To everyone who has tuned into this post:

Best wishes for 2023!
As regulars on the IHG-forum know, my trusty old ipad pro had died and even Steve Jobs ' spirit couldn't reanimate it anymore.
Hence i lost a very extensive review of the Holiday Inn Express Rotterdam Central Station of NOV 2022.
However the fates brought the hotel back on my travel path and here is my second attempt of informing the community about its current state at JAN 2023

First some background information
Hotel website: https://www.ihg.com/holidayinnexpres...cs/hoteldetail
It is the only IHG option in Rotterdam available now,
Yet 2025 will see the arrival of IHG sister hotel Kimpton Rotterdam
Kimpton Rotterdam [Master Thread]


Location
is excellent,
* walking distance to my inlaws
- 7 minutes walk to Rotterdam Centraal railway station with direct links to Amsterdam, Schiphol airport, Eurostar to London, Thalys to Paris, IC Direct to Antwerp & Bruxelles, https://www.ns.nl/en
- 5 minutes walk to a medium size Albert Heijn grocery store on Coolsingel https://www.ah.nl/winkel/albert-heij...oolsingel/1870
- 10 minutes walk to Chinatown (west kruiskade)
- 7 minutes to the Bijenkorf department store & "Koopgoot" shopping street https://www.debijenkorf.nl/rotterdam
- 10 minutes walk to Meent / Botersloot / Pannekoekstraat shopping/restaurant street / Rotterdam Blaak market (TUE/SAT only) / cube houses / Markthal / oude haven cafés
- 15 minutes walk to Witte de With entertainment district with its bars & clubs https://weekendsinrotterdam.com/nl/w...aat-rotterdam/
* infront of the hotel is bus/tram stop "Weena" serving all districts of Rotterdam Rijnmond metropolitain area + suburbia https://www.ret.nl
* direct bus to Rotterdam airport Zestienhoven RTM departs from Rotterdam Centraal railwaystation
* direct metro to Hoek van Holland Haven for ferries to Harwich (UK) https://www.stenaline.co.uk/ferries-to-holland departs from "Beurs" metro stop (10 min walk)




This HIX is actually a repurposed office building, part of the Weena huis complex.
Officially opened on 24 April 2023, it has a total of 214 rooms
Most of the rooms come in twin (lits jumeaux) or a 2 person bed (queen) configuration
It occupies the lower 6 floors, the upper floors and the rest of the building stands empty.




The hotel has rooms for sale under the categories:
Weena view: facing the street "Weena" , those look to the south / east and towards the main road and Hofplein fountain / traffic circle
Delftsestraat view : facing Delftsestraat, these look to the north / west and towards fairly grim office buildings and a minor road
The soundproofing is excellent, yet for those wishing total silence if they are light sleepers, i would recommend choosing a room with Delftsestraat view

As the HIX is a 3 star hotel, please be advised that the rooms do not contain a safe / mini fridge

The one exception though is the roomtype " room with 2 person bed Kitchenette Weena view"
which does have a fridge and even a microwave,
this room category is the largest of all hotel rooms,
unfortunately there are only 2 of these rooms in the entire hotel


Parking

As the hotel is part of the Weena huis office complex,
which at the moment is actually empty without tenants,
the HIX can offer space (90x) in their own carpark directly indoors connected to the hotel.

No need to reserve in advance if travelling outside of the holiday season as one can just buzz for entrance but in the busy periods it is appreciated if one mails reservations in advance.
The hotel offers stay + park rates (handy for those travelling by car with luggage)
Or just a daily rate à €30 with in/out priviliges for registered guests
Walk in are welcomed too but must reserve in advance online via https://www.mobypark.com/nl/parkeerp...am-netherlands
Just a word of warning, if one does take chances to park outside, traffic wardens roaming in scan cars can be ruthless concerning parking fines
https://www.rotterdam.nl/parkeren


Entry to the carpark can be found for navigation at Delfttsestraat 26 Rotterdam

From Weena,
turn right into Poortstraat,
You will spot this......


Something to see here folks:
https://www.bkor.nl/beelden/rode-bmw/
https://indebuurt.nl/rotterdam/genie...t-weena~52314/


After the astonishments turn right in the street to find Deflftsestraat 26 which on the right hand side has the parking entry to the HIX

Entry on the left goes to the lower part where the parking spaces for the HIX are located.
Ring the buzzer to the left to have reception open the gate.
If you get disconnected, persist! Seems the intercom is a bit temperamentful.
Watchout, as the gate is a single lane for 2 way traffic so there could be a vehicle approaching in the opposite direction.



This is part of the parking garage allocated to the HIX,
The bicycles for rent are located here too
The door on the left leads to the indoor corridor to the lower entrance of the hotel




This is the main entrance of the hotel on Weena streetside,
From the parking garage, one directly enters indoors via the right.



The lobby / reception / breakfast area are on the 1st floor and can be reached via stairs or elevators

Lets look now at the

Common areas

Reception area - on the left
on the right - hotdesking area with powerplugs - we spotted guests using this as their own office

Staff on duty were very friendly and recognised us from the previous stays.
Any IHG-1rewards related questions should be directed to Noah above : he seems the best informed about corporate matters and really aware of Diamond benefits across the group and at the hotel.
Always a pleasent interaction and an asset to hospitality at international service standards
He informed us the hotel is progressively replacing the beds & matrasses to new ones as part of its renewal program

I will explain the benefits for diamonds at the end of this post

Reception will also take care of bike rentals


On the right side of reception one can spot the items available for easy convenience.
A fellow gentleman regular guest (also diamond)
got his free drink voucher at checkin
and exchanged it right away for a fresh draft Heineken
- so you know

Reception also doubles as a place to get a drink / snack




Pricing - vending machines are also available
Cold drinks offered in the summer months


Location of the ice machine




Additional seating area for breakfast

As i didn't have any time for breakfast the next morning due to a very early commitment,
I can only show you part of the breakfast buffet setup.
As usual per HIX brand standard, this is inclusive for all registered guests.
My British colleague always reports satisfaction but i have a return visit this summer and will post again on the offering.
I admit it covers all basic favorites and needs for a continental breakfast.

During peak travel times, guests must inform reception in advance their preferred time slot to have breakfast and will be handed a colour coded card timeslot to manage crowd influx in the breakfast room.
Diamonds however may enjoy breakfast at any timeslot at their own leisure with a special black card ....
(the only time i feel the black card surpasses the AMEX Centurion back card)



Peaktimes for breakfast



The buffet is help yourself,
Staff at breakfast will clear tables and keep things tidy.
Colleagues & myself have experienced nothing than polite and friendly staff on duty

Part of the breakfast buffet area



Coffee machine & tea bag assortment by Lipton
Yay to chamomille!




Seating area, nothing fancy but it is clean



Part of breakfast buffet area


This hotel serves a lot of different folks,
Weekenders, oilriggers, transittravellers, leisure&business, cruiseshippassengers,
those catching early trains and those attending conferences / fairs


Instructions for guests to reach Rotterdam AHOY meeting & conference complex for fairs


And now lets get to the rooms


The hotel has 6 floors
Elevators are keycard operated for reaching guestfloors for security & safety



Elevator lobby on each floor - here you can notice that the hotel is converted from an office




Floor plan for level 1
Rooms on the left of the corridor look out on Delftsestraat
Rooms on the right of the corridor look out on Weena
- you are here - denotes the breakfast / lobby / reception areas




Corridor leading to rooms


I booked for this occassion the room type
" 2 person bed Kitchenette Weena view "
Located on level 3 - room #324
This was a revenue stay in €,
Price can fluctuate +/- €100 if prepaid/sale/memberrate but can hit upwards throughthe roof during holidays / events / peak travel
(during 2022 Rotterdam songfestival, prices were eyewatering)


Floor plan of level 3
Rooms in the upper L - above / left of the green line face Delftsestraat (north / west)
Rooms in the lower L - under / right of the green line face Weena (south / east)




Entry into the room,
key is needed to operate the lights
full lenght mirror on the right




View from bed towards the kitchenette and room entrance




2 person bed : Queen size
| powerplug available bedside |
matras & bed was comfy firm
2 pillows: soft & mefium firm





Kitchenette: all clean and in good working order
Tapwater in Rotterdam is potable& drinkable
This is the only roomtype that comes with a fridge



View from bed towards the living area / bathroom,
the tv is built into the room divider,
the configuration is alike a junior suite except there is no sofa





Kettle with instant coffee & teas
Lipton yellow label is an acquired taste, do feel free to grab a different more palatable flavour from the breakfast room tea box




Cupboard / closet storage space
You might notice the abscence of a safe as this is a 3* star hotel




One cannot pilfer the hangers and elope with them .....
i know some FT'ers whom are very vocal about these
(cheapens the brand image)
but i promised them that their names are not to be mentioned



The roomdivider with TV reaches only halfway to the ceiling
one can only watch TV from in bed
as you see the living feels a bit sparse decorated, a sofa or extra table could do wonders
fortunately the blackout curtains keepout any outside lights completely
i know out of experience as i tripped over my suitcase in the middle of the night trying to reach the loo



The living area, bit sparse decorated
[put in a sofa though and one could market this room as a junior suite]




Desk area in the living part |
if one would replace the seat with a sofa and put up an extra TV, the room could very well be upgraded into a junior suite





View from the room |
reasonably well insulated against noise except the occasional beep / honk of cars trying to cut before the tram
one could look at the Hilton across the street if someone is standing in front of their window


Everything all clean in the bathroom

Bathroom: has 2 light settings aka deep aqua blue and normal white
4 towels provided: 2 medium + 2 larges ones



Shower with only 2 in 1 (shampoo/showergell) wallmounted dispenser
Excellent shower pressure + retained the heat / cold so no yoyoing water temperatures



Anything one needs can be provided by going down to reception





The brand of amenities is here not yet Dove as brand standard
https://www.ihgplc.com/en/news-and-m...oom-miniatures
https://www.ihgunileverpartnership.com

Yes, i have been working out and with my strength had been a bit too enthausiastic to get the last drop out ....


VERDICT
Room was clean and in good condition
Sleep comfort was excellent [Noah was right, the beds / matrasses were indeed already changed to new ones for this room type]
Bathroom & towels were functional & clean
This is a good hotel choice if one needs an uncomplicated stay to just sleep & shower
Staff is welcoming and accepting
On points the hotel books you into a standard room only as award (review to come this summer)
The upgrade path to this room with kitchenette is neigh impossible because there are only 2 of those and are popular during the peak travel periods / holidays by revenue guests/regulars(=me)


HIX Rotterdam's main competition is:
- Marriott = its location is really directly across from Rotterdam Centraal railway station
- Motto by Hilton = same price level / hotel class yet with an "interesting awkward" twist : https://www.flyertalk.com/forum/hilt...er-thread.html
- NH Atlanta = cheap but very old junk "almost the hotel of the damned"
- Grand Hotel Central = historic building but its reviews reveal a myrad things that spell cheap with capital C

Not a true competitor but the closest other hotel is the Hilton Rotterdam on the other side of Weena,
it is actually a class higher with suites / executive lounge / American buffet breakfast but targets a different market

Loyalty recognition
As most of the IHG-forum know, i am considered furniture at IC AMS, implying i do have a nose for detail and can be critically devastating like Jacques d'Ancona.....

The HIX Rotterdam recognizes IHG-1rewards loyalty elite guests.
From past till present i was lucky to have been welcomed and checked in by Noah,
whom took his time and professional dedication to acknowledge my status and explain in detail my benefits, kudos!

For diamond elite,
1) the welcome benefit choice proactively offered was
- 300 points (posted right away) OR
- drinks voucher
2) late checkout till 14H posed no problem
3) may enjoy breakfast at their own leisure at any time by showing the black privilage card
4) extended parking time till 17H on checkout day if using the hotel's own carpark as registered guest
5) sweet treat welcome of Dutch "stroopwafel" https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stroopwafel

* upgrades are impossible:
all rooms are the same except 2 that are configured differently (kitchenette room)
those are in popular demand [even Nina gave her sign of approval]

See the welcome letter:


Welcome amenity of 300 points




Welcome letter + welcome sweet treat




Welcome amenity of drink voucher + diamond's black card for unrestricted time choice for breakfast


Conclusion
Can fully recommend for a hassle free overnight,
We all crave luxury like Aman resorts, trendy seen&beseen W-hotels, fullservice Intercontinental hotels, Diamond Inner Circle Royal Ambassador VIP treatment
but sometimes all one needs is a safe environment, friendly staff, clean hotelroom to sleep & shower to rest up for the upcoming next day in a location that suits your travel plans,
the Holiday Inn Express Rotterdam Central Station lives up to that promise and is a solid choice for those of us loyal to IHG

Some Rotterdam tips:
Dining scene https://www.debuik.nl/rotterdam/
Architectual forum https://www.skyscrapercity.com/forums/rotterdam.385/
Quirky https://www.atlasobscura.com/things-...am-netherlands
Public interest https://www.versbeton.nl
Jewish heritage https://www.joodserfgoedrotterdam.nl
Historic interest https://www.brandgrens.nl/en/home#
Vegan https://www.happycow.net/europe/netherlands/rotterdam/
Local affairs https://indebuurt.nl/rotterdam/
Public art map https://www.bkor.nl/plattegrond/


Events:
Agenda https://www.uitagendarotterdam.nl/ag...heel_rotterdam
Cultural https://o-festival.nl
Archtitectual https://rotterdamarchitectuurmaand.nl
Monuments https://www.openmonumentendag.nl
Filmfestival https://iffr.com/en
AHOY complex https://www.ahoy.nl/en/events


Hope this information may be beneficial for upcoming future guests!