Holiday Inn Kansas City (MO) Airport

What is your Priority Club status? Diamond Ambassador

Were you (or for multi-stayers are you generally) happy with the hotel/stay? Yes

Which room did you book and which upgrade did you receive? King Standard and received the same

How are the rooms? Unremarkable but no complaints. There are ample power ports throughout the room. Standard mini-fridge, microwave, and K-Cup machine. Digital climate controls on wall. Decent-sized walk-in shower with good water pressure and large shower head.

How is the exec. lounge? n/a

What was good and what was bad? We chose the hotel for one night due to a late (2230) scheduled flight into MCI and didn't want to chance poor rental car selection or arriving after closing. I used my Chase credit card cert for the stay. The airport shuttle has resumed 24/7 availability and for arriving passengers, it is available on call. I rang the driver once we deplaned and it took him about 10-15 min to arrive. The check in desk was unstaffed when we arrived and had to wait about five minutes until someone showed up. I did online check-in via the mobile app so my key was ready so it was quick, once the clerk showed up. I asked for two bottled waters and was given them for free; my amenity points posted automatically.

The shuttle back to the airport is every 30 min on the hour and half hour; guests are encouraged to reserve a seat at the front desk in advance. A nice perk is that they will not only drop off at the terminals but also the consolidated rental car center; this made picking up my car very easy. Parking for hotel guests is free; there is a very large parking lot but they also let locals do park and fly for $5 a day so spaces can be hard to find.

Value for $ or Priority Club Points? Would you return? Given the proximity to the airport and shuttle service to the rental car center, I felt this was a really good use of my free night cert and will certainly consider staying again for evening arrivals into MCI. Diamond breakfast amenity option starts on June 1, 2022.

Note - I did take a look at the HIX; it's an exit further down the interstate from the HI. It looked ok but it was right next to the freeway so if staying there, I would certainly insist on a room not facing the freeway.