We got a very good deal online so we decided to stay here for a night before we board our cruise. This hotel is indeed on the beach and quite close to the port from where we had to board our Carnival Triumph. Our deal did not include free breakfast however this hotel is located at an ecxellent location with quite a few restaurants (from Rainforest cafe, Ihop to local restaurants) so we were good. It has Walmart and Kroger nearby so was good to purchase some last minute stuff for our little one. We really liked the location of this hotel.

Stayed here for two nights and if everything hadn't been booked up, I would have left in the middle of the night. We were on the 4th floor and evidently above the bar because a Zydeco band played until almost 2 a.m. It was so loud that our room vibrated. I called twice to complain to a disinterested front desk. You also couldn't park if you left in the evenings because all the people who came to the bar took up all the parking. We had to park a street over in the overflow parking lot. The second night, I thought surely not again, but yes, same band and same noise. This time I asked to talk to a manager who couldn't move us because they were booked full, but took a whomping $40 off my bill. I also discovered some ants or some sort of insects in the bathroom the morning of checkout. After this experience, I will never stay with Holiday Inn anywhere.

Are you ready for this? You are about to read a bad review about room 821 in the Holiday Inn "Resort" in Galveston. Do not stay at this hotel, unless you want...

--Door to outside that doesn't shut unless you put some weight behind it and do it just the right way so the latch matches up and you can actually lock the door.

--Security latch on door that is falling off the doorframe and can't secure itself, much less you! (Oh, and when they come fix it, the guy from the "engineering dept" comes up to the eighth floor with a luggage dolly and says, "Did you need this?" Really? Then, when he's told the real reason he was called to your room, he says he has to come back, then. I told him forget it.

--A luggage rack that breaks the moment you put actual luggage on it.

--Birds that wake you up at 4 am the first night you stay and a party with a live band that keeps you up until 4 am ( well, almost) the next night!

--A TV that doesn't work because they are upgrading to HD. All day??

--A restaurant that charges $9.99 per person for a very bland breakfast buffet complete with those runny, typical school cafeteria, eggs.

--A shower head appropriately positioned for a short person. It was too low for my wife or myself. She is 5'9" and I'm 6'1" --neither of that tall, but maybe a little above average.

--A steel fixture that is incomplete in the bathroom to hang the blow dryer on. Really...the maid hung the blow dryer on this thing that looks like it should have something really nice on it, but in its current form, is a steel contraption with the name of the manufacturer on it.

--A hotel that from the outside looks like something you'd see on a 70s game show. You know, "You've won 7 days and 6 nights in the fabulous Holiday Inn Resort in Galveston, TX overlooking the beautiful Gulf of Mexico". Seriously, the hotel looks like one of the pictures on and old Price is Right or something.

--A staff that sends you to their 800 number when you want to address some concerns you have. (And a manager that says, "they shouldn't have done that" when you call back after lodging a very bad complaint with corporate.).

Yeah, stay at this hotel.

The rooms were clean and comfortable. Each room had a balcony overlooking the pool and the beach. The front desk clerk was very helpful and offered us a gift upon arrival with coupons, water and snacks. Before we arrived we were told to request rooms above the third floor and away from air-conditioning. We were on the sixth floor. During the night it was very quiet and we got a good nights sleep. Overall this hotel was a bargain for the price. Would definitely stay here again.