Holiday Inn, A West Bay Beach Resort Review

Rooms were great, however, we booked with a group and called and spoke with Jeannie at guest services the day before our arrival and informed her that we would be checking in after 9PM and confirmed our room would be held in the block with our group. She put notes in our reservation and assured me that we were good but noted that she would not be here when we arrived so that is why she made the notes in our reservation. I called 4 hours before our arrival and confirmed with guest services again that the same room would be held for us. Got here and they had given it away and placed us in another floor outside our group! I was livid after confirming twice with their guest services.

Great because it's right on the water, our room didn't have a tilted window though so we didn't have a great view of the water. The bathroom is also small.

A wonderful hotel right next to the lake. Nice room with a comfortable bed and pillows. The hotel features an indoor pool and separate outdoor pool.
It also has a fitness center and free airport shuttle. I will definitely stay here again.

Best location in Traverse City, hotels right on the water, with a guest service that feels welcoming like family. There are services and amenities such as transportation to and from the airport ensuring safe arrival upon your long travels, and parking to and from downtown is a headache staying here relieves anyone of due to the shuttle service that text you to and from any of downtown.

We booked here for the Tesla charging and proximity to town. We could certainly tell this property had been a holiday inn but the staff is better than those hotels and other guests didn t seem to be the annoying novice travelers holiday inn attracts. It also seems like the new ownership is doing things to improve the property and experience for guests.

Location was good, super close to downtown. The rooms though were probably the worst part of this hotel. The bed was super stiff and uncomfortable. The bathroom was small and not well maintained. We did like the pool and still had a nice time on vacation.

I stay here frequently when in town on business and have been doing so for past 10 years so I have seen all the changes. Rooms are updated. Make sure you ask for the bay view! They have attempted some changes that haven't gone over well such as the menu and dining overall. I do not think they are a good value during summer months as rates almost triple. Dinner menu is lackluster, food is expensive & taste is mediocre. Luv the outdoor live music during summer months. Staff are wonderful, if it is a problem they will fix it and off coupons etc

Rooms are nothing special but the location and beach are great

Food was outstanding! Staff was very polite and helpful!

The best hotel in Traverse City for comfort, staff and location. While there are still some renovations taking place throughout the hotel, the staff has been very accommodating. Try out the lounge with entertainment on the weekend. The renovated rooms are very comfortable with great bathrooms and beds. You will love this location.

Staff are friendly, rooms are clean and spacious, TV was decent, pillows were great, but the floor may have had more cushion than the mattress.

About 3.5 stars. Good room, close to downtown, clean. TV had some issues with the remote, otherwise would have been 4 stars.

One of the best places to go outside and have a drink. Food is good and drinks are cold

I did not spend the night. I only attended an event at this location. Overall, the hotel felt clean, the employees were very friendly and helpful and it was beautiful with the beach right there. My 4 year old loved walking on the beach and chasing the ducks.

Great rooms, nice beach, great access to down town Traverse City.

Loved our stay! The rooms are wonderfully designed. We stayed in a king suite with an incredible bath tub and dual head shower. Our view was over the bay and amazing. We loved that it was dog friendly and the staff was so friendly!!

And the bed and pillows were amazing!! Great night sleep.

We will be back!!

One of my favorite places in TC. What I love about West Bay Beach is that you really feel like you're at a resort. The bartenders are awesome, drinks are good, the patio is always clean, and the food is always great. Great views of the bay and they have great tables with umbrellas for those extra sunny days.

Tips: get there before the music starts if you just want to enjoy the quiet water views. Very crowded during festival seasons.

To expensive for moderate food and staff was just strange

Visited here with my wife and two dogs for the inaugural traverse city 70.3 Ironman race. Loved the location and the rooms where nice. It was great to be able to bring our dogs.

The only complaint is the elevators. We stayed on the 4th floor with our dogs, and I feel like I spent way too much time waiting for the elevators. They were chronically busy during the evening and also during peak checkout times. I couldn t use the stairs after the half Ironman .

Short: great hotel, please get new elevators. K thanks bye

Very disappointed. Promised a certain rate and a more expensive rate was charged to my card. Attempted to dispute this and they stated that the rates change daily, which I understand. Told that I would receive a certain rate with jumping through the hoops of signing up for the rewards, which included being hounded about a "sign up special offer" for 10 minutes at work after repeatedly denying it... just to end up with the more expensive rate.
Very Very frustrated!

Was only there for a convention, but the service was good and there's a starbucks

Excellent place to stay. We were treated so nicely here, that we decided on staying one more night here.

Some of the best things we loved here

Got a free upgrade to a better room as soon as I checked in. Got two free drink vouchers. The room was spacious enough and the A/C was cool and nice.

These people know how to do business.

A big shout-out to Scott at the View.
There was a miscommunication on the dinner order. Even after the kitchen was closed, they re-opened the kitchen and got the dinner back to the room.

And what was even better they got the dinner paid for. Additionally, we also received a 20$ coupon for any purchases.

Excellent hoteliers. I cant recommend them enough. I already know where we will be staying the next time we come to Traverse city. Really happy with the overall service.

VERY NOISY ROOM. It s like being in an airplane starting. We contacted the staff and the front desk, they told us it would stop when the kitchen closed. 3 PM my husband called again, now they say, the know about the noise. We paid 350 $ for one night and had no sleep. I can t recommend this hotel to anybody, I never had a noisy room like this

Can not beat the location!! 5 minute walk to downtown Traverse City. Beautiful view from our hotel room, watched the sunset through the bay window. The room was clean and fairly large except for the bathroom, which still was decent. The king size bed was comfortable and the loveseat sized couch which was perfect for watching the sunset through the corner bay window. The price included free breakfast vouchers and the food was very good. The waitress was very friendly and knowledgeable and perhaps one of the best I've seen. Overall, a very enjoyable stay and would not only stay again myself, but would also recommend this hotel to others.

Great experience overall. Good service although hoped there was complimentary breakfast provided.

Beautiful clean rooms. Perfect locarion to town. Super friendly staff. Front desk was so helpful on informing us about fun places to visit in town. With restaurants working at half capacity eating out was out of the quesion. We were able to order in and enjoy ourselves by the beautiful fire place.

I booked a one night stay at this hotel and used points. I booked it months ago and two weeks before our trip we get an email saying they will no longer be accepting IHG points. The email also stated to call them to get situated with another hotel that does take points. We called them and they did absolutely nothing. I have everything planned around staying at this hotel including a car to pick up and drop off for wine tasting and such. Now being the week of our vacation prices have surged and I just don't know if it is worth it to stay there anymore. Even more disappointing I am going to have to change all reservations.

Horrible stay im extremely disappointed. Hotel was overful with too many kids and people pool was packed with no cut off limit for kids so adults can have a chance to relax even tho the front dest told me 10pm was cut off time for kids. Pull out bed in our room had dirty sheets on it with beer caps in and under it. Asked front desk for clean sheets and still waitinging an hour later for them to bring them to our room. Horrible customer service from employees. Sauna boards were lose and rotting and the grout around the pool was covered in white globs of mold. bathrooms are clearly not cleaned after guests. Worst stay ive ever had in a hotel expecially for the almost 200$ i paid for our room for one night. Absolutely do NOT recommend staying here.

Great hotel. Awesome price in the off-season. Good food and drinks at the restaurant. Definitely will be back.

We were very pleased with this hotel until evening time hit. This is not the place to stay with young children. We have an 8 month old and my husband informed the front desk of this when he checked in, they were asking about where we d like our room. They were very friendly. Turns out directly outside of our room was the night life live music . It was awful. We have every white noise maker possible going on our phones for our son to be able to sleep and it barely touches the music noise. My husband has to get up at 4am as well. Made for one emotional Mama! Just a warning to young families out there! Make sure you get a room FAR away from the music.

Dated hotel. Dated HVAC system that's loud and a nousance. Good luck trying to sleep here. Staff could care less. Old man who's the shuttle driver should not deal with people with his bad attitude.

Rooms were nice and clean. We had the too right above the kitchen and it smelled like bacon at 6 am. Also, rooms were noise and ac/heat were loud. Overall, nice staff and clean rooms.

Great hotel located right in the water. Good location to downtown as well. Rooms were nice and clean.

The rooms were nice and the beds were nice and soft, the outdoor pool is heated and wonderful, along with the indoor pool, overall experience was great

Right downtown Traverse City, short walk to shopping, friendly staff, restaurant, great entertainment venue, beautiful beach front. Full service in amenities.

Stayed there for the Traverse City Marathon- 3 days cost over $700 for a pretty average room & hotel- definitely not the *resort* quality you would expect for the price. Moreover, there was a group who decided to have an impromptu party in the parking lot (with music from car radio)starting at around 1AM the day of our marathon (for which we were required to catch a bus at 5AM). I had to call the front desk at around 1:11AM to get them to intervene. The music went off, but the loud voices & laughter remained. I called again at 1:19 after I was convinced it wouldn't stop. I was told "there's only so much we can do" about the disturbance in their own parking lot. When I asked her if I should call the police, she said I was being "overzealous." Don't stay here if you have anything important to do and need a good night's sleep!

The hotel was very clean and tastefully decorated. We order room service for breakfast and the food was hot and delicious.

Matt in the day bar is awesome. I would recommend anyone to go see him. Very attentive and drinks are mixed perfectly. Thanks Matt.

Wish we had time to experience more of the hotel. But was pleasantly surprised, for our spontaneous "let's take our dog for a weekend trip". With this hotel being pet friendly, I wasn't sure howd I enjoy the stay (first time staying at a pet.friendly hotel).
Surprised at the cleanliness and atmosphere of the hotel. Staff were nice and hotel has great amenities, beautiful views, and within walking distance to traverse city's key restaurants. Rooms that accommodated for pets have a separate floor.

Cons A little pricey, but again we didn't get a chance to fully experience the hotels.... and we brought brought a whole doggo. Room was overall clean and cozy but had some wear on the doors and bathroom area (dog accommodating room, so I assume that's normal) def. Would stay again!

King suite ok. Thin walls. Biggest gripe is, we had lukewarm water to shower.

Nice hotel. Located right on the water. Each room has a view of the lake.

Took off one star for starters because the entire building seemed to have zero to little sound insulation inside the rooms. Sounded like hollow drywall walls and hollow entry way doors which meant you can hear conversations, footsteps, and bathroom doors, throughout the entire building. The window shades on the windows which are angled right at your face when you sleep, had shades that barely covered the window so I'd hate to stay at the hotel during summer when the sun comes up at 5am nice and bright right in your face. Slept terrible. Noise all night. Secondly the amenities were not as described. The lobby was undergoing renovation and on top of that the restaurant and bar did not hold uphold their business hours. Lastly for a hotel room of this price, charging an additional $50 per night per pet is robbery.

Awesome place to listen to Great Music!! And Risque is a Good Dance band!!!

Great hotel in Traverse City. Went for a bachelor party over 4/20 weekend, staff was helpful and able to place us in a corner of the hotel away fr other guests. Breakfast was great every morning and the club onsite was fantastic.

It's terrible, unless you wanna hotel w a club on the first floor. You gotta stand in the toilet to wash your hands in the sink. There 0 view of the lake, and it's way way too expensive. There a better/cheaper hotel just down the road.

If I could leave less than 1 star I would. Came up to TC for a weekend away with some friends. We were playing cards quietly a d were approached by staff twice, telling us we were too loud, at 945 pm. Staff even escorted our friends out of our room. Ridiculous. Also, there were mattresses leaning up against the wall on all floors, making it difficult to navigate the hallways. For nearly $200 a night, I would expect better treatment to stay in a dated, messy hotel.

The hotel bar was far from accommodating, service was slow and drinks were poor. Hotel rooms here are old and out dated. The bathroom has mold spots on the ceiling. There seems to be a lazy attitude with staff as far as service and cleanliness is concerned. Overpriced for the area, considering the options.

Looks really nice on the inside, well pleased so far.

Always fun sitting with spouse and friends, watching the blue Angels...

Very nice conference rooms perfect for large or small groups.

Yes hotel is wrapping up construction, BUT, pool and both bars are open, as well as large patio outside with awesome views of sunset. Any issues just reach out to staff or managment, and they will take care of you. Clean

The place to be in Traverse City!!!
Old fashion Service in a modern Hotel. Adult and child friendly with two pools and a beach. Great Rental shop the favorite toys. Suzanna and Crystal went beyond there roles to help us and make our stay awesome!!! Thank You

Room smelled smokey by the curtains. On the plus side, the room looked clean and recently updated. August 2019, so everything is so different due to COVID-19. Views of the water front are still quite spectacular, though there is very little sandy beach left directly behind the resort; several trees were out in the water.

We had our wedding here and the facility and staff were EXCELLENT! The staff was hands down the most friendly and accommodating staff I've had the pleasure of working with ever. Liz was a wonderful coordinator and thought of everything to make it easier on us, right down to recognizing we needed a drink before we could access the bar. They gave us a room with a great view and even had gifts waiting for us in our room after the wedding, from the hotel. Thank you all for the amazing memories! Highly recommend if you're looking for a venue or a good hotel to stay in the TC area.

Comfortable bed, bathroom needed some serious cleaning and updating. Great location to walk down town. Staff was very nice. Overall grounds and building need lots of attention especially based on cost of the room. Service at the "day room bar" was beyond horrible. Spend your money down town to eat and drink!

Newly remodeled, old infrastructure though...easy check-in

If you're an entitled parent who wants a weekend off from pretending that you care about your spoiled children, this is the hotel for you!

The room was newly renovated and the view of the bay was amazing. We came up when they were remodeling, causing one of the main entrances to be closed. We had to park on the opposite side of the building from the only working entrance, then slop our way through the unplowed parking lot. There was no mention of this while placing the reservation.

There were also several children's hockey teams staying here, so there are a thousand kids running around, screaming and playing hockey (including nets) in the halls. There were kids screaming and slamming doors past midnight. There were also a lot of noisy drunks yelling and stumbling down the hallways after the bar closed downstairs.

At checkout I asked the front desk if this was normal, and an employee told me that he has worked here for four years, and this is just the way it is. He said that the parents go to the bar, and send the kids to the pool unattended. I can attest to this. We wanted to sit in the hot tub, but there were a dozen children of appreciate age 6-12 in the pool without a single adult around.

I'm glad that the hotel has found their niche market, but we are not interested in coming back.

Room is clean and comfortable. Food in the restaurant is fine, but is just very generic hotel restaurant food. The hotel is walking distance to downtown and many great food options.

Good location and good presentation. The hall is new and well maintained. Mattresses and pillows in the rooms have been recently replaced and are very comfortable.
Both the room and the bathroom were clean, but the bathroom furniture and fixtures are old and need some refreshing.
If you purchase the breakfast with the online reservation have it cooked for you, it is worth the wait. If you don't have time you can still enjoy the continental breakfast buffet.

The staff is very kind and the hotel is in an amazing location. Great place to stay in the summer when the beach and outdoor area are open

A premier resort! Everyone was very welcoming!! I would highly recommend spending time to relax and enjoy the bay and the Traverse City area shopping.

Nice hotel. Excellent staff. Lots of activities when it's not freezing outside.

Nice hotel and great food but the girl working the desk during the day.... just rude!

Everyone was friendly, it's right on the beach. Conveniently located a short walk from a food truck park.

Scoping out room for event. Nice sales person and facility looks fun

Rooms were clean, staff seemed friendly. Rooms looked clean, and seem to be relatively updated. It's located right on the water, and they have a blues band play every Tuesday night. Outdoor poor available as well as a decent fitness center for a hotel. The restaurant in the hotel.doesnt seem bad. Only issue is the small bathroom, you have to fight the door to use the toilet or shower, but how long do you really spend in there...

About the place in TC to have a drink on the water, food was average

Beautiful resort wonderful outdoor patio & great staff

If we could rate West Bay Beach Resort higher, we would! Truly an exceptional place to stay in Traverse City. You are in close proximity to everything. The TART trail is right in front of the hotel, giving you exclusive and direct access for biking and walking. We chose this hotel for our engagement weekend and it could not have been more perfect. The staff and manager were extremely accommodating and gave us complimentary drink vouchers to celebrate! We enjoyed late nights on their outdoor patio, keeping warm by the outdoor heaters and fireplaces, with romantic string lights over our heads. The breakfast and coffee bar were awesome in the morning. The West Bay views were stunning! We can't wait to start planning our next trip here again!

Location is excellent. The facilities are dated and may have looked like the pictures a few years ago. The staff is more like inexperienced at best. Maybe overwhelmed with peak traffic. Not a value other than location.

Price gougers! Paid 1200 for 3 nights. Stained carpets and the smell of cheap cologne when you enter. BARELY a view of the water, super small window to look out of. TV couldnt have been bigger than 26 inches. So many outdated details. We wanted to heat up our food and they told us its $5 upcharge daily to have a microwave in our room
Super overpriced, very very small bathrooms, they closed the gym supposedly because of covid the day we got there and wouldnt provide a small discount for the inconvenience. Very very loud ACs, sounds like construction is taking place it made it very hard to sleep. They also didn't provide room CLEANING because of "CooVIiD" dont let the location fool you there are way better options for cheaper prices. I Paid the same rate for a 5 star mexican and jamaican hotel with all inclusive amnenities.

Nice resort right on the water. Nice service. Very nice bar.