sdsearch

Neither of these hotels have breakfast any more. I don't know why they had breakfast for a while, I'm guessing that both hotels were under the same ownership and the ownership didn't realize that having a breakfast was not in the Candelwood standards..

I figured this out by searching the reviews at both hotels for "breakfast". In each case, no results until page 3 of the reviews. For the Town Square location,I came across this reply from management (earlier this year):

"Thank you for taking the time to let us know how your stay was. We are so sorry to hear that you were misinformed about about us serving breakfast. We are working hard to remove all traces online that state we serve breakfast. We hope to serve you again in the future. ~Safe Travels."

while for Meridian location I came across this in a review:

"This hotel used to offer a continental style breakfast but they have now discontinued that."

So first, it's possible that hotels in the greater Boise area (that these both are) were the only ones in the Candlewood chain ever to offer breakfast.

Secondly, since they discontinued breakfast, it's quite likely there are no longer any Candlewoods that have breakfast. (And if there are, chances are that within a couple years the breakfast will be gone there too, because any Candlewood that has a breakfast has it by mistake.)

ElmhurstNick

I like the Candlewood concept. I hate their mattresses. They are thin and hard, definitely inferior to any other IHG chain, and I've noticed this in multiple cities. I don't mind the lack of breakfast, and I like the expanded food pantry selection.

I will still sometimes stay in one on a Thursday night on a vacation trip if it's a 10k property and I'm only staying a night. But I've learned that if a smaller city has a 10k Candlewood, they probably also have a 10k Courtyard or Fairfield.

srodr

I never know so many people were fans of Candlewood. Personally I've avoided the brand since trying them out 15 years ago and hating just about everything about the place. But I usually travel on business where price isn't important, so I suppose I would give them another try for personal travel if the price was right. But the lack of housekeeping would make me think twice about anything other than a one night stay.

Jon Maiman

I have found a much higher percentage of rundown properties in the Candlewood brand. versus other IHG brands. I have the same issue with the Townplace Suites brand with Marriott versus their other brands. So my rule of thumb now is to avoid them unless I know a specific location is good.

--Jon

Super Mario

I have yet to try one, maybe I will. I've gotta say, Staybridge is a very underrated brand of theirs. I hope Candlewood is similar

CMK10

Nice to see my thread bounce back up to the top. Since I wrote this I've returned to the Charlotte University CS four times and also stayed at the O'Hare Airport and MCI Airport CS and the Durham RTP CS twice. I've yet to stay at a CS that was rundown or have any issues at one.

The_Bouncer

What's the one at ORD like? I have a couple of pre- and post-flight stays there in November.

WatchNugget

The WatchNugget has the same experience here. What gives?

stillontheroad

One of the CWS that I stayed at recently did have the breakfast, but the DC asked/reminded me to not mention it in a review if I wrote one as it was not a perk that CWS offered and just their hotel. Said IHG would/could come down on the franchisee for offering the breakfast outside the policy.

bworrell

I have stayed in some really crappy candlewoods over the past few years, so much so that I stopped. I did try it again recently and it must have been a renovated property, as it was better than I remember.

CMK10

It was perfectly fine, here's my review in fact:

https://www.flyertalk.com/forum/inte...d-airport.html

The_Bouncer

Thanks for that - very useful. It looks absolutely fine. I chose it basically because it was one of the few places with smoking rooms available. I paid 15k points for my first night and $93 for my next one, two weeks later.

I chose it for convenience because I will be arriving half-cut off a TATL flight and don't want to drive up to Racine, WI. This way I can just roll back onto the shuttle the next morning and pick up a car at the airport.

The second night is before a morning flight onward to DCA, so that I don't have to leave my friends' place in Racine at pig o'clock in the morning.

cab747

My first stay at a Candlewood Suites in Winnemucca, NV (stop over driving from CA to UT), the room itself was fine. I would pass on this brand because it offers no room upgrades to Platinum members, and no free breakfast, which goes a long way with a family of 4. I still prefer the HIX brand, but it was 10K points more, so tried the Candlewood for the first time.