Great base for visiting Edinburgh (Holiday Inn Express Hotel Edinburgh)

Member Name: cherryJ

Product:	Holiday Inn Express Hotel Edinburgh
Date:	18/04/09 (31 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Close to City, close to Ocean Terminal, Modern, clean

Disadvantages: Not many facilities

Holiday Inn Edinburgh Waterfront

Location

Located a little out of the centre, in Leith, right by the Ocean Terminal.
In my opinion, a great location. You avoid the busy traffic of the city centre, the hotel has plenty of free car parking, and there is a bus stop literally in front of the hotel. A bus to the city centre takes about 10 minutes and a Day ticket offering unlimited travel costs only £3.
The Ocean Terminal is across the road, 5 minutes walk from the hotel. This houses a Vue cinema, a selection of restaurants and plenty of shopping on 3 levels. Shops are open til 8pm, cinema and restaurants until 11pm so there is plenty to amuse yourself.

Rooms

We stayed 2 nights. The first night we were in a 4 person room which had a double bed and a sofa bed. The second night we were in a twin room. Both rooms were nice and spacious and felt cosy. Rooms are provided with tea and coffee making facilities, a TV with some Sky channels and pay per view films and en suite bathroom. The bathroom consists of toilet, washbasin and power shower. The shower was great, one of the best I have had in a hotel! No toiletries are provided but there are shower gel/soap dispensers on the wall.
If necessary, reception provides a selection of complimentary items such as toothbrush, toothpaste, razor etc.

Facilities

This is a Holiday Inn Express so facilities are kept to a minimum. The hotel doesn't have a restaurant but does have a bar serving hot and cold drinks. There is a widescreen TV in the lounge area which was showing football matches during our stay.
There is an internet computer in the lobby charged at £1 for 30 minutes. Faxing and photocopying are also available.
Breakfast is included with all rooms and is a self-service continental affair. There is a wide choice of items including cereals, fruit, croissants, muffins, cheese, yogurts. You can eat in the lobby or take a tray up to your room at no extra charge.

Service received

All the members of staff we encountered were very friendly. The hotel had a very welcoming feel, everything was very well kept and rooms were to a high standard. Staff seemed eager to help and were approachable. We had only booked for one night and I enquired if we could stay another night at the same rate I had booked on the internet. This was not a problem at all and the manager sorted it out straight away. He was very very friendly and went out of his way to help me out.

Value for money
I managed to book a special internet rate of £48 per room per night including breakfast which I thought was excellent value for money. The hotel is very modern and everything is well kept. The breakfast is more than substantial and free car parking is an added bonus.

Overall
Overall this is a brilliant base for visiting Edinburgh, especially if you have a car. It enables you to avoid the busy traffic in the city centre, and access to the centre is very easy by bus. Customer service is to a very high standard, rooms are spacious and comfortable. Breakfast is great with plenty of choice. The Ocean Terminal is very close and a good place to visit in the evenings. I would certainly recommend Holiday Inn Waterfront for a stay in Edinburgh, suitable for both leisure and business.

Summary: Great hotel, very friendly staff