New Forest Lodge

The views are beautiful, and there's plenty to do nearby, from walking to the local pub to taking a short trip to the beach. The host who welcomed us was friendly and had lots of useful suggestions for things to do. We spent four days in the Nomansland Suite. It had a comfortable double bed, a bathroom, fridge and kettle, and was cleaned daily. Although the property is on the A36, the road noise disappeared once we were inside. A lovely place in the heart of the New Forest for a short getaway.

This worked as a road-trip stop because it's easy to reach from the main road. I knew beforehand that breakfast and dinner weren't provided, so I bought food on the way. The bathroom was clean, but smelled damp. I mainly needed to rest and sleep, and that was the worst part: movement upstairs made the floor creak, while the extractor fans in both neighbouring rooms and people walking past were also audible. For the price, it didn't feel like good value. Getting in after dark was nearly impossible. The front door uses a combination lock, but there's no light to see the numbers, and it was raining. On checkout, you're meant to leave your key in a basket, meaning anyone could potentially access the room you'd just used.

Affordable and cheerful, with good showers. The walls are a bit thin, so earplugs might help. Handy for getting to Portsmouth.

The room wasn't clean to a good standard, with hair in the bath. Noise from other rooms carried on throughout the whole night, the TV was temperamental, and the faulty extractor kept buzzing on and off. It's also not as close to the New Forest as Expedia says. I'd upload videos of the noise and problems if I could. Wouldn't recommend staying here.