Golden Nile

Our first impression of the Golden Nile was a dirty, smelly family hotel. We booked online and arrived to find the place stinking. The grubby proprietor said our room wasn't ready because they were "short on staff," then showed us a family room so dirty it turned our stomachs. I complained that it wasn't the room we'd agreed on, and she suddenly offered a £90 room that was worse. We said we'd cancel because the place wasn't like it looked online, and were told we'd have to go back through the internet booking site. Luckily my girlfriend got the money back, and we promptly booked into a premier inn. Don't bother. Pay extra for a better hotel and have peace of mind, clean sheets, comfortable clean rooms and friendly staff. I wouldn't let our dog sleep there. Truly disgusting.

Mike and Alison give you a welcome that's second to none, and it's reasonably priced. The place is past its best in terms of decor, though that's true of plenty of Blackpool hotels. The beds are clean, and the room has tea-making facilities. In the morning they send you off with cereal, toast, tea or coffee, and a full English. It's close to the Winter Garden's, central pier and The Tower. We stay regularly, and keep coming back for that personal touch. It's not the Ritz, but what more could we want?

The location was excellent, and the husband's owner was lovely. The breakfast was okay, but the hotel itself was dirty and noisy, and Kay was rude. At first we were put in a very small room. When I complained, I was told a standard room is small and the bigger rooms don't have toilets. The couple did move us to a larger room with an ensuite, which was great. But the floor was sticky and made a peeling sound with each step. After my wife showered, she found dried silicone glue on the towel, or at least that's what we hope it was. They replaced it after we complained, but then we were uneasy about how clean the sheets were. A group of 16 boys were noisy all night, so we had a terrible sleep. That part wasn't the hotel's fault, and they said they'd initially put us in the smallest room to avoid the noise. We appreciated the thought. But we'd only travelled up to see my Mum, and couldn't face another night of waking at 4am to sticky floors, questionable cleaning and noise, so we decided to leave a night early. After breakfast, which was okay, Kay, the wife owner, asked if everything was fine. I said we'd talk when she wasn't busy with breakfast, but she insisted on hearing then. I told her we were leaving early and asked if we could get a refund for the unused night, without going into how disgusted we were overall. She said no, and claimed the website had to handle it, even though we'd paid her by card on her machine. My wife called the website, paying by the minute, and they said they had to refund us and would contact the hotel. Kay then called and told us to come down if we wanted the refund. Lovely. Once we'd got the refund, Kay told us to call the website again and have our reservation removed from her computer. I said that was her job as the business owner, but she said she didn't have time. I suggested she make time. They kept our bags for a few hours while we visited family. When we collected them, Kay said she'd rented the room "anyway" and all was well. I'm proud that after all these years running the business, she found the time.

The room was grubby and badly in need of a makeover. There was water between the panes of the double-glazed window, stained sheets, and rusty towel rails and mirrors in the ensuite. I know you get what you pay for, but the same room was listed at different prices on different sites, from £90-£135. I've stayed in deluxe hotels for less. When we arrived, the owner's wife greeted us. I asked where we could park and she said there was no parking, and that I should have been there the day before like the other guests. The description says free parking. The owner did find me a place across the road.