Coeur d’Alene Holiday Inn Express Review

We’ve been vacationing to Coeur d’Alene, Idaho each summer for the past six or so years. It’s really a great vacation city for families, especially Seattle families. It’s only a 4.5 hour drive from Seattle, and includes a lake and the largest theme park in the Northwest! Coeur d’Alene is also a great vacation city for Alberta, Canada families. The city has a great selection of accommodations, including the Holiday Inn Express Coeur d’Alene. We love staying there, it’s kind of a tradition now, and I wanted to share about our recent visit.

The hotel is right off Interstate 90 and about 5-10 minutes away from the City Park & Beach on Lake Coeur d’Alene. It’s also only about a 30 minute drive from Silverwood Theme Park, the largest theme park in the northwest! Look for my upcoming post about our amazing family time spent at Silverwood Theme Park.

The employees at the front desk are very friendly and helpful (they don’t even bite!). They always welcomed me with a smile and were helpful in answering any questions we had about the area or hotel. Since we’re IHG Rewards members, we received a complimentary bottle of water at check-in. We were even given an upgrade to a King Suite instead of the 2 queen bed standard room we had booked. I booked the Entertainment Card rate for a discount on the room, and was asked to show the card at check-in. You might spot the hotel mascot, Dodger the Dog, at the front desk too. He’s a beautiful Weimaraner who really has the run of the place.

The lobby of the Holiday Inn Express Coeur d’Alene is very beautiful and inviting. We spent many mornings and evenings sitting with our extended family on the comfy couches. There are board games and a great chess/checkers table. Our second day was supposed to be a beach day, but rain made us change our plans. The kids really enjoyed playing the board games and checkers as we formulated our new plan. Each evening the hotel put out fresh baked cookies, yum! The kids even enjoyed getting a slushy lemonade from the front desk each day.

One of my only disappointments with this hotel is the pool. It is quite small and not decorated in a way that matches the rest of the hotel. If I had a voice to the corporate planners, I would absolutely recommend a pool overhaul with a nice northwest/wood theme to match the rest of the hotel. However, the water was clean, and pool towels are always available (something I always notice and think matters!).

Next up is a look at our King Suite Room. The suite rooms include a living area that is separated from the bedroom area by an open wall. This does not allow privacy in the bedroom, however gives your family much more space to spread out all those suitcases and changing areas! The living area has a small sofabed, TV, desk, and a wet-bar (mini fridge, microwave, sink). This became our girls’ area while we used the bedroom primarily. The desk does come in handy for computer work, which my husband appreciated. The room was clean and very spacious. I was really thankful for the extra space the suite afforded us and highly recommend a traveling family splurge for the suite over the standard room.

One last unique and special thing about this hotel has to do with the hotel dog, Dodger. If your family is missing your furry pal who was left at home, you can ask to “borrow/babysit” Dodger for the night in your room. Some families really do miss their four-legged friend while on vacation, and here you have the opportunity to feel a little more at home. You can also ask to take Dodger for walks if you’re not up for the whole nighttime thing. Just beware, I hear he’s a bit of a bed hogger!

I hope you’ve enjoyed a little look at our time at the Coeur d’Alene Holiday Inn Express. Are there any hotels your family regularly visits or perhaps unique features of a specific hotel you’ve experienced? Please share!

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