Days Inn By Wyndham Telford Ironbridge M54

The price made a big difference to how worthwhile the stay felt. My cheapest night in Telford was under £60, which was very competitive, but later in my five-night stay the same room was almost three times as much. I wouldn’t pay that higher rate myself for a hotel that’s meant to be budget-friendly. Like many chains, Days Inn uses dynamic pricing, so value depends a lot on the rate you get. The room was clean, if a little dated, and the bed was comfortable. The pillows weren’t, though, and there were only a couple of sockets, none near the bed for charging a phone overnight. O2 reception was poor. Everything else worked as it should. I’d skip the continental breakfast. It arrived in a little cardboard box and was just as disappointing and flavourless as that sounds.

Staff were really friendly, and there was plenty of parking. Just check whether parking is actually free, since that depends on who booked and how. The services next door have a Burger King, Starbucks, and other food and drink options. The accommodation itself was clean and comfortable, and superb value for money.

The fire alarm sounded at 1:30 am and everyone rushed outside. It turned into a terrible, sleepless night, with people upstairs also walking around and making an incredible amount of noise all night. It was an ordinary roadside hotel and clean, but I wouldn’t stay in room number 3 again. Maybe the noise is the same in other rooms, I don’t know. The hotel needs to fix this structural problem.

The staff were always smiling and very friendly, and having a service station right next door was handy. Still, the hotel is basically in the middle of nowhere. The nearest McDonald’s is 2.2 miles away, or a 1-hour-and-20-minute walk. There’s a Burger King at the service station, but I don’t like that place. For how cheap it is, it wasn’t too bad, though the room was only somewhat clean and seemed to have a bloodstain on the floor. You get what you pay for here. I’d rather pay £20 more and stay somewhere better.