I have stayed in a few hotels in London and I must say that they do not match neither the comfort nor the service levels of those in other countries, and yet they charge much much more!

The rooms are always too small and stuffy. The bathroom does not have adequate ventilation and the hotel itself usually should have been renovated about 40 years ago!

3 star hotels will charge you £60 per night (including breakfast). The room will be small (yes, I know I mentioned that earlier). About big enough to fit one double bed and you'll have trouble moving around the room. The bathroom is actually not a bathroom because it doesn't have a bath but a small shower with an old shower curtain. You will usually get a small TV with in-house movies.

Forget about an airconditioner and the heating will be on when it is on and off when the hotel manager decides to turn it off.

The thing that really gets to me is the stuffiness. The windows are not big enough to air the room and as you'll guess the years of use are definately showing.

If you are late to return to your hotel, the doors are locked and you'll have to ring a bell for someone to let you in.

The 4 star & 5 star ones are obviously better in service but the price really jumps. A 4-star will normally cost about £150/night and I have not even asked about the cost of the 5-star one (although I have stayed in one). The rooms though, are still small compared to what you would find in other countries.

I am not saying that the hotels in most other European countries are not just as small. But they are usually not as stuffy and much less expensive.

I must admit, people that have been born and raised in the UK may not find them so bad. I am comapring them to what I am used to, Australian and American style hotels where "Holiday Inn" will provide you with a huge room with airconditioning, TV, minibar, tea & coffee making facilities, a huge ba
throom with a bath & a separate shower (a jacuzzi is only a little extra) and is new and modern. The price of all that in the land Down Under? About $80 AU - which makes about £35.

As you can understand, I am NOT impressed!