Travelodge Burton A38 Northbound — Hotel in East Staffordshire

The outside was pretty scruffy but probably what you'd expect on an out of town duel carriageway site. The first issue was that the booking confirmation had the wrong post code - we were given the one for the Travelodge on the other side of the duel carriageway, so we'd already passed the one we should have been at, gone down to the slip road and across to the wrong one - where there was no receptionist in sight. I telephoned the number on the booking confirmation and spoke to the receptionist where we should have been and she gave us the correct post code. She said they'd been saying for 5 years that the post code was wrong. So we had to drive all the way back to another roundabout and back down the road on the other side - after a very long and tiring day in very hot weather that was just what we didn't need. She was however a very nice lady and booked us into a lovely venue for our evening meal. This hotel (like Tadcaster that we'd stayed in the night before) is not air conditioned and it's just not acceptable now we are getting temperatures of more than 30 degrees. The windows for safety reasons do not open that far, and there were quite bright lights not far away so having the curtains open was not really an option, plus there was quite a noise railway not that far away. We were going to be spending a busy day at the National Memorial Arboretum for the 80th Anniversary of VJ Day, so we really...

Firstly what amazing happy friendly staff as soon as you walk through the door, we were greeted by 2 guys who were lovely and interacted with my grandchildren too, checking in was so smooth and simple and rooms are all on one level. On finding our rooms we passed a room being cleaned by an automatic hoover which the children found amazing, we got to our room quickly as they are all signposted really well and simple, the room was a good size for a family and lovely and clean and airy. The carpet had lost it colour round the edges but it didn't make any difference to our stay at all, we had a huge bathroom with full size bath and a shower, lovely thick white towels were provided too. We had plenty of hot water for the children to both have a bath and me have a shower and a great thick shower curtain kept the water inside the bath. Body wash was provided on the wall of the shower, too. Our room was at the side of a canal, and it was lovely to sit and watch all the barges going past. Also, there is a Starbucks on site, too, so we all had breakfast drinks. The room for 3 of us cost just £41 which is an absolute bargain. Yes, it's a little run down and not as beautiful as a new hotel, but the service we got was 2nd to non - and great, comfy, huge beds to have a great quiet nights sleep. Well worth the money, and we will definitely be using this...

Small Travelodge, lovely staff, plentiful parking, clean and comfortable beds, spacious rooms and good soundproofing from the road outside.

but...

After staying for three nights for a nearby festival the shortfalls start to shine through. Thin walls and creaky floors, every time I got up in the night to visit the bathroom the floor made such a noise that it awoke my girlfriend. This was across such a large portion of the floor that it was unavoidable even with careful foot placement. Quiet conversation in the corridor was clearly audible and a knock on any door sounded like a knock on your own door. No pressure in the shower, it was like trying to wash in a cloud while the taps that fed it clearly had pressure which could have been less of an issue but... The non-slip mat in the bath had seemingly never been removed for cleaning and had a substantial build-up of scum gluing it to the base of the tub. It actually began to disintegrate when I tried to remove it. Put me right off using the otherwise clean tub.

In summary; close one Travelodge, can't fault the price but the facilities need a little more maintenance and beds are great but bordering on useless when you can't sleep through the night for all the...