Holiday Inn Express & Suites Bartow

Nice holiday inn hotel.
Typical for a Holiday Inn and this class of hotel.
Lobby area clean and renovated.
My room was typical of this chain although it showed signs of wear and age.
Fairly clean room but typical stains on carpet, grime in bathroom on floors in corners, shower head had scale build up.
Lots of wall patch and paint repairs noticeable as paint colors for patches in room and bathroom not a great match.
Could use a little updating and upgrade in rooms.

We stayed here for a week in early June and I would definitely stay here again. Everything is clean, modern and well appointed. Our room was spacious and clean, with a decent bar fridge, microwave, big TV with cable and — most importantly during a Florida summer — great air conditioning that you have total control over. Our bathroom was large, with a big mirror, and the shower had strong water pressure. They provided plenty of towels and bathrobes. The Wi-​Fi was excellent. The hotel serves a complimentary buffet breakfast every day opposite the lobby with generous amounts of scrambled eggs, toast, coffee, yogurt, juice etc. If you fill up you won’t need to eat until dinner. The pool is lovely and we were there during a quiet period so we had the place mostly to ourselves. The location is also ideal, with lots of diners and restaurants within walking distance, including a Checkers right out the front of the hotel. The staff were always polite, but not overbearing. If you’re prepared to pay a bit more then this is your best option while staying in Bartow.

This place is clean, pretty close to everything and the king bed is SUPER COMFY!!! I was having issues with connecting to the wifi on my phone but I called the tech number in the guest book and they helped me out. Only thing is it’s tucked away so if ur driving south u can’t really see it. There are two roads on both sides of steak and shake that can get u in there!

Although we, admittedly checked in late, our room on the second floor had not been cleaned. We arrived to find wet washcloths and bathmat on bathroom floor. Elevator non-​functioning. Oh joy! Carrying luggage up stairs, pricing isn’t a value for what you are not getting. Shame. The place is new, very nicely appointed, but seems to be lacking decent management or front desk staff. That’s why I gave it 2 stars. Won’t be back.

There is not much about Bartow that screams ‘great stay’ EXCEPT this hotel. I was on a business trip and while I’m not from the area at all, the Holiday Inn Express was damn right impressive considering Bartow is probably walking distance to cows. There really is not much to choose from.
My room was a great home away from home: the desk with the leather chair, the comfy bed, the lap desk to write on (my favorite!) and even the complimentary cookies at the front desk made me fit right in. The pool was decent, although small and the bathrooms were not outside (don’t forget your room key to re-​enter). The staff was super sweet. The complimentary breakfast was not so great but how can anyone really gripe over free?! I wouldn’t touch the eggs again but all other options were alright.
FYI:
Long mirror, iron with board, hair dryer, shampoo/​conditioner with soaps, tv view for both beds, coffee maker and microwave with fridge.
Update: 2.4.13
There is a few food options nearby– Checkers, Cvs has alcohol and munchies, Fred’s Southern Kitchen, Ruby Tuesday and Dominos.