Holiday Inn Express & Suites Bakersfield Central

Not in the most appealing area (next to the highway, Les Schwab Tire across the street, etc) but the interior of the building is fantastic. Starting with their wrap around staircase with the big chandelier in the middle. Rooms were also very roomy and clean. My favorite part of this place was the built in heater and AC. Unlike most hotel rooms with the wall units, this was super quiet so I could sleep at night! I hate being woken up everytime the heater kicks in.
Staff is super laid back. They were friendly and more than happy to help with suggestions for dinner in the area.
This will probably be my ‘go to’ hotel in Bakersfield.

This is an okay place to stay, but not really worth the expense. It’s a desolate location on a sparsely populated industrial street, convenient only to the Buck Owen’s Crystal Palace. If you are a Buck fan — this could be the perfect place for you. For us, it wasn’t particularly close to anything interesting. Zingo’s, next door, could be worth exploring. I do like funky old diners, but we stayed at the HIE for the promised hot breakfast — rationalizing that we would save money by not paying for expensive breakfasts elsewhere. The breakfast did include hot turkey sausage that was tasty, and unsatisfying eggs — both scrambles and cheese omelets. There was a waffle machine and the standard continental breakfast fare. The website boasts Chobani yogurt, but they served sub-​par Yoplait. An instant pancake maker was off to the side, presumably broken.
The PROS — did save us money on breakfast. The lobby has a grand duo staircase. The rooms are good sized and the beds are large and comfy. There were many pillows of differing sizes to pick out your favorite comfort level. The room was reasonably clean — and the carpet was pretty — and seemed very clean. (That’s very important to me!) We requested a quiet room — and it was, indeed, with the exception of typical hotel noises. The people at the front desk were nice — and they provided bottled waters upon check-​in. There is a frig and microwave, which is always convenient.
CONS — The location, though convenient to 99, wasn’t in the best part of town — and nothing interesting within walking distance (except Buck Owen Palace). There IS a tacky strip-​joint a few doors down, though it didn’t effect our stay. Towels were skimpy, too small and roughened by age. (Hotel towels should be luxurious not utilitarian.) The treadmills weren’t working and the pool was out of order. That’s frustrating!
I would stay here again IF I found a great deal — and the amenities were actually available and working. As it was, I felt that we paid WAY TOO MUCH for what we got, which was just an average hotel, a bit run down. It did not particularly make me a fan of Holiday Inn Express.

I am giving them two stars because the rooms are OK. I am a spire member of all of the IHG program and I was disappointed when I first came in there was nobody at the front desk. When someone finally came they didn’t offer 500 extra points or a goodie bag for being a member. Also the water in the gym just have water they just keep refilling the 5 gallon jug thing with tap water because it sure as hell was not spring water or filtered. Overall it’s one of my least favorite experiences at the holiday inn and will make sure I never stay at this location again.

So. not a bad hotel. It looks nice from the outside despite being within spitting distance of a strip club (there was a déjà vu truck in the hotel’s lot). However, the room itself wasn’t bad. It was HUGE (probably 50% bigger than I’ve usually been in within Bakersfield) and clean. The bed was firm with soft sheets. The bathroom was also big and included Bath and Body Works toiletries.
Front desk was friendly and quickly checked me in. They also offered me a water as I was leaving the fitness center.
The breakfast was standard: cinnamon rolls, juice, sausage patties, eggs from a carton, yogurt, cereal, etc.
The fitness center has several tvs, two ellipticals, and two bicycle machines (one upright, one recline). I don’t remember free weights (aside from the 2 and 4 pounders), but there was one multi-​exercise machine and two scales.
Location is down the street from a Denny’s and Arco. Across the freeway is Costco.
I didn’t use the wi-​fi.
But, I’m not sure I would book again. Mainly, because they didn’t let me look into the back of the tv so I could hook up a video display adapter (they only had access to old school vga ports, no hdmi). That means I couldn’t connect my laptop to the tv and ended up watching a lot of HGTV.
Overall, this is more of a 3.5. A little better than average.

If I could give zero stars, I would. I never ever leave reviews, but I couldn’t resist this time. When people treat others badly in the service industry, others need to be aware so they can avoid the same experience. The manager/​owner is a major prick and he does not treat his staff well either. My mom has a service dog and he refused our stay. So if you have a service dog or are sympathetic to those who may need one, DO NOT stay here. This guy has no concept of sensitivity or empathy. Luckily, we found a pet friendly hotel up the street (La Quinta).

Booked the room online directly from their website: $ 76 but we got AAA discount for $ 72. This is the best $ 72 hotel we have ever stayed in. The staff was excellent (took us literally 1 minute to check in), room spacious, (TV worked great!), used the spa (in excellent shape), nice little included breakfast, free wifi. Head and shoulders above the other inexpensive places we’ve stayed recently. Freeway is behind hotel, but our room was in the front. We heard nothing.

The Hotel is nice and staff pleasant the problem is that the hotel is right next to the freeway and it is very loud. Even with the fan and a/​c on it does not drown out the roar of the cars driving on the freeway. It literally is right behind you in your back yard. Very unfortunate because other than that it is a 4 – 5 star hotel. If you want a good nights sleep and quiet hotel this is not it, go somewhere else.

We came down for the weekend. My sister in law chose this place. At first I was a little skeptical. I arrived and was met with the General Manager Kal Patel. What a greeting we got. He was very nice. We asked about the spa and he told us no problem even when it was almost closing time for the spa. We enjoyed the spa very clean not too hot. We left the spa and he saw us again and greeted us again. He insisted we come and join him for some Pizza! We said no at first, but he kept insisting! We went to our room saying“wow”! Our room was amazing, big, and the bed was very comfortable. The room had two fans, good AC, a sink and refrigerator. If I ever come back here again, I AM STAYING HERE !!!

«Overdue for renovation or demolition»
Hotel has older rooms equiped with TVs from the last century. Not recommended you stay here unless you are desperate. Recommend you plan ahead and stay somewhere else. Pro: near 99 freeway, adequate parking, toilet flushes. Con: older TV with controls disabled and poor quality picture, odd and outdated furniture badly needing replacement, cabinets chipped and greasy, overpriced. My experience with Holiday Inn Express chain at many other locations has been very positive until this hotel and stay. I recommend they demolish this hotel, write it off as a total loss. Highly strongly suggest you go elsewhere.

FELT UNSAFE
Not far from a strip club, woman who appeared to be a prostitute walking around (and on good terms with front desk), and we were offered the option of paying cash with no tax.
Apparently the brand name doesn’t guarantee much.

Really nice rooms and staff. The manager/​owner needs to work on his customer service skills. They advertise that they offer a hot breakfast but you’re better off eating at McDonald’s. This hotel will be great when it gets new management. Hope Holiday Inn express corporate sees this.

Over charged us. 180 dollars for a room. Not even in a nice neighborhood. Don’t leave belongings in your car!

This Place is a Gem in the ruff if you want a nice place to stay that is very clean and reasonable priced this is your place front desk clerk was very nice gave us free water when we arrived almost at midnight !

Never even got into one of the rooms, stepped in just to see how much it was for a night, the front desk clerk was on a personal phone call, and appeared to be Maybe slightly drunk? Anyways I didn’t really mind I can wait. Well finally he put the person on hold, I asked him how much it was, didn’t even look and gave me a half answer «around $ 150» well if I’m gonna pay that much for a room, I kinda wanna see it first, so I asked if I could see a room, he then gave me a gross look and said «your gonna have to wait»
Rude.

I recently stayed at this holiday inn express. Just like to other reviews, this establishment is well kept and customer service was excellent. I gave it 4 out of 5 because it was located in an industrial part of the city.

The hotel is amazing with the duel staircases. Absolutely fantastic staff. They treat you like family and provide great service if you plan on staying in Bakersfield, you have to stop by and stay with Kal Patel. Now my favorite hotel.

When you walk into this hotel you totally forget you’re off the 99 in Bakersfield… it feels more like the Titanic, as you’re greeted by two massive, wrapping staircases and an extremely friendly staff. These folks like to treat their guests like family — drinks are left out for the taking, and lunch is provided if you’re in the right place at the right time. In fact, on my last day there, Ken shared brought in a massive crock pot of homemade Indian food, which he shared with staff and guests. With respect to lodging, the rooms are clean, well-​furnished, and spacious. Free wi-​fi with a stable connection. Couldn’t ask for a better experience!

My boyfriend is on location in Bakersfield and is being put up at the Holiday Inn Express, so when I go to visit him, this is also where I stay! So far everything seems very nice and clean. The bed is super comfortable, I want to live in it. I haven’t tried out the pool or hot tub yet, but I definitely plan on it.
Since my boyfriend is staying there for a month or so, we’re leaving the «do not disturb» sign on the door to make it feel a little more like home and the staff has been very respectful of that which doesn’t always happen.
The breakfast is a bit lackluster, but hey, it’s complimentary. Also, the TV picture kind of stinks, but they do have a lot of channels!

THIS IS MY NEW FAVORITE PLACE TO STAY IN BAKERSFIELD!
I selected this hotel by default, due to Hilton’s dishonesty about their «best rate guarantee» I found a better rate on the Travelocity website for the Bakersfield Hilton Garden Inn. When Hilton refused to beat it (as their corporate reservations policy states), I cancelled it and came here! I am so glad I made the change! Not only is this hotel cheaper, but breakfast is included and the rooms are equal if not superior to theirs.

As far as price goes this hotel is on the high side in the Bakersfield area. But I do a lot of overnight business trips to Bakersfield and I’ve stayed in all the other places in the area and I can say that this place is one of the better ones. The rooms are large and clean. Although the freeway sits just outside the windows, the rooms are actually quite, even in the afternoon. I would definitely come back again.