Close to vineyards and some good restaurants. Pool was clean and breakfast excellent. Stayed only one night but could easily have added one night, time permitting.
Got some help with printouts at no extra cost.

This year my family split our summer vacation up into two areas, Long Island and Washington D.C. I tend to choose Holiday Inn properties because I am a rewards member. This was our choice for our first 4 nights of vacation (Sun-Wed).

Positives:
1. My main beef with my previous visits to Long Island has been how long it takes to drive from one place to another. It seems like half my visit is spent in the car. The HIE Riverhead is located an awesome minute or two off the end of the Long Island Expressway. This seriously reduced the amount of time I spent in the car this year.
2. Lots of restaurants and shopping areas just a minute or two from the hotel. There is a 7-11 you can walk to for snacks and sundries, and a proper grocery store just a few minutes down the road.
3. The pool was clean, the area around the pool was tidy, and there were very few other users of the pool. I went swimming two evenings to cool off and sunbathed for a couple hours one afternoon and never once was bothered by other patrons. The other people using the pool were friendly and quiet.
4. Free breakfasts are great. Its a huge time and money saver for the family to be able to get up, get ready, and head down for breakfast at their own pace.
5. The staff was super friendly. We were greeted with a small Priority Rewards gift bag a check in and never had a problem getting a question answered.

Negatives:
1. We had 4 people staying in the room but housekeeping never gave us 4 towels. We ended up just going down to the pool and grabbing some of those towels for our showers or else having to call each day for more towels.
2. We were unable to get a luggage rack for our room, which meant we had to use the ironing board to hold some of our bags.
3. The television was pretty old (not HD or flatscreen) and more than half the channels weren't working. I know there is a war going on between some of the cable companies and the dish providers, but some of the missing channels (All the HBOs, the main ESPN) weren't part of that. Since we didn't use the television that much anyway, I never bothered to call and complain about it, but its something to keep in mind if you plan on spending a lot of time in the room.

Overall: While I am not happy with the rate we had to pay for the room, I realize that it's just the cost of doing business in Long Island. When I am forced to pay these higher rates I really just want my trip to go smoothly and not have to drag a good experience out of anyone. The HIE in Riverhead did just that and we will make it our first choice the next time we visit.

We used the Holiday Inn Express East End to block rooms for those guests who were attending our daughter's wedding because of the close proximity to the venue. The Holiday Inn Express was also a better value than the other three hotels in the area. In addition to the block of rooms reserved, we also booked the bridal suite for the bride and groom. It was immense, beautifully laid out and with a whirlpool in the bathroom. Our guests were very comfortable. The rooms had a mini fridge. The outside pool was clean and inviting. The breakfast was ample and the breakfast room comfortable and spacious. In fact, after the wedding, many of the guest chose to sit in the room and hang for a while. The staff arranged a shuttle service to transport the guests to and from the wedding venue. We had about 40 gift bags that were distributed to our guest. Everyone received their's without a problem.

I cannot say enough about the helpful staff- which in today's day and age is a rarity. The wedding took months of preparation with calls back and forth to the hotel for status up dates on the rooms that were blocked, shuttle service, and other last minute details. We found the staff responsive, helpful and friendly. We had last minute guests that were accommodated. There was never a phone call or email that went unanswered. Thank you Kristen, Ashley, Marielle and hotel manager, Michelle, for your all of your kindness, help and assistance.

The so-called suite was perfect for our family of four. Two double beds and fold-out couch. A fridge not filled with mini-bar stuff was in the room. Wifi internet was included in the cost of the hotel. Always important in this age of kids' gadgets.
The breakfast had some healthy and not so healthy options. It was fine for us and we walked away satisfied.
The outdoor pool is a nice size--not really long enough for laps, but better than you average US hotel pool.
The location was good only for people who love outlet malls and driving wherever they need to go. Forget about it if you hope to go on a nice walk right by the hotel.
Service was pleasant and helpful.
Fitness room was in the basement. It mostly had aerobic machines.