A 1 star is far too high for this place. An awful awful place to stay, not that easy to find,…read moreterrible accommodation, it felt like a concentration camp. The staff could barely communicate in english (not their fault) - the room is extremely basic, very cold, very very noisy with the road just outside and even worse, lots of drunk people stumbling around in the hotel making lots of noise all night. Even for £20 for a night, I would avoid this like the plague, go to one of the holiday inn expresses locally, much much better and not much more money, particularly if you book late, I would never stay in a travelodge again. Simply terrible.

A good basic accommodation - close to the town centre and main railway and central bus stations…read more The Travelodge is located in central Swindon close to the main shopping area. The accommodation is typical Travelodge - basic but function. The rooms are clean and well presented and are a reason size. The hotel staff are friendly and very helpful. The Travelodge is reasonable priced with earlier booking available and even cheaper prices during special promotional periods - of which there also seem to be plenty about. Overall a good clean accommodation, close to the Swindon Centre and transportation facilities.

Swindon isn't the most obvious place to have a tourist information centre - after all, it's not on…read moremost people's top ten places for a vacation. That said, there are things to do and see here, and especially in the surrounding countryside (after all, the Cotswolds lie just to the north). That being the case, it's a bit of a mystery why it's tucked away at one end of the town centre. It's a hike from the railway station (and away from the town's own main attractions in the form of the Designer Outlet and the Steam museum) at the end of a narrow side street; and it's not signposted anywhere else in the town centre as far as I could see (actually signposting generally is not Swindon's strong point: some public maps would be a useful addition). When you fially find it, it's hardly inspiring: it looks a little sad, the fascia reminding me more of a converted charity shop than somewhere that said 'visit us!'. Inside, the decor and layout continue the slightly cheap theme: uninspiring racks of leaflets and maps, with very little colour, or pizzaz. (And I'm not one for excessive glitz or style over substance - this just seemed in need of an urgent makeover). The saving grace was the nice lady behind the counter, who provided me with a free map of the centre and gave me directions, and a few free leaflets. Doubtless all the information you could want was there - it just needs a little more investment.

Whenever I have been in to the tourist information centre in Swindon, I have always found that the…read morestaff go out of their way to help you. You can pick up leaflets there about what is on locally and you can book tickets there for various events. It is at the top end of the town centre, near the Town Hall and the new library.