I don't see a review of this hotel, so just in case anyone can use the info: Spokane is my hometown. My husband and I, and another couple, wanted a night out without a designated driver. We also wanted to see first hand how the revitalization of downtown Spokane was coming along. We checked into the Holiday Inn Express on The Rock at about 7pm on a Friday night. The hotel is on the north end of the downtown area, but still within walking distance of major attractions. We had a Hotwire price of $59 for a two bed room, and all 4 of us went to check in. The hotel sits on a rocky overlook, with a good view of the area. The lobby is very nice: A small library (with some kids toys and board games if you have little ones with you), large windows overlooking downtown, and a clean but smallish breakfast area. The furnishings and decorating include a lot of darker colored wood, but it's not dark, just welcoming wihtout being overbeaing. There was not a line at the counter, even though the parking lot was nearly full. We were greeted politely and quickly, and checked in within a couple of minutes. One of my companions had found some fresh-baked cookies while I checked in (yum!), although the milk pitcher was empty. One downfall was the single elevator for all the guests, I can see how the elevator wait could get long. The funny thing was, we never did find the stairs even after looking. We had a 4th floor room with a small balcony. Nice room: Again, nice wouthout being too fancy. Beds were made with clean white linens and the Holiday Inn fleece blankets that are supposedly washed for each visitor. Each bed had four pillows, with 2 different types (one firmer, one softer for each person). Bathroom was nothing fancy, but clean. Our plastic room cards were touting Wolf Lodge Inn restaurant, considered in the area to be the best steaks around. We hadn't been to the Spokane Wolf Lodge, as we usually visit the original restaurant east of Coeur d'Alene. We decided to give it a go, called for a quick heads-up reservation, and headed out for dinner. I relaly suggest that travelers give this restaurant a try. The Spokane version is fancier than the Idaho version. An ecclectic mix of excellent steaks and fancy side dishes, with Rocky Mountain Oysters on the menu, too: Indoor trees with mounted elk and deer heads, a weird but interesting mix. I'm a midwestern native, and I promise you, the steaks at this restaurant can compete with the best. We got drinks and a "couples" 34-ounce steak for about $65. Yum! We then headed to FastKart, a local go-cart place. Nothing like adults racing around an indoor go-cart track for 40 laps. Great fun. It's located just east of downtown, possibly within walking distance if you don't mind a mile or so trek. After FastKart we took the car back to the Holiday Inn Express, and by 11pm the parking lot was nearly full. We did manage a parking space. Then we set off on foot. The main road to the east of the hotel is Division, and will take you right to downtown, accross the Spokane River, and right by the convention center. Riverfront Park is also right there. I had forgotten how lucky we are to have such beautiful scenery and parks, right in downtown. I'll admit it, we were bar hopping. From 11pm until 2am, we hit about 4 different bars, all within easy walking distance. There are many more, but we were trying to avoid cover charges and to check out as many as we could. We hit the Satellite, Blue Spark, and a couple of no names. If you don't mind paying cover charges, some of the bars looked hoppin'. Most of the bars we visited were closer to our style, a mix of younger and "older" (we're in our 30's and 40's, good lord are we "older"). Anyway, there are still some hole in the wall places where the revitalization hasn't hit, but I must say, I was very pleased about how much safer and prettier it is as compared to 10-15 years ago. We had no gumption walking back to the hotel at 2am in the morning. It used to be all twenty-somethings, and I can see how anyone could really find something to do on a Friday night. There is also a main road to the west of the hotel. You can make a nice little southern circle walking tour and end up back at the hotel. You can even walk back through Riverfront Park if you like. After a decent night's sleep, we got up and headed to the continental breakfast. Typical Holiday Inn breakfast, slightly above average fare of the usual stuff. The host was keeping trays full of eggs, sausage, biscuits and gravy, cinnamon rolls, breads, jams, fruits, and coffee full. One of my favorite Holiday Inn breakfast treats is your own little pint of fresh, cold milk. The best part about breakfast was the view. Skip the main breakfast tables, and go accross the lobby to the tables by the big windows, or out on the patio. It was a rainy/snowy morning, and what a view! We sat around for an hour just talking and enjoying the view, as were some other guests. Wonderful, wonderful view for any morning! As locals, we've absolutely had it with the snow this year, but the nice breakfast and gorgeous view made up for it all. We checked out around 10:30am, it was just a quick passover of the room keys and off we went. For the price we paid, I was ecstatic about the location, view, and comfortable setting.
