I stayed in the Holiday Inn Downtown Shanghai for eight nights last month. I chose Holiday Inn as it is a chain I am very familiar with and I am always confident in the level of service that I receive.

The hotel is located in central Shanghai opposite the Shanghai Railway Station ( no train noise to worry about ) and is split in two halves The Plaza Wing ( which I stayed in ( and the Great Wall wing ). The two halves are linked via the underground carpark and they will take you in a golf buggy between the two receptions though it is only a one minute walk.

Plaza reception is very grand lots or marble but more importantly well manned and efficient. When you check in they will take a deposit from your credit card - but it does not deduct any money- this is common practice in hotels here.

I went up to my room on the 14th floor and it was the standard Holiday Inn room very clean. Bathroom was typical standard with usual range of complimentary toiletries. The bed was firm and lots of pillows.

From what I understand the Great Wall wing has been refurbished recently and the rooms are much more modern with flat screen TVs etc etc. I was quite happy with comfort level in my room

The restaurant is located on the third floor and was a clean and spacious dining room. The food choice was excellent. Choice was a la carte with a mix of Western and local dishes or a buffet. I tried both menus. The buffet was my preferred choice and I was able to try a mix of dishes every night. I was daring and can say that steamed bullfrog is a bit chewy and tastes quite plain.

Staff were very friendly and were attentive to people. I overheard a number of people make observations to the staff and surprisingly they were actioned straight away. For example, I heard one guest say at breakfast that he thought the staff should walk around and ask guests if they wanted more coffee / tea rather than the guest having to call waiter over. Next morning every couple of minutes I was asked would you like more tea or coffee which I thought was good.

In the reception area there was a small bar and a coffee outlet. The coffee outlet served excellent sponge cake and I felt obliged to have seconds.

Check out was very efficient no queues. Probably because it was 6am.

The day before I left I took advantage of the laundry service all your clothes washed and folded for 120RMB. So bargain, that I was able to come home with no dirty washing to speak of. Clothes were picked up from room at 8am and when I returned in the evening they were very neatly bagged and folded.

Negatives the hotel is located on a busy road 6 lanes in both directions and even on 14th floor traffic noise could be heard at night. But nothing too invasive. It is also located away from the Pudong business district and the tourist bits, but given taxis are so cheap it is not really an issue

Positives staff very helpful without being overbearing , good food and very reasonable price about £40 room charge a night.

Overall it is the longest I have stayed in the same hotel for quite a while and I found it very welcoming despite its size.