Holiday Inn Express Aberdeen Airport

I must start by saying the check-in staff at Holiday Inn Aberdeen Airport are excellent — friendly, professional, and welcoming. The hotel itself is clean and well presented. Unfortunately, the restaurant experience was an absolute disaster. I ordered a steak and clearly asked for it to be medium rare — in fact, I said, “the rarer the better.” What arrived was a dry, triangular lump of meat that looked oven-finished. While the very centre was pink, the outside was completely overcooked and well done, leaving it dry and bland. I told the waitress it wasn’t right, and the steak was taken away. The manager then came over and told me it was “at the chef’s discretion” and that I should have asked for it rare. I decided not to escalate further, took the plate back, and said “just leave it.” At that point, she told me she “didn’t like my tone.” She then asked if I want it redone ( no I just like complaining for fun) but her attitude was rubbish. I attempted to eat the juicier centre on the lump of dry meat, but ultimately left the majority uneaten. It was, without exaggeration, the worst steak I have ever been served. As a former manager within Holiday Inn Express, I am genuinely shocked at how this was handled. There was no ownership, no genuine apology — just defensiveness and attitude. We cancelled dessert after that — I wasn’t about to risk further disappointment. The response from the waiting staff? A dismissive “cool.” That single word summed up the entire service experience. To add insult to injury, when I was leaving, I was presented with a bill that was not itemized — only a total and told to sign. Along with a sarcastic thank you from them. At this point I just refused to speak anymore as I did not trust my mouth. This careless handling of the check further highlighted the lack of professionalism throughout the entire experience. It’s incredibly disappointing when a simple issue could have been resolved with professionalism and a genuine apology, yet instead turned into an argument. Mistakes happen in hospitality — it’s how they’re handled that defines the standard of a hotel. Unfortunately, this was handled poorly from start to finish. Such a shame, as the hotel itself and the front desk team set a completely different tone. Sadly, the restaurant experience and the attitude we encountered overshadowed what could have been a very pleasant stay.

5 months ago · via Google

Rooms are clean but basic. Offer a small TV, simple tea and coffee facilities. Room has a desk and a small corner chair. Bathroom is decent with a large shower. Reception staff are very helpful and areas are light modern and clean. Breakfast has a decent choice of hot and cold. Great location for Aberdeen airport and surrounding areas. Easy access from the bypass. Parking was included with my stay and plenty of spaces were available.

6 months ago · via Google

Fantastic reception team,so helpful,my room was spotless with a great view of the airport, highly recommend hotel,even my problem with my IHG membership issue was sorted without issue

a month ago · via Google

Cold rooms. Use this hotel due to its location and being part of IHG. My main complaint is the heating. I have had problems with it on previous stays. When I try to turn up the heating it seems to be quickly overridden by a central control system. On a previous stay the receptionist did say that it can be controlled remotely from reception. When I complained again it didn’t go well so didn’t bother complaining on this visit, hence the review. Other than all that it’s a nice enough hotel and the young woman at my check in gave a lovely and professional welcome.

6 months ago · via Google