Britannia Hotel Coventry

After reading reviews and seeing images of the hotel I was apprehensive about staying at The Britainnia. The lobby wasn't the most welcoming. It seemed dark and probably hasn't been upgraded since the hotel was built in the early 70's. My Room 330 greeted me with the smell of fresh paint, new carpet, furniture and a recently upgraded bathroom. For the price I paid, it was good value for money.

Quick check in, helpful staff particularly the security. Lots of security staff available and hotel entrance was secure.

Yes, it is very worn and dated but it does have a retro 70's charm and provides very good value. Reception was polite and professional but could have been more supportive. We had a issue as our hotel booking site had not paid the hotel. The receptionist ask us to phone them to solve the issue. At better hotels, the reception would have offered to do provide this service. A lack of training? The location is excellent being in the centre of the city, across from the bus station and the transport museum. The views of the ruins of the old in the background and new in the foreground among other ancient and contemporary buildings is wonderful from the rooms at the rear of the hotel are wonderful. The balcony that some of the rooms to the rear have would be a very pleasant place to relax in good weather. The beds are very large and reasonably comfortable with clean beading. The carpet of our room was new, and others were being replaced as we were there. The state of the decor was adequate and past ready for a make-over. However, for the price and location, it was acceptable. The breakfast, which was included, was a pleasant surprise. The buffet breakfast room had a was cosy feel, there was a good selection of cereals, preserved fruits and yogurt. The full English breakfast was very well prepared and of good quality ingredients. The tea and coffee were also of a good standard. Service was professional and efficient, clearly aiming to provide their clients with a very pleasant start to their day.

Location is good. Many restaurants nearby. It is at the heart of city centre.

Hotel was well situated and easy to find - very close to the bus station as well as to nearby attractions. Hotel room was dated but adequately clean. Overall, decent for a quick overnight stay and reasonable for the price paid. Couple of restaurants and eating places nearby as well!

Everything about the hotel was great with the exception of a very charmless senior member of staff at reception. He insisted on photo ID and refused to wait 30 seconds for me to get something from my car which was parked outside. He spelled out that he didn't have 10 minutes to waste. The one bad mark on an otherwise good experience.

The room is big and comfortable. The add on breakfast is good too. I was a bit surprised that for this executive room, you have to pay for the use of WiFi or you have to go down to the lobby to use the WiFi. A bit like the Travel Lodge but for sure, this hotel is better than Travel Lodge.

When I arrived there was a security guard at the door and the first thing he said was 'Have you booked?' When I confirmed I had, he went inside and called for the receptionist to come out from wherever they were. The receptionist came out and and said exactly the same thing 'Have you booked?'. While I was being checked in the security guard stood a couple of feet away watching. Once checked in I went to the lift, on one side of the reception desk. While waiting, I turned around and again, found the security guard behind me, leaning on the lounge chairs, watching. The hotel itself is a bit old fashioned but the rooms have been updated, in the style of a Travel Lodge or Premiere Inn, so that was ok. However, I didn't have any shower get so had to go down to let them know. A little later a manager of sorts (she was in a suit) came up with a small water bottle half full of shower get. She was apologetic and said that was the only container they had. I asked her to transfer it to the gel dispenser, she didn't know how, probably one of the cleaners would know. Later I went for a wander outside, there seemed to be a few homeless people around and groups of scruffy looking men wandering about. As a single woman I did feel a little bit of trepidation. I slept well, as the bed was pretty comfortable. However, when I woke up the next morning I had a small bite on my arm and a couple of small bites on the top part of my chest. While taking a shower, I thought I heard a noise, then suddenly heard someone actually coming into the room! I had to yell that the room was occupied. It turned out to be a member of staff bringing more shower gel, which I explained from the bathroom that they'd done already. What shocked me was they way she just walked into my hotel room without making sure it was ok to do so. On checking out, the receptionist just took my key card; she didn't ask for my name or room number, which made me wonder if was I the only person who had booked in. On speaking to my work colleagues later, they mentioned that they thought hotel was probably used as a hostel or for temporary accommodation by the council, which made a bit of sense, as I had seen a group of people sitting in the lounge area when I arrived and the same group were in exactly the same seats when I checked out, like you do when you're familiar or comfortable with a place. Personally, I won't be booking this hotel again, apart from everything else, the bites were enough and could only mean one thing....!😱

Excellent hotel all round. Great service and outstanding room. The location is perfect and close to rail travel. Outstanding quality.