Travelodge Plymouth - don't say I didn't warn you! (Hotels in Plymouth in general)

Member Name: The Daz

Product:	Hotels in Plymouth in general
Date:	14/01/09 (113 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Cheap rooms available if you book early.

Disadvantages: Poor location, poor decor and ambience, terrible ventilation.

The Travelodge Plymouth

A foreword: denizens or supporters of the aforementioned City should look away now, or pretend I mean another Plymouth entirely. (There's probably at least a dozen in the USA if you look).

Deeply depressing, soulless and unashamedly bland - and that's just the City. A less charming locale to site a Hotel I have yet to find, with the accommodation in question hidden inside a drab high rise block that shares space above street side restaurants with offices, overlooking a giant, unkempt roundabout, a short distance away from the low budget end of the main shopping area, and opposite a monolithic block of concrete joylessness that constitutes a dilapidated multi-storey car park.

I had the misfortune to stay here enroute to Cornwall one summer, and upon navigating the insane one way system now common to all major urban centres, and having parked in the aforementioned car park as directed by the Travelodge website, I walked across to the tiny ground floor reception and presented my booking. I had expected a nicely coloured card or token to stick in my car window to show the car park attendant that I was a Travelodge customer and allowed to park my car overnight for a reduced rate as explained, but was rather underwhelmed by the offering of a sheet of A4 with a hastily printed jumble of words that seemed to imply the same, but using the words of a 12 year old.

Perhaps I should have seen the sign (quite literally) as a warning. Yet, anticipating a drink in the pub that had taken over a disused bank across the road, followed by a meal at the least chain looking of the restaurants within a short amble of the hotel, followed by a good night's kip in a comfy bed, I waltzed merrily up to my room on the umpteenth floor.

Smaller than the usual generous size (as to be expected in the converted hotels rather than the far superior custom built ones), my room was decidedly dated, having been furnished some 20 years ago, and showing considerable wear. The bathroom plastic was worn and yellowing, the kettle looked too good for a Pound shop, and the carpet had seen several thousand heavy pairs of feet too many.

As it turned out - the beer was good and the meal more than acceptable, but details of those are for other reviews. My night's sleep was, however, less than stellar - the window, being in a high-rise was fitted with a lock to prevent me falling out of it (oh look, the door is over here, and above the sofa, how odd...), and opened a full 2 inches to allow ingress of a pitiful quantity of fresh air.
So it was that I near broiled in the summer heat, a pointlessly small window opening my only source of ventilation, and I awoke less refreshed than I can remember being for some time.

Overall - considering that this was as usual, a cheap room, £29 methinks or thereabouts, I should just be grateful and accept shortcomings. But enough of being feeble in a British way about things. I marched down to reception, and when asked how my stay was, told them exactly how unsatisfying it had been. Obviously the receptionist couldn't have cared less and was itching for me to leave so that she could return to reading her hastily stashed magazine that was barely hidden below the counter.

I would hesitate to recommend this stay to anyone - there are plenty of hotels in Plymouth, and should you actually need to stay there then the chances are you'll find something better than the Travelodge.

Summary: Best avoided - you have been warned!