I recently stayed overnight at the Howard Johnson Express Inn (Airport location off I-40/Meridian) in Oklahoma City while I was in the middle of driving from Ohio to California. This motel is more like a small-scale hotel and I found this was definitely a refreshing place to unwind at the end of a long day of driving. I tried staying here the last time I was in OKC but due to some basketball conference of some sort pretty much every decent place in town was totally booked.

I made my reservation a few days prior by calling this HoJo myself; the female front desk employee who answered was friendly and helpful, and when I requested a non-smoking room for just myself so she set me up in a "Business Suite". When I arrived to the hotel at around 8pm to check in, a young male employee greeted me with two key cards for my room and informed me that the complimentary hot breakfast would be served between 6am - 9am.

I was given a room on the second floor of the back side of the building, and was able to park right in front of my room. The stairs and hallways were both located indoors and to access either the outside door required my room key to gain entry (for added security).

Upon entering my room I found it to be very welcoming and I felt immediately at ease. There was a sliding glass door leading to a small patio overlooking the parking lot and the curtains were tasteful and new-looking. The room's furnishings were also very nice. Usually places I stay have furnishings that consist of some light-colored, very stripey wood material. This was not the case here; all pieces of furniture were of a dark Cherry-looking wood, giving a little more of an upscale look. Also in the room was a black leather chair with wheels for the desk, which was great. Other furnishings included a refrigerator, microwave, recliner chair, 32" television w/ remote and iron+board.

The 'comforter' on the bed had a nice darker pattern that matched the room decor. There was no fitted sheet on the bed and I found that it was substituted with another top sheet. (May be for an issue for some who are "movers") The mattress itself was of medium firmness. Pillows were okay - kind of still on the flat side, so I stacked mine. I slept very well that night, however the 11 hours of driving that day may have factored into that. =)

Showering next morning - wow! Definitely not the case of "not enough water pressure" - it felt like I was showering with a pressure cleaner you would use to blast at a floor! I would have liked a little LESS pressure in fact. Right as I was about to brush my teeth a small roach crawled out of the sink drain which I quickly covered with one of the provided cups. I was very surprised as the bathroom did not look filthy at all and I wonder how that "thing" managed to make it out of the drain. Hmm..

I did not get to experience the complimentary full breakfast provided that morning due to running behind schedule, but as I was checking out another hotel guest came up to complain to the front desk employee who was processing my checkout. Apparently there was no more bacon and/or gravy, only one plate left, and it must have been urgent because she rudely interrupted as the employee was informing me of my payment finalizations, etc. To add to this, this lady was complaining about the lack of food 10 minutes before breakfast was supposed to end. (Breakfast is served from 6a-9a.) My thoughts were, well what do you expect when you wait until the last minute?

Now for my only "negative" comment:
The location of my room. The location of the key card-required access door is an invitation to trouble-makers. The door is not directly visible from the parking lot unless you're parked in the 2 very last spots (next to a mini-alley) and as I am a young female (travelling alone I may add) I didn't feel very comfortable entering and exiting the building when I arrived at night. I limited my comings/goings to bringing up my luggage when I arrived at night and bringing it down the next morning and had dinner delivered to my room. (Quick tangent: Meridian Pizza, advertised in the in-room information folder, delivers to your room and their food was good/filling for a great price.) There is supposedly on-site night security that patrols the premises however, so maybe I was being overly paranoid.

Overall I had a GREAT experience here. I have stayed in Oklahoma City twice now; my previous stay at an over-priced/run down motel off I-35 was barely tolerable. GREAT location for travelers needing lodging near Will Rogers Airport; it's located just a block or so north of I-40 at the Meridian exit and there's a wide variety of dining ($-$$) located up and down the street. No loud noise issues or sketchy characters. My staff encounters were limited to the phone reservation and check-in/out, but all were friendly and helpful. AAA rates this lodging with 2 stars but compared to the rest of 2 star lodgings I have stayed at, (and I compare EVERYTHING - I am big on details!) I would give this Howard Johnson a 3 star rating, and recommend to budget travelers, families with older kids, and men on business trips.