For midtown Philadelphia, this place was cheap (as judged by today's inflated hotel prices, that is). The AAA rate for two persons in a two-bedded room was $134. The room was reasonably clean but with worn carpet and furniture. The shower flow was far less than I find satisfying. Free copies of the Philadelphia Enquirer were available daily. "Self-parking" next door in a separately-owned facility was an exorbitant $21/day. Availability of "self-parking" was a fiction. The only level with individually-accessible spaces was closed and we had to rely on the kindness of an attendant who let us use an unblockable space on a lower level. The biggest disappointment was the "Express Start® Breakfast Bar." The hotel's web site shows a breakfast plate of bacon and eggs and lists "either bacon or sausage" as available for the complimentary breakfast. I checked this with the front desk when I made my reservation and was assured that some breakfast meat would be available. On a Sunday morning with a full complement of guests: NO breakfast meat was available. Neither was there the yogurt the ad promised. Explanation of the front desk: "our menu changes daily." Intercontinental Hotels should be held to account for this fraud!

My wife and I went to Philadelphia for a 3-night long weekend and I found a great rate for the HIE-Midtown via the Entertainment book. It has a very good location - only a few blocks from the historical sites - and the staff was very pleasant and helpful. That was good because we had to change our room after one night due to all of the street noise from Walnut Street and the fact that they only had a double smoking room when we had reserved a king non-smoking room. The next night was considerably quieter, being on the Samson Street side, though street noise from trucks and sirens woke us up several times during the night. In addition, as other reviewers have noted, it is very easy to hear guests in adjoining rooms, well enough to pretty much hear all of their conversations. And, it's not possible to mask any of the noise by the fan-only setting because it cycles on and off and when it's on, you'll know it. So, if you want a good location, but are a heavy sleeper or don't need a lot of sleep, this is a great place to to stay. One more thing: they charge an extra $10 for the 2nd person in the room and the parking fee is $21 per night.

Enjoyed a pleasant stay while attending a conference. Located mere blocks from the conference center and historic neighborhoods. Plentiful restaurants and bars nearby. Rooms and hallways smelled of new carpet and were very clean. Free continental breakfast was better than expected. I would definitely stay here again.

Through an organizational affiliation, I got a room for $99. This was a steal! The hotel rooms was FANTASTIC. The bedding grand. The hotel exterior and lobby were not a reflection of the comfort within the room. I really liked it. I have stayed at Hiltons and found the rooms very comparable to the rooms at this holiday inn express. The staff were really friendly too.