This year's hurricanes have filled a lot of hotel rooms in the Houston area. I found a room at a Holiday Inn Select on the west side of Houston, near the intersection of I-10 and TX-6.

The Holiday Inn Select brand is a more executive level than the normal Holiday Inn, which was original geared towards families. I've stayed at one in Bakersfield, CA, and now this one in Houston. They are consistently better, as "consistent" as two hotel data points can be. :) I was able to stay at a corporate rate of $65 a night.

The bed was very nice, firm, with a heavy comforter and four full pillows. It was very comfortable. 32 channels included ESPN, ESPN2, ESPNEWS, and ESPN Classic, with HBO, MTV and VH-1, but alas no Sci-Fi. I'd trade HGTV for Sci-Fi, seriously. :) An electronic thermostat control handled air-conditioning with no problems.There were only two outlets available for all my electronics. The desk was nice, but it's tucked in the corner of the room, with a couch along the window. This caused the chair space to be kind of cramped.

The room had no refrigerator or microwave. The hotel did have wireless internet, but service was spotty and only worked on the lower floors and in the restaurant. The modem connected consistently at 45200, a good rate.

The bathroom was roomy and had ample counter space. The shower head had multiple settings, and the water pressure was more than sufficient. Water temperature was consistently very hot; one needed to be careful with the single control.

The hotel has an indoor pool and a hot tub. The fitness room had one treadmill, one rowing machine, and one stairmaster, but there was a 30-foot wall full of weights and nautilus. The treadmill misreported the speed—my 4 mph walks became 5.5—but it was safe.

Room service had good food but was incredibly slow, taking more than an hour to bring up fajitas. The restaurant was nice and reasonably priced. Platinum Priority Club members are entitled to one complimentary well drink and one complimentary in-room movie per night. Unfortunately they do not accumulate. :) Complimentary breakfast is offered on the top (19th) floor, but the lounge is smaller than a standard room, containing one round table and a TV.

Parking around the hotel fills up quickly. The parking lot is on the east side of the hotel, a pain when the doors to the hotels are on the north and south sides. The entrances from the parking lot onto Highway 6 are blocked, forcing people to use Park Row Avenue to gain access and egress. There is an entrance-only and two places to exit, and some people try to go in the out-door.

The Holiday Inn Select is nice, but if I were to stay here again, I'd ask for a lower floor for the better Internet access. The room is comfortable and roomy enough for Tae-Bo and in-place calisthenics.