I have stayed in my fair share of bad hotels in my time but this visit unfortunately has to rank as the worst hotel I've ever stayed at - bar none. If Basil Fawlty ever franchised a budget roadside inn, it would look suspiciously like the Days Inn by Stevenage North. What Hotels.com optimistically describes as a bar lounge turns out, in reality, to be a lonely fridge of bottled beer and a wheezing Stella Artois tap that spits foam into disposable plastic tumblers. Add a scattering of plastic chairs arranged with all the charm of a GP waiting room, and voilĆ ā āthe lounge.ā Gastronomy, meanwhile, extends to a proud display of Haribo and Pot Noodles balanced mournfully on a shelf. Fine dining this is not.
But the real piĆØce de rĆ©sistance was the room. Mine stank of damp, the dĆ©cor looked as though it had been carefully preserved from 1992, and, without asking, I was gifted a disabled-access shower and toilet setup. Quirky surprise aside, this would all have been forgiveable with a decent nightās sleep and a hot shower. Except ā there was no hot water. Not in my room, not in anyone elseās from my group, meaning an entire floor of guests were left embarking on a cold, bracing rinse before work. Nothing makes you feel valued as a paying guest quite like being plunged into a budget reenactment of the Ice Bucket Challenge first thing in the morning.
Avoid avoid avoid with all your strength. This is an embarrassment of an establishment!