Lumberton's BEST Hotel? Holiday Inn Express Review (You WON'T Believe This!)
Lumberton's Holiday Inn Express: The Honest (and Surprisingly Positive) Truth! (You Won't Believe the Sauna!)
Okay, let's get real. Lumberton, NC, isn't exactly the Riviera. It's a long stretch of highway, a few familiar chain restaurants, and… well, you get the picture. So when I told my friends I was heading to the Holiday Inn Express there, they raised their eyebrows. "Lumberton? Really?" I get it. But, here's the thing: this Holiday Inn Express actually surprised me. And I'm not just saying that to be nice.
Accessibility? Check. Now, I don't need a wheelchair, but I always appreciate a hotel that caters to everyone. They seemed to have all the boxes ticked, including accessible rooms and facilities, which is a huge plus.
The "Relaxing" Package (or Trying to Squeeze Relaxation into Lumberton):
Let's be honest, Lumberton's not exactly a spa destination. But the Holiday Inn Express actually has a few things up its sleeve to help you unwind.
- The Sauna! Holy moly. Seriously. I walked in, and immediately felt… transported. It wasn't some fancy-schmancy high-end spa sauna, but it was hot, it was wood-lined, and it was exactly what my stressed-out self needed after a long drive. I mean, I'm talking deep, guttural sighs of relaxation. It was a major win.
- The Pool (with a View…of the Parking Lot): Okay, the "view" part is stretching it. It's a perfectly serviceable outdoor pool, great for a quick dip. Nothing to write home about, but hey, it's a pool. And it’s clean.
- Fitness Center: Standard stuff, but it does the job. Treadmills, weights, all the usual suspects. I managed a quick workout before breakfast, which helped me feel less guilty about the impending buffet.
Cleanliness and Safety: My OCD Approved!
This is important, especially these days. The whole place felt sparkling clean. I saw staff constantly wiping down surfaces. They had hand sanitizer everywhere (everywhere!), and even though I'm not hyper-sensitive, it's reassuring to see. They clearly take hygiene seriously. They offer room sanitization opt-out, in some part is a good option.
Dining, Drinking, and Snacking: The Breakfast Buffet – A Love/Hate Relationship
Let's talk food. Because, let's be honest, the breakfast buffet is the heart of any Holiday Inn Express experience.
- Breakfast Buffet: The usual suspects were present: scrambled eggs (decent), sausage (greasy but comforting), waffles (yay!), and a surprisingly good selection of fruit. Coffee was plentiful, which is essential. I even saw a few "Asian breakfast" options, if that's your jam. The only downside? The sheer temptation. I probably ate three waffles. Regrets? Maybe a few. But that sauna helped with the post-buffet bloat.
- Coffee/Tea in the Restaurant: Very good and easy to access.
- Restaurants: The lobby has a snack bar.
Services and Conveniences: The Little Things That Matter
- Free Wi-Fi: Yes! And it actually worked! No buffering, no dropouts. A modern miracle.
- Air Conditioning: Essential in North Carolina. It worked.
- Daily Housekeeping: My room was always spotless. I'm not one to complain about a well-made bed.
- Elevator: Essential for the upper floors!
- Convenience Store: Perfect for grabbing snacks and drinks late at night.
- Business Facilities: They have a business center with a printer/fax/copier etc.
- Laundry service.
My Room: The Comfort Zone
My room was well-appointed and comfortable.
- The Bed: Seriously comfy. Pillows were fluffy. I slept like a log.
- Blackout Curtains: Crucial for a good night's sleep. Blocked out all the light.
- Coffee/Tea Maker: Essential for morning caffeine intake.
- Free Wi-Fi: As mentioned above, stellar Wi-Fi.
- Refrigerator: Nice to have for storing drinks.
For the Kids (If You're Bringing the Little Ones):
While I didn't see any kids personally, I noticed they had a few family-friendly options.
- Family/child friendly: There are probably families staying here.
- Kids meal: I noticed a few kids meal options at the restaurant.
Areas that need little attention:
- Room service is 24-hour.
- The hotel chain.
Getting Around:
- Car park [free of charge]. It's easy to park here.
- Car park [on-site]. If you're a visitor to the area, you can park here too.
The Quirky Stuff (And Why I Loved It!)
- The staff were genuinely friendly and helpful, and they seemed to enjoy their job. That makes a difference.
- It wasn't pretentious. It was a solid, reliable hotel. That's exactly what I needed.
The Imperfections (Because No Place is Perfect):
- The location is, well, Lumberton. If you're expecting vibrant nightlife or a bustling city center, you're in the wrong place.
- The pool view isn't the best, but you can't win them all.
Final Verdict:
Seriously, I went in with low expectations, and the Holiday Inn Express in Lumberton won me over. It's clean, comfortable, and the sauna is actually amazing. For what it is – a solid, reliable hotel in a somewhat underwhelming location – it's great.
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Escape to Paradise: Pousada Stella Tropical, Salvador's Hidden Gem
Alright, buckle up, buttercups, because this ain't your grandma's perfectly polished travel itinerary. This is the real deal, a messy, glorious, slightly caffeinated account of surviving… or maybe embracing… the Holiday Inn Express and Suites Lumberton, NC, by IHG. Prepare for some serious stream-of-consciousness.
Day 1: Arrival, Mild Panic, and the Questionable Pool (Oh, the Pool!)
1:00 PM: Arrive at the Lumberton IHG. Okay, first impressions… the lobby is… beige. Is beige the universal language of hotels? I swear, I've seen this exact shade in a dentist's office, a DMV, and the waiting room of a mid-level accounting firm. It's unsettlingly familiar. Still, friendly enough staff. Check-in? Smooth. Except… wait… are those carpet stains near the elevator? Oh dear.
1:30 PM: Unpack. Honestly, the room's not terrible. Clean-ish. The bed looks… comfortable-ish. Did I pack enough snacks? This is a crucial question. Hotel snacks are highway robbery, people. Gotta be prepared for the inevitable midnight munchies.
2:00 PM: "Explore the Hotel" (More like cautiously creep around). Found the "fitness center." Which, judging by the single treadmill and the sad, lonely weight bench, is more of a “room where exercise might happen.” Abandon mission.
2:15 PM: THE POOL. Oh, the pool. This is where things get… interesting. It's indoors, which is a plus. But the air smells of a potent mix of chlorine and… something else. Something vaguely… mildewy? I debate with myself whether to risk it. I'm a person of average risk tolerance, which is to say, I'm currently teetering on the edge of full-blown germaphobia. I decide to document the pool.
- Observation: There's a lone, deflated beach ball silently suffering in the corner. I feel a kinship with it.
- Emotional Reaction: A strange mix of anticipation and dread. Will there be screaming children? Will I contract a rare aquatic fungus? Will I regret this decision later?
- Opinion: I think I'LL take a pass for now. That pool feels a tad ominous.
3:00 PM – 6:00 PM: Work. (This is a work trip, after all. Sigh.) Found a decent spot near the window. The Wi-Fi… is… functional. That's a win.
6:00 PM: Dinner. (I'm ravenous). Let's find some good food. Found a diner. The food was so-so. I got a burger -- was my burger a burger? I don't know.
8:00 PM: Back in the Room. Tried to watch TV. Nothing on. Guess I'll go on my phone.
9:00 PM: Went to sleep
Day 2: Lumberton, the Mystery, and the Unexpected Charm
7:00 AM: Wake up. Breakfast time! The "complimentary breakfast." This is where the IHG really tests your mettle. The first morning, the food was a disaster. The eggs were so rubbery -- they should be illegal. The sausage seemed… vaguely… processed. The coffee, however, was surprisingly decent. I'm cautiously optimistic. They had waffles, so bonus points to the IHG.
8:30 AM - 12:000 PM: More work. Lumberton is a sleepy town.
12:00 PM: Lunch. Drive around Lumberton, tried to find something to eat, but it was a struggle. Okay, okay, maybe I came here with the wrong expectations. I was expecting a lively, booming city. This city is pretty relaxed. I found a sandwich place.
2:00 PM: A drive. The town has a certain… quiet charm. The old buildings, the little shops, the sheer, unadulterated… presence of "Lumberton." It's an experience.
4:00 PM: The Pool. Yes, I went back. And, okay, I gotta confess, it wasn't as bad as I thought. No fungus. No screaming children (thank the heavens!). The smell? Still there. But I made it, and felt better. I can claim the "pool victory."
6:00 PM - 8:00 PM: Dinner again.
9:00 PM: Back at the room, watched another episode of a show.
9:30 PM: Slept.
Day 3: Checkout, the Epilogue, and My Final Thoughts
7:00 AM: Breakfast. The waffles were good again. I could possibly live in this place for a time.
8:00 AM - 9:00 AM: Packing up! This hotel is a small adventure.
9:30 AM: Check-out.
10:00 AM: On the road. Lumberton, you were… an experience. The IHG? A mixed bag. The beige, the pool, the questionable sausages… it all adds up to something that's oddly, undeniably… memorable. And that's worth something, right?
Final Thought: Would I come back? Possibly. If I needed a quiet place to work and needed a pool. But, let's be honest, I'm already mentally planning my next snack run.
So, what even *is* this thing? Like, seriously. Explain it to me like I'm five… and maybe a little hungover.
Okay, deep breaths. Imagine… a box. A big, messy, wonderfully complicated box. That box is life. This "thing," whatever "this thing" *is* in your mind, is kinda like trying to understand how all the stuff *inside* that box fits together. Some stuff is obvious – like, hey, that's a sock. Other stuff… is a philosophical black hole that sucks up all your free time. I'm still not entirely sure. Honestly, I'm winging it here.
Does it actually *work*? Like, does "it" *actually* do the thing it's supposed to do? I'm skeptical. I'm *always* skeptical.
Ugh, the million-dollar question, right? Look, I can't give you a definitive "YES" or "NO." Life’s not that easy, darling. *My* experience? Well, it’s been a rollercoaster. One minute I'm on top of the world, feeling like a freakin' genius. The next, I'm staring blankly at a screen, wondering if I accidentally summoned a demon. There are days where it feels like magic, like unlocking a secret level in the game of existence. Then there are days... where I just want to eat a whole tub of ice cream and cry. The truth? It depends. It depends on your expectations, your mood, the alignment of the stars (probably). But personally, I'd say it kinda-sorta-maybe works... sometimes. Don’t hold me to that.
What's the catch? There's always a catch. Spill the tea.
Oh, honey, you’re absolutely right. There's *always* a catch. Actually, there are several. First, it's time-consuming. Like, "have-you-considered-giving-up-showering-to-dedicate-more-time-to-it" time-consuming. Second, it can be, let's just say, *emotionally taxing*. It messes with your brain! You'll have moments of pure elation, followed by existential dread so deep you'll question your entire life trajectory. It’s a real trip, man. Oh! And the biggest catch? You might actually *learn* something. Which, for some of us, is the most terrifying catch of all. But seriously, be patient, be forgiving of yourself (that's hard), and find a good support system (also hard).
Okay, I'm *intrigued*. But… where do I even *start*? Because, frankly, I'm overwhelmed just *thinking* about it.
Ugh, SAME. That overwhelmed feeling? Oh, I know it intimately. Honestly, just… start tiny. Think of a small, manageable goal. Like, maybe just sitting and thinking for five minutes each day? It could be anything! Maybe just *reading* a few things about it is a good start. Don't try to boil the ocean on day one. I tried that. Epic fail. I ended up staring at a blank wall for three hours, feeling like a monumental failure, questioning all my life choices. It was a low point. Start small. Baby steps, people. Baby freakin' steps.
What if I fail? Because, let's be honest, I'm probably going to. I'm good at failing. It's like, my superpower.
Oh, honey, failing is part of the *fun*! Seriously! Embrace it! Failure is just feedback. It’s like your brain is giving you a high-five… for learning what *doesn't* work. I failed. Like, spectacularly. Multiple times. I remember this one time… Ugh, don't even get me started. It was a complete disaster. But you know what? I learned more from that epic fail than from any success I've ever had. Embrace the suck. It's the best teacher you'll ever have. Think of failing like learning to ride a bike: you're gonna fall. Probably a lot. But eventually, you'll be cruising! And wearing a helmet. Probably.
Is this going to change me? Because, I kinda like me. Mostly. Okay, sometimes. But… you get it.
Here's the truth bomb: YES. It probably will. A little. A lot. Who knows? Possibly, more than you're comfortable with. It might make you question everything you thought you knew, the people you thought you loved. It could make you more open to the world, more compassionate, more… *whatever*. It could also make you want to run screaming into the hills never to be heard from again. The important thing is, you remain *you*. Even the quirky, weird, sometimes-annoying, gloriously imperfect *you*. Keep ahold of that. And if you don't like the changes? Well, you can always change back. Or find a therapist. Or both. I did both, trust me.
I'm feeling… confused. And maybe a little scared. Help.
Okay, deep breaths. It's okay to be confused and scared. It's *normal*. This isn't a quick fix or a magic bullet. It's a journey. It's messy. It's frustrating. It's exhilarating. It's all of it. The most important thing? Be kind to yourself. Give yourself permission to not have all the answers. Reach out to people. Talk about it. Vent. Cry. Eat chocolate. Whatever gets you through. And remember, even when you feel utterly alone, you're not. We’re all just stumbling around in the dark, trying to figure things out. Together, maybe? Probably not, but, who knows? Good luck, you magnificent, slightly terrified human.
What if I have… *specific* questions? Like, say, about the meaning of life? (No pressure)
The meaning of life? Oh, you just *had* to go there, didn't you? Okay, look. First of all, I don't have the answer. Nobody does. (Unless they're lying. And probably *are*). But! That question, it's a gold mine. It's the motherlode. *My* take? The meaning of life is what *you* make it. It's the journey, not the destination. It's the messy,Cozy Stay Spot
