Holiday Inn Express - Glasgow Airport, Paisley

Author's product rating:   

Advantages:	Clean and comfortable
Disadvantages:	Customer service

Recommend to potential buyers:

yes

Full review

I spent two nights at this hotel with my partner recently when up in Glasgow to see a concert at Hampden Park.
It was the second time I have stayed at this hotel, the first being a couple of years back when again I was attending a concert.

The hotel is very easy to find and ideally situated just off Junction 28 on the M8 at the airport itself. The hotel is visible from the motorway, and it just a case of driving into the airport, turn right at the roundabout, and it is straight ahead of you.
There is a car park at the hotel, which was free the first time I stayed here, but you are now charged £5.00 per night. If you are going on holiday, you can also leave your car here.

I have stayed in Express by Holiday Inn hotels quite often over the last few years and only once had a problem, which resulted in me receiving a refund so all was well in the end.
I have never experienced any problem with checking in at any of the hotels, so maybe I was due one! And yes, I have to report that on this occasion I had some problems!

I was greeted by a member of staff on checking in, and then I was asked to pay for my stay. I explained that when I booked the room online, payment for one of the nights had been taken from my bank account shortly after as a deposit.
I had managed to secure a special rate of £60 per night online, but the terms had stated a deposit must be made at time of booking, and £60 had been taken from my account, so I now owed them £60 for the second night.
However, I was told by the young girl checking me in that the special rate was £88 per night, not £60 and she needed a payment of £88 plus another £28 which was owing from the first night!
I explained this was incorrect, but she was adamant and told me the actual room rate is £150 per night, and I had booked the advance purchase rate of £88, and there were no rooms at £60. I asked if this was the case, then why had I paid £60, and was told that was just a deposit.

I wasn't happy, and to be honest, her attitude was not very good as she told me in no uncertain terms, that if I did not pay what I owed, then she could not let me have access to my room.
I told her I had been sent a confirmation email which stated £60 per night. She asked to see it, saying I must have read it wrong, but of course I did not have it with me. She then said there was internet access in the hotel and could I show her my email?
I agreed, as I was only too happy to prove her wrong! She directed me to the computer for guest usage, and I had to pay £1 to access the internet and my email account, just to prove I was right!

I brought up the confirmation email after a few minutes as the internet speed was very slow and it took a while to access my account, and sure enough, I was right - £60 per night!
I went back to the desk to ask her to come and look but she had disappeared! I explained to another staff member who went off to find her, but they came back saying she was unavailable!
By this time I was quite angry as it is £1 for 20 mins internet access and I had visions of being asked to put another £1 in the slot!
Fortunately, after explaining to the staff member my situation, she offered to come and look at my email. On seeing I was correct, she apologised and said she would let the other member of staff know.

I finally completed my check in at last, nearly half an hour after arriving! To be honest I would have preferred an apology from the girl who first began checking me in, but she never appeared.
I will ensure from now on I always take printed confirmation with me, and would advise anyone else to do the same!

Apart from my check in problems, the rest of my stay was fine and problem free.
The hotel is very clean and modern with a large dining area, bar and seated area near reception with comfy leather sofa's and chairs, where you can sit with a drink and watch the TV or relax.

Bar prices are quite expensive - it was over £5 for a Jack Daniels and coke, £15 for a bottle of wine. Meals were served till 10pm and the menu was not very large but did include fish and chips, curry, burger and chips all priced at £10.99. I did not have a meal so cannot comment on the food quality.
I did however, have breakfast which is included in the price of the room, and it was very nice. It is available until 10am weekdays and 10.30am weekends, and consists of a self-service continental buffet, where you can have as much as you like from the choice of cereals, toast, pastries, croissants, yoghurt and fresh fruit, as well as tea, coffee and juice.
You can eat your breakfast in the dining area or take a tray back to your room if you prefer.

The room itself was bright and modern and very clean. It was also quite spacious with a large comfortable king size bed, a sofa bed, TV, with a couple of satellite channels, tea/coffee making facilities, hair dryer, and wardrobe space.
Air conditioning is in all the rooms which was fantastic as the weather was very hot and humid during our stay.

The fully tiled en-suite bathroom contains a toilet, sink and a lovely refreshing power shower. Hand soap, shower gel, tissues and plastic cups were provided. If you have forgotten any essential toiletry items, then replacements are availbale free of charge from Reception.

The view from the window overlooked the airport and the runway, so you could see the planes landing and taking off. However, I must point out it was not noisy at all!

A great plus point for this hotel is the fact that it is only a couple of minutes walk to the terminal building, so ideal for people who have an early flight to catch. The hotel seems very popular with holidaymakers.
During my stay there were also quite a few other people staying who were going to the concert also, and a taxi from the hotel to Hampden Park will cost around £23.

If you are thinking of staying here it is worth pointing out that you may wish to join the Priority Club Rewards scheme. Full details of this are on the website at HIEXPRESS.CO.UK.
It is worth joining this if you frequently stay at any hotels in the group (Holiday Inn, Crowne Plaza to name a couple, are included) as it is free to join, and you collect points for every stay which can be redeemed for free nights.
This is a really good reward scheme which brings many benefits, apart from extended check in and out times, you will also receive priority check in, complimentary newspapers and regular offers sent to you via email, to earn extra points.
I have earned quite a few free nights over the last five years, and the good thing is your points never expire so you can save them for as long as you wish. There is also no black-out dates on redeeming your points, so you can have a free night on any day you wish.

On returning home I decided to email Guest Relations on the hiexpress.co.uk website and inform them of my check-in experience.
I received an email from them the very next day, apologising and was informed that the matter would be dealt with, as this was not the service they wished to provide. I was told I should not have been expected to 'prove' my room rate in that manner, nor have to pay for the privilege of doing so!
The person writing to me could not apologise enough and credited me with 2.500 priority club points, which was a nice gesture, and a welcome boost to my balance towards a free night! So I cannot fault their complaints department, it was fast, efficient and very helpful on this occasion.

Overall I have enjoyed my stays at this hotel, apart from my check in problems, and I will ensure I always print my confirmation email and take it with me in future!