After spending five nights in Springfield IL at a spacious home we found on Airbnb, we stayed in the city for another five nights, except this time at the Candlewood Suites.
The hotel was good value using our IHG Rewards Club points, so we figured it’d be a good way to save some money versus paying for another five days at the Airbnb property.
It ended up being one of the best Candlewood Suites properties we’ve stayed at thanks to the great service and an additional touch midweek we’ve not experienced any other time we’ve stayed at the brand. Having said that, the separate bedroom area was far too hot at night time – more about that later.
Here’s a complete review of our stay at the Candlewood Suites Springfield IL.
Check-In
Shae had headed off to Indianapolis for a few days to meet up with her best friend, so it was just me and our dog Truffles for the first couple of nights. We’d had to check out of the Airbnb at 11am, so we killed some time by heading to a park to walk around and have some lunch.
Our check-in time at the Candlewood Suites was supposed to be 3pm. I’m only so good at killing time though, so at 12:30pm I decided to head to the hotel to see if our room happened to be ready.
I have Spire Elite status with IHG Rewards Club, so figured that might increase the chance of an early check-in. I’d also received an email that morning advising that I’d received 500 bonus points as my Welcome Amenity (thanks to my status). That made me think they might’ve already checked us in and allocated our room.
Tracy was working at the front desk when I checked in and was extremely friendly and accommodating. She was more than happy trying to find us a room and there was one available, so was able to get us checked in 2.5 hours early.
Within a couple of minutes, I had a couple of keys to room 401 which is on the top floor of the hotel.
Room
When making the reservation online, the only room type that could be chosen was a ‘Standard Room’. That made me think we’d end up in a studio suite with a queen bed, so I was pleasantly surprised when entering to see that it was a one bedroom suite.
The kitchen was off to the right, the bathroom off to the left, the living room straight ahead and the bedroom ahead and to the left.
Living Room
Between the kitchen and living room was a long desk and office chair. It was nice having laminate flooring in this area as it meant the chair moved around easily.
In the living room was a somewhat comfortable sofa bed and a coffee table.
On the opposite side of the living room was a reclining armchair which was a little more comfortable; I sat in it that evening and ended up falling asleep. Next to the armchair was a small side table.
The TV was on top of a dresser which also held a DVD player. The Candlewood Suites Springfield – and all other Candlewood Suites properties – have DVDs you can borrow from the front desk, hence why there are DVD players in each guest room.
The hotel had a fairly good selection of TV channels to watch. One downside was that the remote wasn’t great, so the buttons had to be pressed extremely hard in order to type in a channel number.
On the left side of the room when entering was a closet. Inside the closet was a laundry basket and bedding for the sofa bed. I don’t think the closet had an iron or ironing board though which was surprising (unless they were hidden in the closet to the right). It was also missing a luggage rack.
Kitchen
Every room at every Candlewood Suites property has a kitchen which is one reason why we’ve stayed at several so far on our 50 state road trip.
This kitchen included a fridge-freezer, microwave, stove top and dishwasher.
The cupboards above the sink contained bowls, plates, glasses, etc. It was good to see enough stuff for four place settings as some Candlewood Suites properties only include two of everything.
In the drawers to the right of the dishwasher were silverware and cookware.
Opposite the fridge-freezer was some additional cupboard space.
I got a nice surprise when opening the microwave as there was some complimentary popcorn inside.
Bedroom
Off the living room was the separate bedroom area with a door that closed. Inside was a queen bed which only had one bedside table. To the left of the bed was a desk (not pictured) and chair (slightly pictured).
Opposite the bed was a second TV on top of a dresser.
To the left of the desk and chair was a closet which didn’t contain anything other than a few clothes hangers.
Although we appreciated having a separate bedroom, it did have a big downside. There was no air conditioning unit in the bedroom, so it got extremely hot in there at night.
The bedroom did have a vent on the wall between the bedroom and living room which was presumably to draw some of the cool air from the living room’s air conditioning unit. This didn’t do much good though, so we ended up having to sleep with the door to the living room open.
It also meant the living room lights and sound from the TV also passed into the bedroom more easily at night, even with the door closed.
Bathroom
Our room had a fairly spacious bathroom. When entering the bathroom, the sink and vanity was straight ahead with the toilet to the left.
The toiletries were on top of the vanity. The shampoo and soap were Oxygen Collection brand which I didn’t really care for. Neither the shampoo nor the soap lathered up well in the shower, although the soap was fine for hand-washing.
An amenity that Shae appreciated was the separate makeup washcloth, along with the makeup removers.
The bathtub was to the left of the bathroom with a shower that had good water pressure.
Overall, we liked our room. It was nice having an open plan living room and kitchen with a separate bedroom. The separate bedroom was let down though by how hot it got in there due to the lack of an air conditioning unit.
Amenities
The Candlewood Suites Springfield is targeted more at people looking for somewhere to stay for an extended period of time in the Illinois state capital.
That means they have several amenities to accommodate for that. One of those is a guest laundry room containing five washing machines and six dryers. All of these are free to use which is perfect for me and Shae seeing as we’re living in hotels and Airbnbs nowadays.
The guest laundry area is next to the fitness room which had a few pieces of equipment.
If you need any laundry detergent, snacks, beverages, etc., all those can be found in the Candlewood Cupboard.
Opposite the Candlewood Cupboard is the hotel’s business center. This is in its own room which provides a little extra privacy compared to some hotels that have it in the lobby. The business center consisted of two computers and a printer.
I needed to use the printer during our stay to print off my ticket for a Counting Crows concert. I was pleased to see that when closing the browser, the computer automatically logged out 20 seconds later which provides better security.
Out in the lobby is the Lending Locker. This contains items ranging from DVDs to slow cookers to board games and more. You can borrow any of these during your stay – you just need to ask at the front desk.
At the back of the hotel was a covered outdoor seating area with a couple of grills you can use.
Every floor had recycling facilities which was good to see. It was a bit of a shame though that there was nothing similar in our room to make recycling easier. Our room was at the opposite end of the floor, so if we wanted to recycle something we’d have to walk it all the way down the hall and back again. Several hotel brands nowadays offer recycling bins in addition to trash cans in guest rooms, so I prefer that setup.
On the Wednesday night of our stay they ordered in tons of pizza for guests to have for dinner. We’d not experienced this at a Candlewood Suites before, so it seems something specific this property does which was a nice touch. I overheard the staff member mention that they do something similar every Wednesday evening, although it’s not always pizza.
Pet-Friendliness
The Candlewood Suites Springfield IL is a pet-friendly hotel. The pet fee for 1-6 nights is $75 and the fee for 7+ nights is $150.
We only stayed five nights and so should have been charged $75. Despite them knowing that we had Truffles with us they didn’t charge a pet fee, so I didn’t prompt them to charge us for one.
To the side of the hotel is the official pet area. This grassy area is right outside bedroom windows on the first floor, so it’s a bit of an awkward location.
There are plenty of additional grassy areas around the hotel if you don’t want to look like a creeper outside a bedroom window.
If you want to take your dog for a walk, there are sidewalks around the hotel. The property is also within a 10 minute drive of several parks.
Service
Service at the Candlewood Suites Springfield in Illinois was excellent. Tracy was extremely friendly when I checked in and was very sweet with Truffles.
All the other staff were very personable as well, including LeaVell who gave Truffles several treats. He also accommodated our request for a 2pm late checkout which meant we were able to explore downtown Springfield further on our final day seeing as the places we wanted to visit didn’t allow dogs.
Overall, I’d say the service at this hotel was among the top five of all the hotels we’ve stayed at in terms of friendliness, hospitality and everyone seemed genuinely keen on offering great service.
Wi-Fi
Wi-Fi at the hotel is free. The connection was good and we didn’t ever have any issues with the speed.
Location
This hotel is on the southeast side of Springfield and is within walking distance of several restaurants including IHOP, Applebees, Springfield Char House and more.
It’s just off I-55 and only a ten minute drive to downtown Springfield where you can find the Illinois State House, Lincoln Home National Historic Site, Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum and more.
Cost
I mentioned at the beginning of the review that we booked our stay at the Candlewood Suites Springfield using points. That’s because it only costs 10,000 IHG Rewards Club points per night.
I also have the IHG Premier credit card which offers the fourth night free on award stays. That meant our five nights only cost us 40,000 points, or an average of 8,000 points per night.
If we’d paid cash, it would’ve cost $106.13 per night. That means we got 1.33cpp (cents per point) of value from our points which is great value for IHG Rewards Club points nowadays.
Final Thoughts
The Candlewood Suites in Springfield, Illinois is a great place to stay if you need a hotel in the state capital and appreciate having a kitchen.
Service at the hotel is fantastic and it has a lot of good amenities including free guest laundry facilities. The biggest downside was how hot the bedroom got with the lack of air conditioning in that room. Other than that though, it was a great stay.
Truffles Approval Rating
Truffles gives this hotel four paws out of four – pawfect! There was plenty of grass around the hotel, sidewalks where I could take her for a walk and she loved all the attention she got from the staff. She also loved all the treats she was given.
Our Rating
Room = 4.7 / 5
Hotel Amenities = 4.6 / 5
Food = N/A
Location = 4.4 / 5
Service = 4.9 / 5
Overall Value = 4.6 / 5
Total = 4.64 / 5
Address
Candlewood Suites, 2501 Sunrise Dr, Springfield, IL 62703
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