Thank you for your r/r/c. I'm a former air stewardess, now working as a Project Manager in a Civil S...
Thank you for your r/r/c. I'm a former air stewardess, now working as a Project Manager in a Civil Service department. Studying part-time with the Open University for an English and Politics degree.
Member since:01.11.2002
Reviews:89
Members who trust:106
I had the 'pleasure' of having a 4 week stay at the Holiday Inn Express recently whilst on an airline training course.
It's one of two hotels near the airport, the other one being the awful Ibis. So if you need a hotel due to an early or late flight this is probably your best bet.
Location: It's a quarter of a mile from Luton Airport and 1 mile from Luton Airport Parkway train station. There is a shuttle bus that goes from the station to the airport every 10 minutes or so and it goes past the hotel, there is a bus stop just outside. A taxi to Luton Parkway if you do not want to use the free bus is around £4.
First Impressions: It's a nice modern looking building, with 'Holiday Inn Express'
clearly marked on it. You walk into an open plan room and it seems quite small with a low ceiling. There is a reception desk that also doubles up as the bar and chairs and tables. There is also a tiny area in the corner that is the breakfast area. It is also utterly soulless and devoid of any charm or personality. There is also a stand with a free copy of the Independent every day which is a nice touch. It's quite a small hotel with 147 rooms.
Checking In: Fortunately I was not paying for my room but it took the receptionist some time to understand this and find my room. After first allocating my room they rang me 10 minutes later to inform me I was in the wrong room and to come back to reception straight away. No apology though. Throughout my stay I found the reception staff to be rude and unhelpful. You get a room key electronic card which is a bit hit and miss to use but seems to work about half of the time.
The room: It was a standard budget hotel room. Clean and functional. There was a kettle with some tea and coffee, a hair dryer and television. The bathroom was small, white and very bright! No freebie products here, just a Dove soap dispenser and a Lux shower gel dispenser in the shower cubicle.
Food: There is a free Continental breakfast. You help yourself and then put your tray away afterwards. This consisted of bread to make toast, croissants, flaky pastries, fruit, a selection of condiments, sugary fruit juice, hot drinks and cereal. I found it to be quite unhealthy and would not normally choose such refined sugary food for my breakfast! Most mornings they would run out of fruit or items such a plates or trays. I was not particularly impressed with the food quality either, the grapes had quite often gone off which was not pleasant.
Evening meals are served from 6pm. We got a 25% discount but I still found it expensive. Expect to pay around £8-£10 for a main meal. I had a cheeseburger and chips, it was nice but not worth the expense. There is a microwave for hotel guests and it may be a better option to go up to M&S at the terminal and buy a microwave meal. The bar is again quite expensive, think London prices. A double vodka and coke was £5. Again luckily we had a discount. They also ran out of vodka and red wine on a regular basis.
Who stays here? Business travellers, holiday makers and airline crew. I don't believe anyone would stay here as a holiday or on an away break! It seems to be solely for airport use. There are 4 meeting rooms, they seem to be used mainly for airline interviews or assessment centres.
Parking: There are 71 car park spaces but be prepared to pay £5 per day for this pleasure! After this a charge of £15 per 24 hours applies! Luckily I arrived by public transport.
Cost: The advertised rate per night is £89, quite a lot in my opinion. After searching on the web I found rooms for £59 per night. The walk up rate advertised in reception is £120! I think I'd rather sleep in the terminal.
Staff: I found the staff members to generally be uncaring, unhelpful and inefficient. They wear blue polo tops and dark trousers or skirt and some of them wear name badges. They were also quite a sullen looking bunch too. I once asked one of these charming girls to open the luggage room for me. I was polite and smiled at her and got a glare back! She slowly found the key and stomped over to room for me. I thanked her and got a mumbled 's'ok' in response. They all appear to be young and unmotivated. I do appreciate that is not a particularly wonderful or well paid job and they work long hours but...some form of customer service would be appreciated! I cringed at the bad service, it really was poor and many of them seemed to have a bad attitide.
The bottom line: It is fine for an overnight stay if you have an early start or a really late flight but I would not choose to stay here of my own accord.
Hmm another hotel with unhelpful and unfriendly staff? What is going on in the world these days? I'm booked in here for a few nights in June as we're going to a wedding. I feel another review coming on once I've stayed! Mind you, we got it for £39.95 a night and we're barely going to be there very much, so I guess I can't complain too much... x
bluejules 03.12.2006 15:00
Doesn't sound like a nice place to stay :-( Great review though :-) x
If youre looking for a Luton airport hotel with parking then look no further than Express ... more
by Holiday Inn Luton Airport Our airport hotel is ideally located just minutes from Luton Airport making it a great choice for both business and leisure traveller...
Information:
Price is per double room per night and may vary depending on date booked...
Express by Holiday Inn Luton Airport is the closest hotel to the terminal building and ... more
offers comfortable, modern accommodation at great value-for-money prices.Just minutes from the ternminal, Express by Holiday Inn Luton Airport is a great choice whet...
Information:
Price is per double room per night and may vary depending on date booked...
Dec 1st, 2006
very helpful by (100%):
