Holiday Inn Stoke on Trent M6, Jct 15 by IHG

I was in a tight spot after my car broke down, but Dylan, who was on reception overnight, helped me sort out what I needed. When I decided to book a room, he arranged it quickly and made sure my dog was welcome. The receptionist in the morning was just as kind and accommodating. Thank you both for being so helpful. I couldn't have asked for a better experience, and the staff were lovely.

The reception team and the security chap were both lovely. Since I checked out on New Year's Day when it was quiet, they let me stay much later. The car park was adequate. The building and facilities aren't the newest, and the room was just OK. The pool also shut before its scheduled closing time.

The staff are what make this place stand out. Everyone I met was super friendly, from the helpful young man who greeted me in the evening to the breakfast and coffee bar teams. The young lady who made my cappuccino was especially lovely. I also liked that they support local employment and hire people with disabilities. The hotel itself is functional and very conveniently located, without anything fancy about it. Five star service.

We booked more than 20 rooms for a major event and have been loyal Holiday Inn customers for years, but this was the worst experience we've had. We plan to come back to the area for the same event next year and will stay somewhere else. It was arrogant, unfriendly and unprofessional, a real disgrace to the Holiday Inn brand. The bar was the worst part. At 00:50, an employee, a tall man with dark, greasy, unkempt hair and a dark grey shirt, refused to give his name, shouted that we had 15 minutes to “disappear” to our rooms, stopped serving us and closed the bar. The hotel advertises the bar as open 24 hours. The pool was out of order when we arrived, and staff told us in an unfriendly way that we were simply “out of luck.” The rooms also didn't match the photos or descriptions on Booking.com. Each was supposed to have a sofa bed, but none did. When we raised it, staff arrogantly said they “use general photos to attract people” and the rooms aren't actually like the pictures. Completely misleading and unacceptable.