I am spending a bit of time in Exeter at the moment on business, I was looking around for places to stay and found the Express by Holiday Inn, as I had a great time the last time I went to a Holiday Inn hotel I decided to give it a try.

Just past the reception desk there was a bar and beyond that was the breakfast room, even though there is no restaurant they do provide breakfast but more about that later. Just opposite the reception desk there was a room with a number of dispensers, here you could buy hot and cold drinks, hot and cold food and snacks. All of which goes onto your room bill, you don’t need money you just swipe your room card before you make your selection. By hot food what I mean is a selection of items such as Cornish pasties etc and a microwave where you can warm them up, they also had pot noodles, sandwiches, soft drinks, beers etc.

I had requested a non smoking room so my room was on the 2nd floor as this whole floor was non-smoking, there was a lift so carrying my luggage up the stairs was not required.

In my room I had a nice double bed, desk and chair so I could carry on working (Groan), a couple of sets of shelves where I could unpack, a wardrobe type of thing, Bedside Tables with Lamps for Reading, Hairdryer, nice neat Tea and Coffee making facilities all built into a shelf on the wall. The TV was tuned into BBC1, BBC2, ITV, CH4, CH5, Sky News, Sky One, Sky Sports 1 and Cartoon Network, there was also a selection of radio channels and a selection of pay channels where you could watch movies at £6.95 a night. There was also a very comfortable sofa bed positioned so you could sit on the sofa and watch TV. You could also use the TV to view your bill, check your messages and set it as an alarm clock to wake you up in the morning.

The only complaint I had was the lack of power sockets, I wanted to do some work on my laptop and the only socket available was the kettle point, not a big problem but I had to unplug the laptop every time I wanted a cup of tea.

In the morning off I went to get my breakfast, this was buffet style in the breakfast room on the ground floor, There was Tea, Coffee, Milk and a selection of juices to drink. Food wise you had a massive selection of cereals, a selection of fresh fruit and yoghurts, bread rolls, croissants (with and without chocolate) and sliced bread with a handy toaster by the side so you can make your own toast along with a selection of butter, margarine, marmalade and jams. Not the same sort of choice you would expect from a 4 star hotel, but fine for bed and breakfast.

Price (When I stayed in March 2001, I assume it will change so you better phone to check). £52 per night, All rooms appear to be the same price, prices are for Bed and Breakfast;

You can check out the website at http://www.basshotels.com/hiexpress?_franchisee=EXEUK on this site you can check availability and prices and you can even book online.