Hotel 1843 Reading

The shower was fantastic, one of the best I've had in a hotel, and the room was pretty good for the price. The bed was comfortable, too. Still, I barely slept. Noise from the road was bad, and the central heating rattled all night like a drummer. I'd booked another night for next week, but cancelled it. I can't come back.

I expected much better from the pictures and advert. The rooms are very old, with cracks in the bath and leaking taps. There were spit and brown stains on the walls that weren't cleaned during my stay. The rooms are advertised as soundproof, but I could hear every word from the rooms on either side. Reception was often empty. You have to call for help, and on one occasion nobody answered after six attempts. When the door system failed and locked me out of my room, I spent half an hour calling. I could hear staff having fun in the locked-away bar, saying, “the phone's ringing,” but nobody picked up. They said they'd move me to another room, but it never happened. Expedia and hotels say breakfast is included daily until 10:30am, but service stops at 8am for no reason. I didn't get breakfast. Then, on my last morning, someone just walked into my room without warning. I've tried several times to contact the hotel about my stay and got no reply, so this review seems to be the only way to reach them. I'd strongly recommend avoiding it until they refurbish the rooms and change their policies.

For an affordable stay, the room was comfortable and fairly spacious. There's a small desk, and the bed works well for sleeping, relaxing or getting some work done. The bathroom was clean and maintained well. Hot water and the toilet both worked fine, and towels, bath mats and hand towels were provided, with a heater inside for drying them. The room was soundproofed enough that I barely heard music from the bar below, which opens around 5 and closes at 11pm. Prudhvi kumar helped with cleaning and replenishing things I'd run out of. He's an honest, hard worker and was always ready to help around breakfast time. The TV kept losing its signal and turning glitchy and noisy, so I left it off. All in all, a decent, comfortable place for the price.

The bedrooms are great, with big comfortable beds and a huge bath. The hallway, though, feels dated and could use new carpet. Everyone on staff was friendly and welcoming. The bar has a good range of alcohol, and the staff were helpful with suggestions for mixers to go with different drinks.