Candlewood Suites - East Syracuse - Carrier Circle by IHG

Rooms were spacious and updated

Based upon the actions of another party from a previous stay, although associated with one another, having separate rooms, created an unfair judgment of every individual resulting in the denial of extending a current reservation and the inability to return to the property in the future.

The front end manager was really friendly

Room was filthy and kitchen wares not stocked and dirty.

Other than when I stay at my time share I always stay at IHG Hotels & Resorts. Which are basically Holiday Inn’s or other hotels under their umbrella. I have stayed at one of their hotels for enough nights to total over a month per year the last few years. I am a Gold Elite member for IHG and nearly a Platinum Elite member. I’ve never had any issues at any hotel I’ve ever stayed in until this weekend in Syracuse at the Candlewood Suites on Baptist Way. So my 24 year old son and I checked in on Friday. We get up Saturday morning before the Miami vs. Syracuse football game which starts at 3:30. We go to Golden Corral for breakfast in Miami gear but not dressed for the game yet. On the way back I tell my son that I’m going to drop him off at the hotel so he can get ready and I’m going to get gas. He calls me a few minutes later and tells me that he can’t get into the room because someone is in the room and they have the top door latch locked that can only be locked from the inside. The door would open to the point that he could see inside the room slightly (we all have stayed at hotels and know how much he could see) but the latch was locked at the top. He said he’s been knocking and pounding on the door and then started yelling for the person to unlock the door. To the point he heard people across the hall mention the knocking and yelling. We assumed at the time that it was housekeeping that was in the room. I then tell him to go downstairs and tell the hotel to call to tell them to get out of the room. He went downstairs and when he was in the hall, in view of the hotel staff at the front desk, he told them rather bluntly to tell them to get out of the room. He never made it anywhere near the front desk. That plays a part later in the story. In fact the hotel staff wasn’t even at the front desk when he told him to call the room. After talking to son a few days later he realized that the staff immediately got on his cell phone and called whoever was in the room. My son goes back upstairs and miraculously the person in the room is gone in the 60 seconds or so it took him to be out of the view of the room. He’s then able to get in the room. With the game going on that day and having to get ready and thinking of where to park, how to get to the Dome and all that comes with going to a place we’ve never been I didn’t think much of it the rest of the day. I was also trying to remain calm because my son was livid and I didn’t want him to get worked up even more. Cooler heads needed to prevail. We check out on Sunday to go to Buffalo. As I’m driving I’m thinking more and more about what happened the day before at the hotel. It just seemed odd that the person inside wouldn’t come out. There’s no way they wouldn’t answer the door but then left when the hotel was made aware if it was innocent and the person was just doing their job. Also the hotel staff obviously spoke with the person to get them to leave. I started thinking that they thought we were gone for the day because we had our Miami gear on like we were headed to the game. When I got home I decided to file a complaint about the situation. The hotel in Syracuse called me that night about the situation. I asked if they read the complaint and the manager said yes but asked if I could tell her what happened so she could hear it. Maybe she thought it would be different but the truth is the truth. After I tell her what happened. She tells me that what I’m telling her didn’t happen that way. She says that Rashaan couldn’t get the door open because sometimes their door locks go up and down (what?) and he came downstairs and got a new key then was able to get into the room. I told her that is incorrect. She said once again that he came down and got a new key. I wasn’t going to argue with her so I politely said “have a good evening, ma’am” and hung up. Since then I’ve been in contact with IHG through their chat and phone calls. They keep giving me the same answer that my son came downstairs and got a key which is not only 100% incorrect. It is 100% a lie which leads me to believe the hotel staff and management is in on it. All the nights we’ve stayed at IHG hotels I’ve never made any accusations or complaints at all. Why would I make something up like this? What would I gain out of lying about this? I originally asked for a refund but I’ve told them I don’t even want that at this point. I just want the truth to be told. I’ve begged them to look at the hotel footage. I never get any answers about that. There 100% was someone inside the room because the door latch was locked and my son 100% DID NOT get or request a new key. The lying tells me the hotel is in on it to completely fabricate a story of getting a “new key” and the door not opening with the “old key”. The key he had worked. It was locked with the latch from the inside that won’t let anyone open the door fully. Upon checking in at IHG hotels as a Gold Elite member I’m always greeted with “thank you for being a Gold Elite member” well after basically being called a liar and dishonest they might as well say “thank you for being a Gold Elite member but we don’t respect your honesty and you’re a liar”. I will be terminating my support and loyalty to IHG hotels out of principle

Very nice staff rooms are clean and pretty