The HI Express in Berkeley is a reasonable hotel. Pros: Sturdy cribs, nice hallways and entryway, fridge, sink, and microwave are *very* handy. Most of the hotel staff is very friendly and helpful. The Foster's Freeze almost next door is great for a convenient treat. Lots of parking. Pretty easy access to downtown/university/freeways. The beds are firm (but I like firm beds so I thought this was great). The hotel provides a choice of soft or firm pillows, which is quite nice.

On the other hand, for $200/night (for a small suite) I do expect to not have a badly cracked and poorly repaired bathroom sink, someone else's pubic hair in the bathtub, long black hair stuck to two of the four towels, or rather appalling mildew/mold around the jets of the tub. The guy at the desk in the daytime (might be the owner?) is rather surly, but is quite helpful if you can get past that. The suites/rooms in the front of the hotel get quite a lot of street noise from University Ave, but the rooms in the mid-to back section are much quieter.

Most of the cons are somewhat easily remedied or ignored (except for the slime in/around the bathtub jets), and given the pathetic hotel situation in Berkeley, this hotel is a pretty good choice. I would stay here again, but mostly for lack of a better option.

We stayed one night with our 6 and 2 year old kids. They were nice and let us check in early. We had a king suite and it's not really a suite, there is a tiny piece of wall that divides the couch area from the bed area. It was just fine for one night, though. The place was clean, the breakfast was usual continental fare, the internet connection was fast.

My daughter and I stayed three nights here on a visit to local colleges in Berkeley and San Francisco. At over $150 a night it seemed a little expensive for a Holiday Inn. You definitely need a car to get around as the hotel is not near any major sites. The hotel staff is not friendly and not very welcoming. I am not picky at all about food, but the breakfast was subpar in comparison to other Holiday Inn Express hotels. The coffee was caramel colored (extremely watered down) as were the juices. The breakfast items ar in limited supply as we arrived within breakfast hours and found we were too late on two mornings to get pastries or donuts. The room was clean although a little smaller than I am used to. The room did not have lotion, when I inquired, I was told that they had run out. Will not stay here again.

In my continuing struggle to find decent accomodations in Berkeley I stayed at the Holiday Inn Express for three nights. In respect to prior reviews, there does appear to be new mgmt.
The managers were very nice however....

I ended up in a smoking room for the first time ever anywhere! The second floor is half smoking/half non smoking, which won't matter because the whole floor just stinks of cigarette smoke.

The room was decent, in fact they had a mini fridge and microwave.

The hotel is not really within walking distance of much of anything unless you are willing to walk at least 20 minutes. That will get you to a BART station or up to the YMCA, movie theatre or shopping and restaurants.

It is not anywhere near the main campus, I would say it is at least a 45 minute walk from campus. I would not choose this hotel unless you have a car.

It is a pretty mediocre experience to stay here, and I still cannot find anywhere decent and affordable to stay in Berkeley and I'm going to stay in SF and commute on BART my next trip.