Holiday Inn Express Wilkesboro by IHG

New Friends in Unlikely Places I have stayed at this location multiple times and have always found it to be a great place to stay. It is convenient to a major highway, many restaurants, and shopping. The hotel is clean and I am speaking of every area from the lobby to the room, as well as the pool area/pool, fitness center, breakfast area, and the venue rooms. The beds and pillows are comfortable and they have down pillows as well as hypoallergenic pillows. The entire staff is great. I do want to add a special note about 3 of the staff members that I feel went above and beyond. The manager, Drew, was very accessible whenever needed and was very happy to give local recommendations and directions, both of which you can trust. He is an asset to this company and is a big part of why this hotel runs so smoothly. He leads by example and makes his customers feel important. He was never too busy to speak with the customers, which is a rare trait these days, and it makes a huge difference in the customer's experience. He has brought together a super staff and it shows. Ralene was at the front desk and was always smiling no matter how many times she was approached and no matter the reason for that encounter. She makes you feel like she really does care about you and desires to make your stay a superb experience. She made sure that we had plenty of coffee available for our group. I had asked about coffee in the lobby and she made sure to let me know (when she saw me) when fresh coffee was brewed. I also want to note that I had spoken to her about the door to the pool area (I thought I had to use my key card to get in but was informed how to work the door) and informed her I was going out to the pool. A thunderstorm came up a little while after that conversation and she went to the pool area to make sure that I had made it in safely and was not stuck outside in the storm. She is a great asset to this company and I hope they recognize what a treasure they have in her. Now let me tell you about Ricky Dozier. He does the set up/tear down for the events. He is not only friendly and pleasant but he is a hard worker and a real go-getter. He does his work in a timely manner and does not mind moving things around if the customer changes their mind on where they want something put. He even went out of his way to make sure that some chairs were available for the outside picture of the group and made sure that they knew he would come back to pick the chairs up after they were done. I personally watched him setting up inside the venue and I was impressed with him; but, let me tell you that he even impressed my father, which is hard to do when it comes to work. My father is old-school and knows what real work is so he is not impressed easily, but Ricky managed to impress him as well. He is truly an asset to this company. Drew, Ralene, and Ricky made me feel like I had met new friends in an unlikely place. If you are in the Wilkesboro, NC area, this is the place you want to stay.