Holiday Inn Stevenage

Went there for a work conference day. Nice set up of the conference room. Nice temperature air conditioning. Good lunch food with greek salad, and service taking plates away. (This might be just with specific work event packages but we could park in St George's Street long stay across the road, and it could be validated in the Holiday Inn)

This hotel is staffed by some of the most friendly staff I've come across on my travels. From the very first welcome at reception to the bar and waiting staff, every single person we spoke to was friendly, helpful and polite. They especially went out of their way to make our son feel welcomed and valued. We couldn't have asked for more. The hotel itself is pretty much what you would expect at this price point. The room was clean, tidy and suprisingly large, and while feeling a bit tired in places, it did the job. Breakfast was again much as you would expect. The selection was pretty standard, hot and cold buffet style, but the staff were again friendly and helpful. We ate in the bar on our second night. The food here was good and the waiting staff attentive. Even when they ran out of the strawberry cheesecake, they did their best to add some strawberry flair to the vanilla cheesecake which they offered as an alternative! Parking on site is very limited and quite expensive, but the hotel offers reduced rates in the car park just over the road. We were lucky that we found a space in the hotel car park both nights, but it felt like the hotel was quite quiet for our stay, and I expect on nights when there are more people staying parking is in very short supply.

I am extremely disappointed with the laundry service provided during my stay. As a corporate customer staying for two weeks, I handed in my laundry on Friday morning—yet it was not picked up until Monday, and I’ve now been told it will only be returned by Thursday. That’s an entire week without clean clothes, which is absolutely unacceptable. For a hotel that positions itself as a reputed choice for business travelers, this level of delay is not only inconvenient but unprofessional. Timely laundry service is a basic expectation, especially for guests on extended work trips. This experience has strongly impacted my impression of your hotel. I will not be choosing this property for future business stays, and I will be recommending to my company that your hotel be removed as a preferred vendor due to this unacceptable lapse in service. You must seriously reconsider how you manage essential services for corporate guests.