We got off to a bad start on arrival Oct 7. I had booked our room for 5 nights a couple months in advance, but silly me, I didn't read the fine print so was surprised when they charged my credit card for the full 5 nights on Sept. 5. And was even more surprised when we checked in and said we wanted to stay only 3 nights, and they said too bad, no refunds. I've never experienced such a policy before. And just now, when I was going over my credit card bill, I found a charge of $15.17 the day after we left. I tracked down their phone number and spoke to someone who said she'd reverse the charge. In between, though, we really enjoyed our stay. The breakfast was generous with an awesome pancake-making machine, and it was fun to see the balloons from the breakfast room on the mornings we didn't go out early. Our room was fine. Except for the front desk clerk on duty when we arrived, everyone was nice and friendly.

This hotel was pretty nice and comfy. We stayed for 5 days during the International Hot Air Balloon Festival. The hotel is close to the Sandia Peak/Tram and Sandia casino. It was also very easy to get around from the hotel. The cleaning staff was friendly and we had no problems with our room. The hotel in general was clean and cozy. The front desk staff was friendly as well and they had daily drawings to win Balloon stuff. The price was decent, but was probably higher because of the festival. Wouldn't normally pay over $200 for an Express. All in all it was a great and comfortable stay.

I booked this hotel 12 months in advance for the duration of the balloon fiesta. At the time it was rating well on tripadvisor which when combined with the location and the very helpful manager made it seem like a good choice. Imagine my distress when a week before my stay there were three poor reviews of the hotel suggesting that the quality had slipped. As I was locked in I had no choice but to go ahead.
I was pleasantly surprised to find none of the negative aspects mentioned in those reviews. The reception staff were attentive and friendly. The room was clean, very comfortable, well appointed and better than many of this standard I have stayed in ( I should say that if you want a giant bathroom then pay the extra to stay in a top end hotel). Initially it appeared my fridge wasn't working as reported by other reviewers but once I plugged it in it functioned perfectly for the duration of my stay. The housekeeping (and hotel cleaning in general) was excellent. Breakfast was varied, plentiful, kept topped up and (where appropriate) hot. The breakfast staff kept the tables clean and removed the rubbish regularly. They were also extremely pleasant while performing what must be a difficult job dealing with demanding guests. The hot tub was hot and the pool was heated but not overly so. Both were clean. There were towels specifically for the pool area to avoid having to use your bath towels.
The only downside was the ethernet connection for the internet didn't work but the wireless worked fine so was no big deal.
We requested, and were allocated, a top floor room overlooking the Fiesta Park so we could wake up in the morning and watch the launch or the evening fireworks from our room. When we chose to go to the field it was literally a 22 minute walk to the gate.
In summary, if you are attending the Balloon Fiesta this hotel can't be beaten (get a room on 3rd floor with an even number!). If you are just passing through Albuquerque looking for a hotel it will give you a great stay at a reasonable price.

Was extremely surprised on how clean the place was and anytime I walked around there was someone cleaning or asking if I needed help with anything. Rooms had a little refrigerator and microwave and even though the rooms weren't the biggest around they had everything you need and comfortable. The breakfast in the morning was really good and had lots of options. I was just really impressed and would recommend to anyone...the only reason I gave a 4 on location was cause it's a distance from old town, zoo, etc.