Elite Athlete Centre And Hotel

We booked at the last minute so we could be with our daughter for her birthday. Her accommodation was just a stone’s throw away, and we could see her often. The location was ideal, with local shops, pubs, restaurants and clubs nearby, the town centre 5 minutes away by car or a 15-minute walk. For a two-day stay, the service was prompt and polite, though our request for extra towels wasn’t fulfilled. The room could be improved, especially the shower: it had only a curtain, so using it left the whole toilet area wet, and an enclosed cubicle would have kept things tidier. The daytime Wi-Fi was horrendous and made remote work very difficult. Given how guests use the hotel, the broadband really needs to be better.

The room felt more like student halls than a hotel, and the bed was among the least supportive we’ve slept on in ages. It was neither soft nor firm, and the two singles pushed together left a gap, despite the room being advertised as king size. A Premier Inn or Travelodge would have cost £40-50 less a night and been far more comfortable. The wet room also left water trailing around after a shower. Breakfast was sparse, the hot food wasn’t very warm, and the cold options were underwhelming. There were some positives: the large bedroom was generally clean and modern, with plenty of storage, and the duty manager was friendly and polite at checkout. At arrival, reception was unmanned for a few minutes, then the staff member who came was not especially warm or confident. We also disliked the night security guard’s manner. After rudely demanding our access cards, he seemed flabbergasted that two men were sharing a bed and room. That felt unprofessional and verged on homophobic.

I woke up with bedbug bites and managed to kill one and take pictures. There were bed bugs and silverfish in the rooms, and the silverfish are also in the uni dorms next door. After a hard day’s work, it was traumatic. Staff moved me to another room for 2 hours because one was available at 4am, but they had no bug spray or other treatment options.

Most of the staff are friendly, and the food is very good if you’re into chicken and fish. My room hadn’t been cleaned when I arrived, but they apologised and put it right quickly. The meeting rooms can get really noisy from staff chatter and the loud televisions in the lobby. Most nights I struggled to sleep because sports teams on the floor above made unbelievable noise all night. I reported it, but nobody seemed to care.