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Novotel Hotel (Glasgow)
by credit_crunch
I have just returned from an overnight stay at this hotel in Glasgow. I had never been before, so I was aware it may have been a challenge to find! The one way system is very difficult to get your head around, especially if you have never been to this city before. Luckily when we picked up our hire car, we were given a map of the city ... centre. We also had to use the google maps app on our iphones.
Anyway we were checking into the hotel late afternoon - just after 4 pm. I was aware there were limited parking spaces, but as we arrived at the hotel, there was a parking space right outside the main entrance.
We parked up and went inside to check in, and to also see the hotel had any spaces left. Unfortunately the hotel's parking was full, so we had to leave the car on the street. This was frustrating, as we had to continue to feed the meter until 6pm, then go back out at 8am on Saturday morning to start feeding the meter again.
Check in was very simple & straight forward, as I had paid in full when I booked the hotel online. I was given details for the breakfast, and also for the fitness centre (which we didn't get round to seeing.).
The reception area is bright and very modern, as was the bar & restaurant. There is also free internet access on some computers in the reception.
Our room was on the 4th floor, and the trip to our room was quote pleasant, although the lifts are very small - apparently they hold 8 people, but at one point there were 3 adults & one suitcase and it proved a little tight!
Once we got to our room, we were rather surprised by the décor. The carpet appeared unclean, and everything was pretty basic - however the bathroom was fantastic- the shower heads were such a luxury! It was slightly strange that the toilet was separate - and it was also very cramped!
The room was very basic, but considering we had paid £69 for 2 people to include breakfast, we weren't really surprised.
We went to breakfast the next day, and there was a very good range of cooked foods, along with cereals, breads, yoghurts etc - typical continental breakfast items.
Service was very friendly throughout our stay & I would recommend this hotel to friends on a budget.
I more than likely would stay again, as it was central to the shopping centre, bars and restaurants, but I would not be willing to pay the hotels own advertised price.
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Express by Holiday Inn (Strathclyde Park)
by eilidhcatriona
Believe it or not, my recent visit to the Holiday Inn Express at Strathclyde Country Park was my first stay in a Holiday Inn/Premier Inn/Travel Lodge style hotel. I was attending a family wedding at a nearby hotel, and as it was fully booked, I booked two nights at the Holiday Inn Express.
The Holiday Inn Express is easily ... accessible at the M&Ds end of the park. As my parents were also at the wedding (although staying at the other hotel), I had a chauffeur (my dad), but had they not been there I would have been relying on public transport. Given the location of the hotel, I think it is better suited for those who drive.
I had booked the hotel over the phone, which was quick and easy. At first I had only booked the Saturday night, which would have been £75, but when I extended this to include the Friday night, it went down to £64.95 a night. I received an email confirmation from the hotel, but this was on request and when it arrived it was clearly not auto-generated - so I expect it is not standard practice for phone bookings.
The hotel reception is clean and smartly decorated - to the right of the entrance is the lounge where breakfast is served and there is a large TV. The lounge also includes a bar with very reasonably priced Tennents - I can't remember the exact price for two pints now, but it was less than in my parents village pub, which we usually consider the lowest price for a pint.
On check in they took my credit card details and I was given a swipe card key and advised about the times for breakfast - which I was slightly surprised about as I hadn't realised it was included. Had it not been included I would have opted to pay for it on the Saturday at least given that the wedding would be a long day. The staff at the reception were friendly and efficient, and got things done quickly. On check out their system was down so they said they would process payment later and post me the receipt. Payment has been take from my credit card, but I haven't recieved the receipt yet.
First impressions of my room were good. It was on the second (and top) floor, which was accessed by lift. The room was clean and in good condition, quite bright and pleasantly decorated. There was a choice of pillows labelled hard and soft (which amused me - I've never seen that before), tea and coffee facilities, a TV, and a reasonable sized bathroom. There was also a hairdryer and clothes hanging space.
The bed and pillows were comfortable, and I slept soundly both nights. The sheets were very clean and fresh, which is obviously important in a hotel. The shower was surprisingly good - my limited experience of hotel showers is that they are quite weak, but this was as good as my shower at home. My only complaint about the bathroom was that instead of little bottles of shampoo and shower gel, there were two wall-mounted dispensers, one in the shower, labelled "body, hair, hands" - a multi-function soap. I was glad that I had brought my own toiletries.
The hotel was very busy during my stay - I didn't see any other wedding guests there (I think they had all been quicker than me and managed to get into the hotel where the reception was) but there was at least one bus tour group all weekend. Despite this, I was not disturbed at all by noise, the reception was never crowded or rowdy, and there were plenty of seats at breakfast both days.
On both mornings of my stay I saw the cleaners doing the rounds of the rooms, but I decided to put the do not disturb sign on my door - I was only there for a short stay so I wasn't going to make much of a mess, and I'm never entirely happy about other people being in my hotel room.
My room at the Holiday Inn Express was not fancy, but it did the job. However, I did have two issues with the hotel which meant my stay was not as good as it could have been.
The first and more minor issue was that wifi was only available in the reception area. I didn't even have the option of paying to connect to wifi in my room - it just wasn't available. This was really only a minor inconvenience, but it was a disappointment. Wifi access in the reception is at least free, with an access code supplied by reception.
The second issue was breakfast. There's no way round this - it was rubbish. When I am staying at a hotel I like to take advantage of the hot breakfast - it's usually quite tasty and it's not something I often have at home. So at the Holiday Inn Express I bypassed the small selection of cereal, toast and a large bowl of sad looking pineapple chunks, and went to the hot food counter. There was a choice of scrambled eggs, beans and (meat) sausages. I'm not asking for a massive spread, but that seemed to me like a bit of a puny selection. The cold selection wasn't extensive either - some cereals, the sad pineapple and some yoghurts. As a vegetarian I could only have scrambled eggs and beans from the hot selection, and I don't even particularly like scrambled eggs. I also had two little pain au chocolats from the warm cabinet, which looked good but were stale and chewy. Even the fruit juices weren't brilliant. I had really wanted to fill up at breakfast as I knew that I wouldn't eat again until near 5pm. Later that day I spotted that the Toby Carvery restaurant next door was advertising breakfast for £5. Should have gone there.
The disappointments of the wifi and breakfast aside, my stay at the Holiday Inn Express at Strathclyde Country Park was fine. I might think twice about choosing the brand again if I want breakfast, but the room and the staff were absolutely fine.
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Holiday Inn Express Hotel (Edinburgh)
by mejulie999
We visited Edinburgh this week in 70mph gales, wearing waterproofs and determined not to let the delights of being blown across the road dampen our spirits.
The Holiday Inn in Picardy Place, Edinburgh was a delightful hotel to stay in and kept us smiling. It is situated on a busy main road in the Leith area of the city ... centre, just a 5 minute walk to Princes St. Considering it's position, it is nice and quiet in the hotel. It is directly opposite the Omni Centre, which houses a wide range of restaurants and a Cinema and also the Playhouse Theatre is opposite.
The reception area is bright and welcoming and when checking in, we were dealt with promptly and it was pretty painless. To the left of the reception area, there are a couple of computers for those who wish to go online. This is a paid for service. However, there is free wi-fi connection in the room. To the right of the reception is a very comfortable bar area, which not only serves alcohol, but coffee, tea and snacks such as paninis, with a variety of fillings. They are reasonably priced for a hotel within a capital city.
We booked our room over the telephone, after seeing their website online and as we avoided the weekend, as prices tend to be more expensive in most hotels of a weekend, we paid just £125 for a double room, with a sofa bed, for a two night stay. This included a complimentary breakfast. Not a bad deal considering the room rate was £133 per night, which was clearly displayed at the entrance.
Parking is very limited in the hotel with only around 9 spaces available. We were lucky, as we checked in fairly early and managed to get a space. However, the hotel does charge £10 per night for a space, and if none are available, there is a car park near the Omni centre, opposite the hotel.
I was very pleasantly surprised at the plush room in which we stayed. It was larger than average and the bed even had a choice of soft or firm pillows, clearly marked with a ribbon around them. This was a nice touch, and my partner and i each had one soft and one firm pillow. The bed was extremely comfortable and soft, with fresh, crisp white linen. Above the bed, there were two reading lights and a light that ran across the top of the substantial head board.
The lights are operated by a key card, which is the card used to enter your room. Once in the room, it is inserted into a box near the door, and this then operates the lighting. It was a very clever idea, as once removed it turns off all the lights, saving on energy.
The bathroom was the cleanest i think i have seen, and consisted of a lovely power shower, complete with body wash, nice deep basin, surrounded by granite and complimenary body wash, mounted on the wall. The good sized towels were fluffy and new and a box of tissues were also provided.
You will not find a wardrobe or bedside cabinets, but there is ample hanging space within a fixed unit, which houses a fan, hairdryer and empty open shelves to place your bits and bobs on. The television was HD and even a pen and paper were provided by the bed. A desk is also provided, where the television is housed, for business people visiting the hotel.
Breakfast is on the first floor and is served between 6am to 9am. It is self service and has a good selection of cereals, juices, fresh fruit, yoghurts, croissants and pan au chocolates, toast, egg and bacon, or egg and sausage, bacon one day, sausage the next. There is plenty of coffee and tea to be had and you can help yourself. It can get busy as a lot of business people stay at the Holiday Inn.
I slept well, and actually enjoyed being in the room. A wonderful hotel for a few nights break away and in a great position, handy for all the main attractions that Edinburgh has to offer. I will stay again.
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