Holiday Inn Express coming to Buakhao

[h.harris]

Current: 3750 point per night through summer (if book 4 nights). With IHG promotion of 100% bonus on point buy, it comes out to be $18.75 or 620 baht a night. I look into a condo for May and June, but nothing can beat this $562.50 per month, including daily breakfast, daily room cleaning, excellent wifi and all the AC you want (especially for the hot months coming up, which can cost over 4000 baht a month in a condo). Crazy value !

[Luv2Phuket]

3 hours ago, h.harris said:

Current: 3750 point per night through summer (if book 4 nights). With IHG promotion of 100% bonus on point buy, it comes out to be $18.75 or 620 baht a night. I look into a condo for May and June, but nothing can beat this $562.50 per month, including daily breakfast, daily room cleaning, excellent wifi and all the AC you want (especially for the hot months coming up, which can cost over 4000 baht a month in a condo). Crazy value !

That is an ABSURD value!

IHG point redemptions in Pattaya are crazy at the moment. I booked InterContinental for 15,000 points a night (but with perks from credit cards, it works out to only 10,125 per night).

I looked at the Holiday Inn just now, and it was actually MORE than the InterContinental. That never used to be the case.

BTW, the cash rate on the HI EXpress was coming up as 807 baht (+ taxes and fees) on the nights I checked in June. Not as good as the ABSURD point redemption value, but still crazy low!

[Nick Adams]

If you look back to when this property opened you will see that Holiday Inn Express was going for 20,000 IHG points per night. The current 5,000 IHG points per night or 3,750 with the fourth night free benefit (requires IHG credit card) is a steal.

I think Holiday Inn was 30,000 to 35,000 and Intercontinental was 35,000 to 40,000 depending on weekday vs. weekend rates.

Personally, I will probably pay more for a place with a big pool. But if I was planning a long stay 30 to 60 days this would be interesting.

Note that the exterior cladding caught fire and damaged part of the hotel. Anyone know if that has been repaired already, or is the repair ongoing now?

[Garzan]

12 minutes ago, Nick Adams said:

Note that the exterior cladding caught fire and damaged part of the hotel. Anyone know if that has been repaired already, or is the repair ongoing now?

I stayed there in March 2020 and it was already repaired then.

[Luv2Phuket]

On 02/05/2022 at 02:02, Garzan said:

I stayed there in March 2020 and it was already repaired then.

What were your thoughts on HI Express, @Garzan?

If my August trip comes off, I will arrive very late on Friday night/early hours of Saturday morning.

I start a stay at the Hilton on the "second" night of my trip, but I haven't booked that first night yet. Because I will get in so late, using Hilton points or paying 6000 baht for Hilton seems a bit wasteful.

I was thinking of staying at HI Express (I'm a hotel points whore, so I want credit for my stay) that first night, pretty much just getting in and going to sleep, then effectively starting my trip the next day.

Based on other feedback, it sounds like rooms are small (not an issue, as I am just sleeping), but beds are comfortable (that IS a good selling point).

EDIT:

I went ahead and booked it for my first night using IHG points. The paid rate was around 1,100 baht, but, doing the math (valuing IHG points at .55 cents each), using points was the cheaper way to go.

No 4th night free perk since it is a short stay, but another IHG card gets me a 10% rebate on points redeemed, so it is only 4,500 IHG points. At .55 cents each, that's less than $25 USD.

Looking forward to seeing what I think of it.

Along those lines, even though I am looking at just being there one night (and not really even unpacking! 555), I still would appreciate any/all feedback on this property.

@h.harris - did you do the LT stay there referenced in your mid-March post?

[Garzan]

38 minutes ago, Luv2Phuket said:

Based on other feedback, it sounds like rooms are small (not an issue, as I am just sleeping), but beds are comfortable (that IS a good selling point).

That fits with my memory of my stay. The bed was comfortable, the room 'modern', and space was at a premium. I thought the breakfast was quite good, and the public transportation, being right on Soi Buakhao, is excellent. 

[h.harris]

11 hours ago, Luv2Phuket said:

What were your thoughts on HI Express, @Garzan?

 

@h.harris - did you do the LT stay there referenced in your mid-March post?

No I end up staying at the Holiday Inn for 2+ weeks in April and took the monthly deal at the Avani for May and June. Was upgraded to the 1 br seaview suite at Holiday Inn for those 2 weeks, so that was sweet.

[jsmithj88]

15 hours ago, Luv2Phuket said:

What were your thoughts on HI Express, @Garzan?

If my August trip comes off, I will arrive very late on Friday night/early hours of Saturday morning.

I start a stay at the Hilton on the "second" night of my trip, but I haven't booked that first night yet. Because I will get in so late, using Hilton points or paying 6000 baht for Hilton seems a bit wasteful.

I was thinking of staying at HI Express (I'm a hotel points whore, so I want credit for my stay) that first night, pretty much just getting in and going to sleep, then effectively starting my trip the next day.

Based on other feedback, it sounds like rooms are small (not an issue, as I am just sleeping), but beds are comfortable (that IS a good selling point).

EDIT:

I went ahead and booked it for my first night using IHG points. The paid rate was around 1,100 baht, but, doing the math (valuing IHG points at .55 cents each), using points was the cheaper way to go.

No 4th night free perk since it is a short stay, but another IHG card gets me a 10% rebate on points redeemed, so it is only 4,500 IHG points. At .55 cents each, that's less than $25 USD.

Looking forward to seeing what I think of it.

Along those lines, even though I am looking at just being there one night (and not really even unpacking! 555), I still would appreciate any/all feedback on this property.

@h.harris - did you do the LT stay there referenced in your mid-March post?

i stayed there during my trip
the rooms are small but the bed is fine
biggest complaint is the shower
its a circular design with the half pane missing
your floors will be constantly wet
i had to use the bathroom door to block the water

Edited June 19, 2022 by jsmithj88

[darpra]

Do we need a key card to access elevator? Or in other words can the joiners come in directly to the room without me having to come down?

Any rooms with a balcony? If not can we open the windows and turn off the AC?

[Garzan]

To the best of my memory, there's no keycard in the elevator. It's been two years+ since I've been there though. 

[pothos]

12 hours ago, darpra said:

Do we need a key card to access elevator? Or in other words can the joiners come in directly to the room without me having to come down?

Any rooms with a balcony? If not can we open the windows and turn off the AC?

I stayed there a couple of weeks ago. Key card is necessary for elevator, and windows didn't open.

Overall, I really liked the place, though I did get a crazy covid special deal at 700 baht/night including breakfast. Would stay again at that price, not sure I'd pay over 1000 just because there are other options.

[Zauberfee]

short review from my recent 4 nights stay:

- location is decent, everything you need is right around the corner, close to Action Street as well

- hotel seemed to have a decent occupancy, breakfast room was always crowded in the morning

- breakfast is decent, everything you need, toast, eggs, some warm thai dishes, sausages, fruits, yogurts, not much variety and choice, but plenty enough for a good start of the day 

- many Indians, lots of family and couples, both western and asian

- stayed on the 6th floor, quiet, but with a view onto the adjacant building

- room is rather small, but well equipped

- extremely comfortable mattress, great pillows

- staff were friendly and helpful

- no one blinks an eye if you pass past front desk to the elevators with a guest, no need to drop the girls ID

I used 20.000 ihg points for my 4 nights (though I have no better use for them), but also for around 1.000 THB per night it's very good value, given the quality of the room, especially the awesome mattress, and the included breakfast

 

 

 

 

[Andrew123]

24 minutes ago, Zauberfee said:

short review from my recent 4 nights stay:

- location is decent, everything you need is right around the corner, close to Action Street as well

- hotel seemed to have a decent occupancy, breakfast room was always crowded in the morning

- breakfast is decent, everything you need, toast, eggs, some warm thai dishes, sausages, fruits, yogurts, not much variety and choice, but plenty enough for a good start of the day 

- many Indians, lots of family and couples, both western and asian

- stayed on the 6th floor, quiet, but with a view onto the adjacant building

- room is rather small, but well equipped

- extremely comfortable mattress, great pillows

- staff were friendly and helpful

- no one blinks an eye if you pass past front desk to the elevators with a guest, no need to drop the girls ID

I used 20.000 ihg points for my 4 nights (though I have no better use for them), but also for around 1.000 THB per night it's very good value, given the quality of the room, especially the awesome mattress, and the included breakfast

 

 

 

 

 

 

I agree with this accurate review.

The Holiday Inn Express Pattaya Central is good value for money.

I usually find a room at this hotel for a low price by going to Google Maps, then clicking on the Agoda option:

https://www.google.com/maps/place/Holiday+Inn+Express+Pattaya+Central,+an+IHG+Hotel/@12.9267139,100.8818393,161m/data=!3m1!1e3!4m22!1m9!2m8!1sHotels!5m5!5m4!1s2022-07-26!2i2!4m1!1i2!6e3!3m11!1s0x3102977706404e85:0xce2fe63f53ed66b4!5m4!1s2022-07-26!2i2!4m1!1i2!8m2!3d12.926619!4d100.882387!15sCgZIb3RlbHOSAQVob3RlbA!16s%2Fg%2F11h0vyh0r8

 

 

[Luv2Phuket]

On 28/06/2022 at 08:50, darpra said:

Do we need a key card to access elevator? Or in other words can the joiners come in directly to the room without me having to come down?

Any rooms with a balcony? If not can we open the windows and turn off the AC?

I haven't stayed there, but it is my understanding that none of the rooms have a balcony

[applc]

Planning to stay here in my next trip but the biggest deal breaker would be room size. Last time I stayed in Acqua hotel and the room was way too small. I assume the room size here is similar to Acqua?

 

So sad that this hotel only have standard rooms.. Does anyone have recommnadations for other hotels with comparable room quality + location, and have larger rooms?

[Dingo Brax]

I stayed here a week on my last trip, and the room size was a bit cramped. The bathroom design is awful, meaning water will spill over the entire bathroom floor each time you shower. Ask for extra towels. There is only one room type, so no status upgrades available. Rooms were clean and housekeeping willingly provided towels and water bottles several times per day upon request.

No problems connecting a streaming box to the tv, there is also a wired internet connection available. The breakfast was lacklustre, with a minimal selection. No proper bacon, just boiled ham. No issues bringing girls, although the elevator require keycard to operate when entering the property.

The property is great for racking up more qualifying nights as the nightly rate is usually just above the $30/night threshold for IHG's promotions.

Edited August 31, 2022 by Dingo Brax

[CarlosDanger]

Considering this hotel for an upcoming stay. At 5,000 points/night with every 4th night free, it's so unbelievably cheap, I'm willing to take a gamble on it, even with the known issues (shower, small room, etc).

Can anyone comment on the area? It looks to be a bit far from Soi 6 and WS, but obviously VERY close to LK Metro, Tree Town, etc.

Would this be a good location for a newbie? Or is the Hilton better?

[Luv2Phuket]

5 hours ago, CarlosDanger said:

Considering this hotel for an upcoming stay. At 5,000 points/night with every 4th night free, it's so unbelievably cheap, I'm willing to take a gamble on it, even with the known issues (shower, small room, etc).

Can anyone comment on the area? It looks to be a bit far from Soi 6 and WS, but obviously VERY close to LK Metro, Tree Town, etc.

Would this be a good location for a newbie? Or is the Hilton better?

You're talking apples to oranges on comparing this to the Hilton.

IMHO, Hilton location is almost impossible to beat - connected to Central Festival, easy access to Second Road and Beach Road, not too far a walk to Tree Town, etc.

BUT the Hilton is in an entirely different strata price-wise than the HI Express.

The lure of the absurdly low # of points had me booking it for my first night on a late night arrival, but I ended up cancelling that trip.

Factoring IHG points at .55 cents each and 4th night free, that rate equates to only $20.625 USD/night over a 4 night stay (15,000 IHG points X .0055 = $82.50, divided by 4 nights = $20.625 per night). Plus, free breakfast - I assume it has the cinnamon rolls that other HI EXpress properties have - those damn things are addictive!

While I was MORE than willing to check it out for a night, the small room size and shower issues are killers for me to any stay longer than a night or two. Showers that spill into bathroom floors are a pet peeve of mine (and ironically, a problem I have experienced a number of times at the Hilton until I figured out a "work around").

[jsmithj88]

5 hours ago, CarlosDanger said:

Considering this hotel for an upcoming stay. At 5,000 points/night with every 4th night free, it's so unbelievably cheap, I'm willing to take a gamble on it, even with the known issues (shower, small room, etc).

Can anyone comment on the area? It looks to be a bit far from Soi 6 and WS, but obviously VERY close to LK Metro, Tree Town, etc.

Would this be a good location for a newbie? Or is the Hilton better?

i think if u did Hilton first, almost every other hotel is down hill
with that being said, i have stayed at HIE almost every time since they have opened
they are still very much a new hotel and i usually use points for my stay
the value is too great esp with the 4th night free
another cheap option with great location would be Acqua hotel
but their rooms are generally smaller and starting to age 


 

[CarlosDanger]

30 minutes ago, Luv2Phuket said:

You're talking apples to oranges on comparing this to the Hilton.

Oh, absolutely. I figured the Hilton was probably the top hotel in Pattaya. I mostly just wanted to get an idea about the locations. I know the Holiday Inn Express is a lot closer to LK Metro, but if the Hilton isn't THAT much further away, plus is also closer to Soi 6, baht buses, etc., then the Holiday Inn Express just doesn't have much going for it besides being stupid cheap and brand new.

I have something like 800k IHG points, and a 10 day stay at that property would run me under 50k points. I've seriously considered booking a room at the Hilton and a room at the Holiday Inn Express for the entire length of my trip in case I want to do a ST in LK Metro as opposed to walking all the way back to the Hilton. The convenience is tempting...

[Luv2Phuket]

3 minutes ago, CarlosDanger said:

Oh, absolutely. I figured the Hilton was probably the top hotel in Pattaya. I mostly just wanted to get an idea about the locations. I know the Holiday Inn Express is a lot closer to LK Metro, but if the Hilton isn't THAT much further away, plus is also closer to Soi 6, baht buses, etc., then the Holiday Inn Express just doesn't have much going for it besides being stupid cheap and brand new.

I have something like 800k IHG points, and a 10 day stay at that property would run me under 50k points. I've seriously considered booking a room at the Hilton and a room at the Holiday Inn Express for the entire length of my trip in case I want to do a ST in LK Metro as opposed to walking all the way back to the Hilton. The convenience is tempting...

In the past that may have made sense, but with the ease and low prices of Bolt and Grab, it's just too easy to get one of them to take you back (I won't ride moto-taxis, so that's why I left that option out)

If you're looking to burn IHG points, I've always thought the Holiday Inn is pretty nice and (I assume) has bigger rooms, but the location isn't great (although it is much better now that Terminal 21 is a short walk away). At 25,000 IHG points, no way, but at around 15,000 (if you can get it for that) it might not be a bad deal.

Holiday Inn location would require greater use of Bolt/Grab.

[CarlosDanger]

10 minutes ago, Luv2Phuket said:

In the past that may have made sense, but with the ease and low prices of Bolt and Grab, it's just too easy to get one of them to take you back (I won't ride moto-taxis, so that's why I left that option out)

Yeah if they're as easy to use as Uber in the U.S. is, then location matters a lot less and it really comes down to the quality of the hotel for me. I know some people like the baht bus, but I'll probably only ever use Bolt and Grab if they're available. And, like you, I will never take a moto-taxi.

It's tough to know what's best without ever having been there, but I did notice that the Holiday Inn was a bit out there. Not a huge deal with Bolt/Grab, but if it's 3-5x as much as the Holiday Inn Express, it's not worth it to me. I mostly considered the Holiday Inn Express because I've never seen rates that low for such a new hotel. It's not exactly free, but...that's basically free to me.

Maybe I'll stick with the Hilton then and see how it goes for a day or two. If I end up liking it, I'll forget about getting any other rooms.

[Luv2Phuket]

8 minutes ago, CarlosDanger said:

Yeah if they're as easy to use as Uber in the U.S. is, then location matters a lot less and it really comes down to the quality of the hotel for me. I know some people like the baht bus, but I'll probably only ever use Bolt and Grab if they're available. And, like you, I will never take a moto-taxi.

It's tough to know what's best without ever having been there, but I did notice that the Holiday Inn was a bit out there. Not a huge deal with Bolt/Grab, but if it's 3-5x as much as the Holiday Inn Express, it's not worth it to me. I mostly considered the Holiday Inn Express because I've never seen rates that low for such a new hotel. It's not exactly free, but...that's basically free to me.

Maybe I'll stick with the Hilton then and see how it goes for a day or two. If I end up liking it, I'll forget about getting any other rooms.

Frankly, Bolt and Grab seemed as easy, if not easier than Uber to me, not to mention they are absurdly cheap.

I don't mind the baht bus if I am just going somewhere on Second Road/Beach Road, like going to Walking Street or Soi 6. Again, absurdly cheap (down to about 27 cents at current exchange rates) and easy.

I booked a bunch of nights at the InterContinental for 15,000 IHG points a night (going rate used to be 35,000 points). Great property, but it is way the fuck out, and I wouldn't recommend it to anyone who has not been to Pattaya a bunch of times.

[h.harris]

16 hours ago, CarlosDanger said:

Yeah if they're as easy to use as Uber in the U.S. is, then location matters a lot less and it really comes down to the quality of the hotel for me. I know some people like the baht bus, but I'll probably only ever use Bolt and Grab if they're available. And, like you, I will never take a moto-taxi.

It's tough to know what's best without ever having been there, but I did notice that the Holiday Inn was a bit out there. Not a huge deal with Bolt/Grab, but if it's 3-5x as much as the Holiday Inn Express, it's not worth it to me. I mostly considered the Holiday Inn Express because I've never seen rates that low for such a new hotel. It's not exactly free, but...that's basically free to me.

Maybe I'll stick with the Hilton then and see how it goes for a day or two. If I end up liking it, I'll forget about getting any other rooms.

I just finished a 3 week stay at HI Express, and previously stayed at HI Pattaya for many nights. And frankly, it's not fair to compare them as they are 2 different class of hotel. It's kind of funny, since you want to stay at the Hilton but think that the HI on Beach Rd. is not worth it. Currently HI runs about 10k a night, and if you have status with IHG ( and with 800k points, I assume that you do), you will get upgrade to a 1 BR seaview suite at HI which goes for appr. $200 a night. I bought IHG point at $.50 / point, so this is paying $50 for a $200 per night room, can't beat this value. Location wise, walking distance to T21 and Soi 6, and as the hotel is between Beach Rd. and 2nd. Rd, it is very convenient with baht bus going either way. 

On a side note, currently staying at Crowne Plaza in Bangkok and Bangkok is kicking Pattaya ass in quality of the girls !!! In Pattaya, I can only find girls to bf at PinUp and Palace, and after a while, can't anymore with so many familiar faces. Here in Bangkok, have bf girls from Patpong, Nana and lastly, Soi Cowboy. And girls in Bkk are really service oriented too. Love it here in Bkk !

Edited October 5, 2022 by h.harris

[CarlosDanger]

3 hours ago, h.harris said:

It's kind of funny, since you want to stay at the Hilton but think that the HI on Beach Rd. is not worth it.

Oh the Holiday Inn is definitely not a bad price, I just think it's a little far out there for me for a first time visit. And obviously a nicer hotel than the Express since it has suites and nice restaurants.

I was really trying to find something that's either right in the middle of the action like the Holiday Inn Express is with LK Metro, or kind of close to everything like the Hilton is. And obviously there are upsides to both - the Express is new and cheap, the Hilton is very nice. Downsides to both as well, with the Hilton being crazy expensive and the Express having small rooms and crappy showers.

Edited October 5, 2022 by CarlosDanger