Disappointing Stay - Holiday Inn Sydney Waterfront My wife and I hadn't been back to Sydney in nearly 40 years, so we were excited to return last weekend to reconnect with friends and family. We booked our stay through HCI, using some of our points. Unfortunately, the experience was disappointing from the start. When we arrived, our room wasn't ready. That was the first red flag. The lobby furniture was noticeably worn and tired-looking. Once we were finally able to check in, we noticed smudged paint around the door and wall of our room. Inside, there was a gap between the hallway carpet and the tile in the suite -- signs of poor maintenance. Still, we decided to stay. That's when we discovered that the toilet didn't work. We contacted the front desk and were told the maintenance staff was unavailable -- and that we'd need to use a plunger ourselves. Seriously? No one ever showed up, and no plunger was provided. We were forced to use the lobby restrooms, which were in even worse condition: stall locks broken, sinks that didn't drain, and stained porcelain everywhere. We informed the front desk that we had lunch reservations and would be returning around 1:00 PM. We asked for either a working toilet by then or a new room. We also made it clear that if neither was addressed, we would not be staying another night. This is not the level of cleanliness or service I expect from Holiday Inn or IHG. I tried to find a way to contact Holiday Inn or IHG directly to provide this feedback, but had no luck -- so I'm sharing it here. Hope this helps others. If you do stay here, lower your expectations. read more

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LOVE this place! I wanted to live there! Very clean and beautiful. Right on the boardwalk. My dogs and I walked the boardwalk every day, a bunch of times every day. I don't recommend walking in front of the hotel with dogs on the sidewalk though. The grass isn't cut, and there is trash and who knows what thrown in the long grass in front of the hotel. Loved the bed, the pillows, the soaps and the staff. We enjoyed this hotel so much. I could see the Big Fiddle at the dock from my window! So wonderful to watch the glow on the water change over the course of a few days. Morning, afternoon, evening, night. This place is also very central to many good places to go - like the Governor's Pub across the street with live music every Saturday night. And the Cidery a little ways up the road - live music on Sunday nights. My dogs and I enjoyed our stay very much. 100%. Loved this place. Hope to go back some day. ALSO - it was interesting to stay here for a few days and see how the port changes when there is a ship in the port or not. How busy it can get, how quiet it can be, what the locals do differently when there is no ship in port. It was all very interesting in early June, 2024. read more

Wife & I spent a week here celebrating our 25th wedding anniversary. Perfect location, within walking distance to many attractions & a launchpad for day trips to Louisbourg, Glace Bay, Ingonish, the Sky Trail & other Cabot Trail sights. Very comfy room overlooking the harbor. Nice that their pub stayed open late for nightcaps. Crazy two-storied water slide in the pool (I tried it--one & done). It has a '60s-vibe to it, in terms of furniture design & color palette, but that was pretty cool. Terrific place overall, & the price was right. read more

I welcome early check ins and this Holiday Inn afforded me that and made sure I knew the wifi password and had my breakfast vouchers. While they did use the "what kind of car do you have" as an excuse to charge you $5 for parking they didn't actually charge me for that parking. Yay! Our room had a nice view but the care Rene door was directly perpendicular to another, so we heard their door slam shut all of the time! The ice machine, and there's only one, is located on the 5th floor. The very neat feature, that we stumbled upon, was the indoor pool with a water slide! Even grown adults enjoy a little thrill and we took full advantage of it! There is also boardwalk access but that too was an experience discovered and not obvious with signage. read more

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Ok, let's suppose that you have tickets for the North Sydney ferry to Newfoundland, and you arrive in North Sydney a little early. You probably think you will drive around, enjoy the town, shop for souvenirs, have a nice long dinner, and then catch the ferry. Well, you might be laboring under a misapprehension that there is something to do/see/eat in North Sydney. I sure there are parts that are lovely, but the harbor side is barren, the mall is dying, the "restaurants" have jacked up their prices, and it's just pretty hard to spend four hours there. So, you suck it up, and order a meal, which you really don't want, and then can't eat, and finally after an hour, you think you'll go park for the ferry and sleep a little. And you drive to the ferry check in and find out that your tickets are for the next night, and there are no berths available that night. And as you leave, the friendly security guard assures you there is a very nice hotel "just up there," and you follow his directions to turn here and go there and turn there and go here, and you end up on the outside of North Sydney, thinking, "OK this is where I regret my mistake." But then, you get on your phone and find that there's a Holiday Inn in Sydney, just across the bay. You call, and you get Philippa, full of courtesy, and YES, there is a handicapped accessible room available, and it's only 39km away. You plug in the address, and off you go. And as you arrive in Sydney, you realize there is another world across the bay. You arrive at the hotel, which faces the harbor, and meet Philippa, and, by the time you have checked in, you are sorry you only have one extra day to see everything she suggests. You take your things to the room, which has a large window facing the bay and the walk along it. You arrive at the pub, and Mike insists that you have a bowl of "bites and bits" to go with your drinks. Your room has a huge bathroom, lots of charging outlets, coffee maker, and room for the scooter and more. The shower has enough water pressure to power wash a car. Counter space is ample. As I write this, we are enjoying an ample restaurant buffet (not included in room price) at a window over the bay, listening to the very friendly waitstaff meet everyone's needs. I'm not only glad I'm an IHG loyalty member, I'm proud. read more

We stayed for one night on Canada Day. They price gouged so bad they should be embarrassed then charged us for parking as well. Nice clean rooms with a great view if you get on the waterfront side. read more

The front desk folks are slow and not too friendly. I called to request more towels and was told "okay... I'll see what I can do" which is an odd reply. Rooms are nice... standard HI rooms, nothing special, but I requested waterfront view and got mostly parking lot. My booking should've come with breakfast as well... but was told it didn't here. read more

When most people hear that I'm going to stay in Sydney they say "ugh, sounds boring". My thoughts are "hurrah! I could be a professor in boring!" Yes Sydney is a pretty sleepy little town, but the Holiday Inn is exactly what you'd expect from any other Holiday Inn. Plus, they have a great location, right down on the waterfront. The hotel staff have always been very nice and courteous. The rooms are clean and spacious with all the standard amenities. All of the rooms have their windows on an angle to give everyone a water view. There is a restaurant downstairs called the Salt Spray, which i haven't tried. There is also a pub called the Crown and Moose. I have popped in there just for some take out fries. They offered several times to bring them up to my room for me, but I felt like people watching for a few minutes, so I opted to sit at the bar. The fries took a lot longer than I'd expected, but they were pretty busy in there. Overall I like this hotel quite a bit. If i feel like sleeping in and staying in bed all day, it's comfy and clean with a great view, and there is a gym downstairs and an indoor pool. If i feel like getting out and walking around, it's right on the boardwalk and not too far from the 'Big Fiddle' at the port. It's also just a couple blocks from Charlotte and George Streets where the little shops are. read more

Don't book with this hotel. We booked 4 rooms, but been told only 3 left. Breakfast there is no folks or coffee served. We have to ask mutiple times and get for ourselves. I was so regret that I paid tips ahead. Please listen to my advise. I know Sydney is tied for hotels in the summer, but go with airbnb rather than this worst hotel in town. read more

This is the first time I had the pleasure of staying in the Holiday Inn on my annual trip back to Cape Breton.. I had a room closest to the elevator and the "L" shaped configuration gave it the feel of a one bedroom suite. The room had two flat screen TV's, a small microwave and a small bar fridge - extras that made the trip more enjoyable. I found the staff to be very friendly and accommodating, which is typical of Cape Bretoners. I had a panaramic view of the harbour. The restaurant and pub onsite were additional plus features. See you next year and thanks. read more

Room - phenomenal. Well appointed, excellent view, comfortable in every way. Clean, smelled great, well maintained. Restaurant - Food was 3 out of 5 due to being overpriced for the quality. It was my own fault, I should have known better. Value - I've stayed in far more luxurious for much less money in almost every other major city in Canada. Unfortunately, within Sydney, choices are limited. My biggest pet peeve however was with a staff member. I ended up having to stay for two evenings and the first time I arrived, it was later in the day, I'd just finished 13 hours of driving, and probably looked more like a boxcar hobo than a weary traveler. The staff checking me in were fantastic. Very friendly, very knowledgeable, and very down to earth. When I got up the next day the new staff were also very accommodating. I was greeted in a cordial manner and treated like anyone would want to be. My second stay was far less comfortable. I again arrived after having driven 7 hours in the blistering heat with my darling 12 year old to be greeted by, well, not greeted by at all. I was again disheveled, no doubt, but the woman behind the counter had about as much time for me as those of a pretentious nature would afford someone they felt beneath them. Little did she know. I also informed her of how and when I booked, approx. 15 minutes prior to my arrival and through Expedia to which I received a curt reply of "well come back in 15 minutes the" and dismissed. Now personally, I rather enjoy being the recipient of this particular style of human nature as I'd rather it be put on me than on some other poor soul. The maddening part for me is of course that 1. my daughter was there, and 2. she'd be without a paycheque were it not for the road weary travelers spending their money at her place of employment. As far as I'm concerned, may the bird of paradise fly up her nose. Under traveler type, there's no selection for why I was there. I picked aircrew as I spend two days flying to get there prior to the drive. read more

Incorrect billing. Slow response to resolve. Two days later still not resolved. Always a supporter but better hotels in town with significantly better service (hampton). Avoid. read more