Holiday Inn Barnsley M1, JCT.37

At first, a friendly woman at reception welcomed us and seemed ready to help with everything we needed. Later, our TV remote stopped working, so I went down for batteries. The staff group in the function room were congratulating someone and gave off a strange vibe. They seemed to look straight through me instead of listening. The replacement batteries were dead, so I returned, and they handed back the same ones I'd brought down. They were outside smoking and seemed to be ignoring me. After about 15 minutes of trying to get their attention, an older man came down with two more batteries, but those didn't work either. He eventually brought a new remote to our room. The group in the function room had seemed like an odd school party, very unprofessional and immature. The night staff were completely baffling, and I wouldn't recommend them.

Breakfast was really tasty, and the staff were friendly. The hotel was lovely generally, though there were a few issues in room 201. The ceiling had water marks, as if there'd been a leak above at some point, and there was a lot of mould in the bath sealant. The lights attached to the bed surround were loose.

I paid about 20% more than nearby places because I trusted the hotel's reputation and expected a comfortable stay. Instead, I had several problems. There was a button missing from the control panel in the working lift, while the other lift was out of service. I also saw cracks in the ceiling running from the bathroom into the bedroom. At night, music from the restaurant downstairs was clearly audible around 1:00am and made it hard to rest. Around 11:30pm, I tried calling reception but couldn't reach anyone. The plumbing also seemed faulty, with what looked like wastewater occasionally coming into the toilet bowl, which made using the bathroom uncomfortable. I hope they address these issues for future guests. Based on my stay, I'd consider other options until the hotel makes improvements.

The hotel's beautiful, and the staff are brilliant, but noise in the morning kept me awake. After I complained, they let me check out at 1.30pm so I could get some sleep. Apparently they'd rented out a room for medical tests, and other people had complained about the noise too. The food was another letdown. My club sandwich had stale bread and dry chicken, and I think the bacon was left over from breakfast. Nothing tasted fresh, and it was inedible. Glen sorted it out and gave me a couple of beers, but I still went to bed hungry and won't go back. This could've been a five-star review if it weren't for the little things. The website said swimming was available, which was my whole reason for booking here as a halfway chillout on my way to Blackpool, but there was no swimming. I drove on to Blackpool tired, hungry, and disappointed.