Holiday Inn Express Málaga Airport by IHG

4.5/5. This is a decent no-frills airport hotel, with pleasant staff who go out of their way to make you feel welcome. Let's face it, airport hotels do not usually get much love, not least because for most of us they are a functional necessity rather than a delight - they are just somewhere to put your head down before or after a flight. They do not get long-stay customers, in fact quite possibly they seldom even get that many "repeat stays" unless the airport is a very busy one, and the whole nature of the visit is a bit rushed and impersonal. The airport hotel is the hospitality sector's equivalent of going to the ER or Accident & Emergency: you want to get treated quickly, and smiles and bedside manner are not THAT important. Even so... every little helps, and in our experience this Holiday Inn does make an effort. Kudos for that. Standard rooms are perfectly OK, bathrooms clean and well enough appointed, beds comfortable, sound insulation good. I suppose the thought is that people are staying for such a short time it's not worth offering a refrigerator in the room, but it would have been nice. The dining area is rather short on "ambience", and looks more like an office canteen, but the food was OK, and the breakfast in the morning was more than adequate. We had a rental car, and the hotel's location was very convenient for dropping it off in the morning, but without your own transport it's a bit of a hike to walk to the Aeropuerto, and there did not seem to be any hotel courtesy bus, so you'd be reliant on public transport or taxis. Nothing very much of interest in the immediate local area, but that's not surprising: airport hotels are not famous for being in beauty spots. Recommended, especially if you get an IHG price.

NO SHUTTLE BUS. PUBLIC TRANSPORT NOT EASY TO UNDERSTAND. NOT WALKABLE. Using Uber or Bolt it was just over €10 each way. Hotel itself was clean and as expected. Knowing the above I would have considered a cheaper hotel near the C1 train route and caught train direct to airport which is easy.

So close to the airport! Breakfast available at 4am.

The lady in the reception was very kind

Main double bed was very comfortable. Sofa bed for two children to share was hard and had metal bars at the bottom and side where it folds out. Air con noisy but worked well. Clean room. Lovely staff. Good breakfast and great price