Holiday Inn Express Durham by IHG

Hotels
•
Holiday Inn Express
8.3 (282 reviews)
2516 Guess Road , Durham , US
+1 919-313-3244

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Free
Children allowed

Facilities

WiFi available
Free WiFi
Parking
Free Parking
Non-smoking rooms
Air conditioning
Fitness center
Swimming pool
24-hour front desk
Business center
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Review Highlights

Pros:
Consistently noted cleanliness
Friendly, helpful and accommodating staff (multiple named staff praised)
Great breakfast with many options
Convenient/central location (near Duke hospital, off interstate)
Free parking and good overall value
Pleasant amenities (pool, Dove products, paper breakfast items)
Cons:
Room comfort issues: flat pillows
AC problems in some rooms (not cooling or not working properly)
Occasional room smell (vacuum/dusty odor)
Serious maintenance/safety incident: bathroom door stuck and staff unable to open quickly
Isolated unfriendly staff reports
Housekeeping timing issues and Wi‑Fi auto-connect inconvenience

Categories

Cleanliness
8.8
Multiple reviews explicitly praise cleanliness ("very clean", "clean bedrooms", "facility is clean"). One mention of a dusty vacuum cleaner smell in a couple of rooms slightly reduces the perfect score.
Service
9
Service is repeatedly highlighted as a strength (staff named and praised: Stephanie, Tracy, Kevin, Dorrell, Alex; staff went above and beyond). A small number of isolated negative service mentions (staff not friendly; difficulty resolving a bathroom-door emergency) moderate the rating slightly.
Location
8.5
Location is frequently described as convenient and central (close to Duke hospital, right off the interstate, good for visiting local venues). Occasional notes about highway noise exist but generally not an issue for most guests.
Room Quality
6.4
Several room-specific negatives: flat pillows, inconsistent AC performance (not cooling or not working), occasional odd room smell, and a severe maintenance/safety incident with a stuck bathroom door — these issues meaningfully lower the score.
Amenities
8.4
Amenities are favorably mentioned (free parking, peaceful pool area, Dove bathroom products, paper products at breakfast, ability to take fruit). No major amenity gaps reported but praise is moderate rather than exceptional.
Value for Money
8.6
Guests call the hotel good value ("great value", free breakfast and parking make stays economical). Positive service and amenities support a strong value perception.
Food and Beverage
9
Breakfast is repeatedly and enthusiastically praised ("the breakfast was great", staff handling busy breakfast well, guests appreciated carry-away fruit). No major complaints about food quality.
Overall Experience
7.7
Overall stays are generally positive with many guests saying they'd return; however, the combination of room-quality issues and a small number of negative service/maintenance incidents temper the overall score.
* This sentiment is summarized by AI based on user reviews.
Updated at: 2026-11-05 14:10

Property Description

Convenient Location
Situated just off Interstate 85, a mere 3 miles from Duke University, Holiday Inn Express Durham offers easy access to key attractions.

Comfortable Accommodations
Each room is well-equipped with free Wi-Fi, cable TV, microwave, refrigerator, and coffee maker, ensuring a cozy stay for every guest.

Great Amenities
Enjoy a complimentary continental breakfast, relax by the outdoor pool, and take advantage of the 24-hour concierge service and free shuttle to Duke University Medical Center.

Book your stay at Holiday Inn Express Durham now to experience convenience and comfort during your visit to Durham!

Important information:

Upon check-in photo identification and credit card is required. All special requests are subject to availability upon check-in. Special requests cannot be guaranteed and may incur additional charges.

Non Refundable pet fee of 75.00 USD up to 4 nights, 125.00 USD up to 5 nights or more. Limit to 2 pets.Guests are required to show a photo ID and credit card upon check-in. Please note that all Special Requests are subject to availability and additional charges may apply.
A deposit may be required at the property.

Check-in and check-out hours:
Check-out: 11:00 AM
Airport code: RDU

Location

Property Accessibility

Total Disability Score: 35.71
Public Area
  • Ramp: No
  • Entrance Door Width: 82
  • Entrance Leveled: Yes
  • Pet Friendly: No
Reception And Restaurant
  • Reception Hearing Accessible: No
  • Reception Wheelchair Accessible: No
  • Restaurant Wheelchair Accessible: No
Elevator
  • Elevator Audio Signals: No
  • Elevator Braille Numbers: Yes
  • Elevator Contrasting Buttons: No
  • Elevator Visual Signs: No
Show all accessibility features

Guest Reviews

8.3
Based on 282 reviews
Cleanliness: 8.8
Service: 9
Location: 8.5
Room Quality: 6.4
Amenities: 8.4
Value for Money: 8.6
Food and Beverage: 9
Overall Experience: 7.7
J
James • couple • us
10
2026-10-28 • via Nuitee
A
Alan • family_with_children • us
9
2026-10-21 • via Nuitee
A
Alexis • couple • us
10
Pros:

They were accommodating and gave us a room on the bottom floor since we had our dog with us.

Cons:

Nothing, it was great

2026-10-21 • via Nuitee
F
Fischer • extended_group • us
8
2026-10-12 • via Nuitee
T
Teresa • couple • us
10
2026-09-16 • via Nuitee
C
Carter • solo_traveller • us
8
Beds are comfortable except for the flat pillows. Breakfast was great!
Pros:

Close to Duke hospital. The breakfast was great!

Cons:

The pillows are flat. You have to sleep on three pillows to equal one good pillow. The room at two different locations have a smell in the room like a dusty vacuum cleaner smell. Like they are not using a fresh vacuum bag when vacuuming.

2026-09-10 • via Nuitee
M
Mekhael • couple • us
10
2026-09-04 • via Nuitee
Y
Yesenia • family_with_children • us
10
Excellent
Pros:

Very clean and good amenities

2026-09-01 • via Nuitee
J
Joveth • family_with_children • us
10
Clean comfortable stay.
Pros:

Great breakfast and clean bedrooms. The Dove products in the bathrooms were also cool. And thank you for using paper products during breakfast.

2026-08-25 • via Nuitee
V
Virgit • family_with_children • us
9
Front Desk concierge Stephanie was amazing very knowledgeable and professional
Pros:

It’s accessibility to the location I was visiting

Cons:

Nothing everything was good.

2026-08-25 • via Nuitee
A
alfred • extended_group • us
9
Very pleasant.
Pros:

Central location.

Cons:

none

2026-08-23 • via Nuitee
Z
ZLCJ • Family • Long Island, New York
10
Amazing customer service
Pros:

We are a family of 5 with 3 children ages 8-11 and frequent Hotels to visit out of state friends or just to get quick local family getaways in the NY area
IHG Hotels are always great for us. But as in anywhere you stay or visit, the staff can make all the difference
We recently came to Durham to visit friends near Raleigh and see a Bulls game along with visiting other historic Durham landmarks. The location is perfect to all we needed to do. There are reviews about complaints of highway noise. It really was not an issue for us at all.
If you are looking for a strategically placed hotel with free parking, free breakfast with many options and a very clean and peaceful pool area with a friendly staff- then this a great choice while visiting the Durham area.
We will definitely be back.

The staff went above and beyond to accommodate any requests and made our stay super convenient and enjoyable. Thank you to all the staff that helped make our stay extra memorable. Everyone is so friendly who works here. Stephanie at the front desk was above and beyond and Tracy was amazing at keeping up with the busy breakfast demand
Thank you Kevin, Dorrell, Alex, Tracy and Stephanie. I apologize if I missed anyone’s name. You all deserve a thank you for putting in the extra hospitality
It really shows you care-Thank you !,

2026-08-15 • via Tripadvisor
R
Ronnie • couple • us
8
2026-08-05 • via Nuitee
C
cynthiq • solo_traveller • us
8
2026-08-02 • via Nuitee
L
Lisa • family_with_children • us
9
Friendly, comfortable with great value!
Pros:

Left early morning and appreciated being able to take fruit in a carry away bag for breakfast!

Cons:

Wished internet connected automatically like it does as I visit other IHG properties.

2026-08-02 • via Nuitee
B
Bonnie • solo_traveller • us
10
We stayed twice on our trip to and from Delaware. We would stay again
Pros:

Clean and staff very helpful

2026-07-23 • via Nuitee
B
Bonnie • solo_traveller • us
10
We stayed while we were going to Delaware and returning from Delaware
Pros:

Very clean and the staff was very friendly and helpful

2026-07-23 • via Nuitee
D
Donna • couple • us
10
2026-07-15 • via Nuitee
S
Sean • solo_traveller • us
10
Pros:

Great location and clean

Cons:

Ac in the room doesn't get cool enough for my liking

2026-07-12 • via Nuitee
P
Paola Judith • couple • mx
7
2026-07-02 • via Nuitee