De Salis Hotel

I really liked the Italian-style paintings, which I hadn’t seen in the UK before, and there’s a microwave in the lobby for guests. The room was cosy, very spacious and had a good bed and lovely towels. Heating was good too. Breakfast was a nice continental one, £8 per person, served by a very kind gentleman with a white beard. The room was £43, good value for a UK hotel so close to London Stansted airport. Parking cost extra, if I remember right, £6 overnight or £8 for the whole day if you need to leave your car during a trip. There’s also an airport shuttle, not free, I think £16 per couple one way. Definitely somewhere I’d return to. Sorry, I forgot to take photos of the bedroom and breakfast.

The kitchen situation made us really uncomfortable, and there was a lot of tension in the air. We only ordered fries and a small salad each, but they were out of regular fries and had sweet potato ones instead. Our food took over an hour, and two other couples waited about as long for simple pasta and pizzas. The giant artwork was pretty wild too. At least Mimi the Hotel cat was sweet, and being able to leave the car there for five days was useful. But I spent another £28 on an Uber from the airport to collect it, so the £110 in extra charges could have gone toward a much nicer hotel. Before that, the room itself was clean, comfortable and perfectly fine. The receptionist was kind and helpful, though he seemed quietly stressed. The £20 per person airport transfer charge was annoying. Even worse, I got a £60 parking ticket for unloading bags where I’d been told to pull in. I contested it and got it reduced to £20, but still. It was a strange stay, and since I work in comedy I could sort of see the funny side. Just. Eat beforehand or bring dinner if you stay.

The shower curtains need a proper clean, and the tea spoon in my room was really sticky. There was only instant coffee in sachets, too. Reception was confusing, and it definitely wasn’t staffed around the clock. The shuttle also stopped running at 6pm. Check the local number 7 bus times before paying for taxis, and look at Uber as well. Getting to and from the airport will add £30. There are closer options for that kind of money. Everyone was nice, though.

The car parking made the stay worthwhile. We had two rooms, both acceptable for one night before flying from Stansted, though one was in better shape than the other. Staff were friendly and helpful once we arrived, but it seemed to run on a shoestring, with just a couple of people rushing around doing everything. Getting in touch with the hotel was hard. I left several messages before anyone replied. Breakfast was odd: the eggs came out when we’d almost finished, and the beans were barely warm. You might be better off getting a decent breakfast at the airport.