone else, when we walked into the room, there was change on the floor, a bottle cap, a blaring tv, and the roach. The room was not cleaned prior to them assigning it to us. We were told we would not pay for the room. During the night guests were running in the halls at 4am knocking on doors. We got a call at 7am for the original guest for our room. Upon check out, the computer system had not been changed and we were presented with a bill for the both night's stay. No one could change the balance on the bill upon check out. We were told that the evening staff would have to amend the bill and to leave without signing the bill. Even after we called later that night no one was able to help us with the bill matter. Very rude front desk personnel when I called asking about the bill balance. It is now 5 days later and I have yet to hear from the hotel on the bill balance. The lobby is sparce. The ironing boards are chained to the irons with cords. The only nice thing about the place is the convenience to the historic district.

The hotel was very dirty. The patio door in our room would not latch because there was no latch, so we had to use furniture to secure it. Lack of security was evident by many who should not be in the hotel.

I stayed here for a cycling event headquartered down the street at the baseball stadium. I got a special rate associated with the event that was really not special after all. This hotel has seen better days. The place just looks a little worn. Our room had a musty smell but luckily, we didn't spend that much time there. Beds had that broken down hotel feel. Charleston is a pretty expensive place to visit. There aren't many bargains in hotels. A better idea might be stay a little further out to save some money.

although my stay in charleston was a unfortunate one because the death of a close relative.everthing else had to go right.my stay at the hotel was a pleasant one. The staff was very helpful to all my needs.although it practically rained for two days,my room was a blessing safe haven for me.they have other food services in the surrounding areas,i got the opportunity to eat in the restaurant. I had the shrimp and grits and it was the best i have ever had.the chef and his servers was very polite and extravagantly helpful in my time of bereavement. Hopefully i get to visit charleston again,and stay and eat the shrimp and grits at this hotel.i like to thank the general manager,front desk staff,housekeeping staff,chef wright i beleive his name was and his staff for all they have done.may god bless you all.donald witherspoon,rome,new york.