My sister and I had a great weekend in the Midlands, meeting up with friends at Alton Towers and then for dinner at Restaurant Sat Bains in Nottingham
We were on the hunt for somewhere reasonably priced to lay our heads for the night around Nottingham. Expedia threw up this Novotel with a great rate for B&B and its location just off the M1 junction 25 made it ideal for accessing both our theme park and restaurant
I'll get the negative out of the way first. The building is a bit dated though the staff do work hard at keeping it clean. The whole place could do with some updating and lick of paint. If I had paid the rack rate I saw on checking in, I'd have been disappointed but the Expedia price point was fair
Happily, I can report on a yummy buffet breakfast. The staff worked very hard to keep everything stocked up and guests supplied with coffee and tea. There was a good choice of hot food - all components of an English breakfast were available together with a small selection of continental style cheese and ham. The cold counter had fresh fruit salad, cereals, yoghurts and pastries and I appreciated having a range of fruit juices available. Sadly, the friendly staff were once again let down by the infrastructure - the old bread toaster acted more like a bread warmer
When my friends and I braved the outdoor pool (it was totally freezing in the British mid summer), the real gems of this hotel came to light - the staff, especially the female waitstaff from the restaurant, who were super friendly, chatty and made us feel at home
To the management of Novotel, the staff in your hotel is top class. They have elevated what would have been a 3 star rating to a 4 star review. Please back them up by giving them surroundings to match their 5 star service! read more