Premier Travel Inn Watford - Centre East, Watford

...recently stayed at the Watford Premier Inn (Watford Central) on a Saturday night. I was visiting Wembley but unfortunately prices nearer the stadium were absolutely extortionate, for the few hotels that had beds available. Torn between driving there and back in a day and getting home at 4am in the morning, or finding a budget hotel on the end of a transport line, we chose the latter and booked the Premier Inn online.

There are in ...
...cost rises to £73. The premier inn have finally joined the discounted room market, and are now actively promoting rooms at £29 providing booked several weeks out, alas we were far too late for that.

On arrival our check in was swift and efficient and there was no queue. The receptionist was exceptionally helpful in assisting us with travel directions etc, and gave us the best advice on the best train to take almost spontaneously - ... more

I recently stayed at the Watford Premier Inn (Watford Central) on a Saturday night. I was visiting Wembley but unfortunately prices nearer the stadium were absolutely extortionate, for the few hotels that had beds available. Torn between driving there and back in a day and getting home at 4am in the morning, or finding a budget hotel on the end of a transport line, we chose the latter and booked the Premier Inn online.

There are in fact three Premier Inns in the Watford region, and the Watford Centre is located just off the A411 on Water Lane, which is a dead end. The area itself is not particularly attractive, and the hotel itself is surrounded by a large supermarket complex, and the road network. On the plus side, it was only a ten minute walk to either Watford High Street or Watford Junction Stations, and therefore given the Purple Palace generally delivers a standard basic product arguably the best out of all the budget chains, its location worked perfectly for us.

Rate-wise this particular inn is cheaper at the weekend, when we paid £62 room only, which we booked on line in a matter of minutes, and received confirmation via email. Mid week the cost rises to £73. The premier inn have finally joined the discounted room market, and are now actively promoting rooms at £29 providing booked several weeks out, alas we were far too late for that.

On arrival our check in was swift and efficient and there was no queue. The receptionist was exceptionally helpful in assisting us with travel directions etc, and gave us the best advice on the best train to take almost spontaneously - perhaps we were not the only one going to Wembley! She also advised about their ‘good night sleep’ guarantee, which presumably relates to the comfort of the surroundings, but nevertheless seems to be quite a brave guarantee to be making!

My biggest single fear about booking a premier inn at the weekend (particularly a premier inn in a big town or city) is that it will be very crowded and therefore very noisy until the small hours of the morning. Our room was at the very end of the corridor and actually facing the main road, however travel noise was minimal. AS it was a particularly hot spell the hotel had placed desk top fans in all the room, which was a nice welcome touch.

I also wanted a premier inn which had plenty of parking, and no charges. The majority of their properties do tend to fit those criteria as they are out of town, but it is not always the case, thankfully the website gave me the reassurances I needed.

Given that premier inn is by far the largest hotel group in the UK, I don’t intend to describe the room in detail as no doubt most prospective purchasers have experienced it already We had a double room, complete with familiar purple throw on the bed, and the room was of a good size and was spotlessly clean. The room has adequate desk space, internet access and also included a hairdryer and tea and coffee making facilities (but no biscuits.) Bathroom wise, the overbath shower was adequate but certainly not indulgent and the bathroom did not feel as up to date as the rest of the property - towels are also a little disappointing although I do like huge bath sheets, which is not the premier inn standard.

The hotel does have an adjoining restaurant for both breakfast and evening meals, however it is not open particularly late and the bar was long closed by the time we arrived home at midnight. We did not opt for the breakfast either, at £7.50 a head, which again is brand standard buffet style, but as an alternative you might just want to grab croissants from the supermarket as we did…

I always find that the terms and conditions for bookings for premier inn are quite generous - checkout is not until 12 noon, and check in time is from 2pm, although we had called the inn in advance and advised them we might be early, and they had said there was a good chance we could have a room early. On a flexible booking (I.e. non discounted room booking) then you can cancel up until 1pm on the day of arrival without charge.

Overall I have no qualms in recommending this particular inn. There are no particular frills, and few opportunities to deliver outstanding service, given the nature of budget hotels , but you do know what you are getting, which is not always the case when the budget is low. The hotel was clean and tidy, not in a particularly desirable/picturesque location, but if you just need a bed for the night in the region, then this represents reasonable value for money and offers handy access for the transport links and the town itself.
 

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