Holiday Inn Stevenage by IHG

A great hotel with lovely, friendly and helpful staff This is the second time I have had the pleasure of staying at this hotel. Lucian welcomed us when we arrived - he remembered us from our last visit! the room was super and breakfast was great. The waiting staff are lovely too. We are looking forward to staying there again soon.

Great Choice Needs More Staff Very much a review of two halves. Overall, I have no serious concerns about the hotel itself, but other guests clearly put a strain on the staff there. We stayed for two nights, on an obviously busy weekend, there appeared to be a boxing tournament on in the hotel itself and simultaneously there were a number of guests staying who were obviously attending a wedding elsewhere. The wedding guests in particular were among the most entitled people I've ever come across, constantly crowding all public areas, doors, etc. and late on Saturday evening whilst queueing for Reception, we saw one couple who clearly had not paid for their room but insisted loudly they had and another couple who stormed to the front of the queue that had built because she was not happy with the room type (it would appear that she very much got what she paid for). This put a strain on the solo staff member behind reception, who also appeared to be fielding requests from the other group for service in the hotel bar. I appreciate a hotel can't be held responsible for the people who stay there, but when the hotel is full, it definitely needs more staff to help deal with this. That being said, the stay itself was absolutely fine. The greeting at Reception was warm and accommodating. We didn't get a room upgrade with our Platinum status, however the hotel was full and obviously undergoing refurbishment, so no serious problems, but in other Holiday Inns this is usually acknowledged at check in, but again champagne problems. The room is OK, the bathroom is small for the size of the room, but its obviously limited by the shape of the room, and still functional. Rooms are basic, there's no fridge available, which we usually see in other Holiday Inn properties and amenities seem to be bare minimum. Also noted daft things such as there being nowhere to hang both towels, my guess is its geared up to solo / business travelers and random and/or not working light switch configurations. Again, small / irrelevant points, but things we noticed. Bed was comfortable, room was quiet even on the main road and otherwise the room was adequate. Breakfast staff were very enthusiastic and inviting when we arrived on the morning, and the breakfast offering was inline with other similar hotels, but tasty and there didn't seem to be anything running out at any point. Despite the staff obviously struggling with the wedding party, we found them to be very helpful, engaging and friendly. Because of the excessive wait at Reception (and the rude lady who doesn't believe in queues), they comped Breakfast for us without even asking, the parking was also waived at the small car park at the back of the hotel (no idea why but appreciated regardless). A final note, the location is great for Stevenage train station, its literally a straight line / 10 min walk when you exit the station, so perfect digs for trips to London and apparently everywhere. So overall the hotel is good, the staff are amazing, just get more of them.

Depressing, shabby, very basic Depressing, Shabby, very basic. Room service food lukewarm and wrong starter sent. One positive - at breakfast I was greeted with a smile by Sue, a real ray of sunshine in an otherwise depressing stay - I really hope she is valued and recognised by the group for the difference she makes. Second positive, the breakfast was quite good!

Tired Hotel needs a Long Nap Very Tired rooms in desperate need of an update, this hotel photo shows the front of the building the back exterior is in need of extensive cleaning and paintwork At least if there a fire the fire station trucks next door don't have far to travel. Noisy dual carriage way outside the hotel Tiny on site parking area for around 12 car at best, though there is paid parking across a very busy dual carriage way about a 5 to 10 minute walk with all your stuff not something a want to do after a long day. No USB sockets in the rooms, stained carpets, the bed was comfortable I suppose. air con was easy to use but was noisy running so I had to turn off to sleep. The toilet bowl was dirty under the seat, moldy bathroom sealants because they haven't been cleaned properly, stained tiles in the bathroom, poor peeling paintwork because of water ingress from the shower and a small bath made for the vertically challenged. Decent but small towels. Restaurant served food but the quality was Average and Very small portions, edible but nothing special, short on staff too had to wait far to long for bill. Staff were pleasant enough but they seems cold and gave the impression they wouldn't go that extra mile if asked. Not good value for the money as a business traveler and i could see why it wasn't full, I will not be revisiting this hotel again

A lovely stay at the Holiday Inn The hotel is modern,clean and comfy. The decor and furniture is new and tasteful. Breakfast and dinner was delicious with plenty of choice. The staff were very attentive and always eager to please. Empty plates were removed and tables were cleaned quickly. Our bedroom was clean and comfortable with a comfy arm chair. The beds were comfy with a choice of pillows. The shower and bath had a good supply of warm water. We really enjoyed our 4 night stay at Holiday Inn.