Novotel Sheffield Centre

Courtney at reception is the star of the Novotel Sheffield for me. She’s remembered me and my son, who studies at Sheffield Hallam University, since our first visit two years ago. She checks that the room and stay are going well, knows the local area, and always greets people with a smile. That’s especially welcome after my several-hour, 200-mile trip. I’m already looking forward to coming back. This was my 12th visit in two years, and I keep returning because they consistently get things right. The city centre location is excellent, with clean, spacious, comfortable rooms that are well maintained. Having a car park is handy, but it costs £18 a night. If you take your car out during the day, you pay again each time you leave and return. There aren’t many spaces, so a full car park means using a public one in town. The pool and steam room are small but lovely. When the hotel is full, the pool can be busy enough that you may need to book a swim ahead, and sometimes the steam room isn’t working.

The room had a good layout and was clean, with a decent fridge, great toiletries and a brilliant fold-out bed for our child. We also really enjoyed the pool. The location is excellent, and we had a good stay. It did get very hot inside, with no air conditioning. Opening the window brought in a lot of street noise. The bar was sometimes empty of staff, so we often had to wait for someone to show up before ordering. The parking discount still left it very expensive on top of the room, and one coffee pod per person every 24 hours felt a bit stingy. The staff we met were excellent, polite and helpful throughout. Nice hotel and facilities, with a few things that could be better.

The pool is a nice feature and the location is good, but we won’t be rushing back. For £18 a night, parking is expensive, and the spaces are very tight. Breakfast has gone downhill since our last visit and the choice felt meagre. Our room was just about big enough for four, though it was dusty and the pillows were uncomfortable.

Check-in was good, and the staff were friendly. They let us into our room early when we came to drop off our bags. The reception and bar area looked nice, but the room itself felt dated. The carpet was stained, there was no toilet brush or air freshener, and neither the bathroom nor toilet doors had locks. We each had one thin, lumpy pillow. By the time we noticed, it felt too late to ask for more. The room was hot and stuffy overnight, so we slept badly. Service was good, but I wouldn’t stay in that room again.