Reporters Sophie Barnett and Megan Aldous were sceptical upon arrival at Ipswich’s new budget hotel, but as the saying goes you should ‘never judge a book by its cover’ – and this couldn’t be more true.
Walking along Northgate Street we really didn’t know what to expect – but admittedly feared the worst.
Once we arrived and were welcomed inside the trademark orange hued ‘lobby’ (if you could call it that) we were greeted by a group of friendly staff.
Hotel manager Tiago Simoes checked us in before we headed straight into the lift, which was smaller than most, and buzzed ourselves into room 101 our home for the night, eager to see what we had signed up for.
After dumping our bags we took the place in. Compact. Definitely compact. But not unbearable for one or two nights stay.
We were staying in the twin room with a window (lucky us). There were two single beds, a TV, two towels per person and an ensuite shower room – and that was pretty much it.
It was definitely basic, but we just kept reminding ourselves of the price and decided it was an economic option.
There were a lot of pluses – the fancy temperature control, the power shower (which was better than my one at home), and the comfy beds.
Not forgetting the hand, body and shower gel provided in the bathroom and the blackout curtains which nearly made me sleep through my alarm, not just once but twice.
Despite having a room which looked out onto the main road there was little noise at all and I slept brilliantly – although the same cannot be said for my colleague Megan who found the pillow particularly uncomfortable.
We agreed that we would’ve preferred the choice of a soft or hard pillow like in most hotels – but again, for £14.99 we were not too disappointed.
Now let’s talk technology. If you are an 02 customer you will struggle to get signal. Luckily we had wifi provided but only one device can be used per wifi activation code – fortunately I had full signal with EE.
The number of charging sockets meant you could dry your hair, charge multiple devices and even charge your toothbrush all in one go, a luxury not many hotels can offer.
Something to note are the handy ‘hole in the walls’ to leave your phone next to your bed while it charges in the night, a real hit with us digital lovers.
But it wasn’t all plane sailing as the bathroom lacked privacy and we were forced to take our friendship to the next level.
I can recall Megan shouting: “I can see the TV while I’m in the shower!”
A luxury indeed, but the frosted glass doors are a little strange if you are sharing a room with a work colleague, even as close as we are.
For me, the biggest critique of all is the kettle, or lack of. As a huge tea drinker I was completely gutted to not be getting my hot drink fix before bed. Admittedly you could walk downstairs and buy one from the coffee machine in the lobby – but it’s not quite the same as making a cuppa in your PJs and slipping into bed.
It really is the little things.
For more information about the hotel read our previous story.
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