Tim's Periscope

Holiday Inn Preston Review

Coming up in the taxi toward the Holiday Inn I felt a feeling I’d never felt before. Maybe it was the dull weather, the tiredness or the two cans of Red Stripe I’d drank on the train-perhaps all three- but for a brief moment I felt like a Russian political dissident, being driven to some god-awful Soviet police station, where I’d no doubt be tortured thoroughly before being sentenced to a life of hard labour in the Gulag.

It is fair to say my initial impression wasn’t good.

The outside out the building is pretty grim, being as it is completely devoid of any nice colour, save the white and green Holiday Inn logo plastered at the top. One side of the building overlooks a perfectly constructed four-way junction, while the other side faces the equally stunning multi-storey car park/bus terminal.

Once inside however the mood improves. Although the welcome when you walk through the door is non-existent- the front door just leads you to a lift and a staircase- it’s modern and well kept. The reception, restaurant and bar are all located on the first floor, all of which give off a contemporary feel and fit nicely with the ‘all-business’ mood of the place.

My room was on the 4th floor, which was reached using possibly the world’s slowest lift- a lift so slow I think there’s probably moss growing on the pulleys. One other note on the lift, it features possibly the most pointless sign I have ever seen.  On the inside there is a plaque which states “Please leave lift when doors open.” What could possibly have happened in the history of the Holiday Inn to warrant that sign?  Maybe we’ll never know...

The room itself was very nice albeit slightly on the small side. All the mod-coms were there- Plasma TV, Ethernet port, Mini-bar etc- although if you need things life irons and ironing boards then you need to ring down to reception who will dutifully bring one up to you.

Dinner was good but the prices would have put me off if I were paying for it myself. My first meal from the fairly limited menu  was a steak and chips but be warned, if you order the steak well-done then expect it to come back looking like it’s been cooked in a toaster. Second night I went for the fish and chips which although damn tasty was definitely not worth the £11.50 they are charging. The third night I went for the Cumberland Sausage, mustard mash and red onion gravy and I must admit it was the best meal I’ve had in ages.

Breakfast is a typical full-English buffet. It’s best to leave it for a few minutes after you’re asked which toast and drink you’d like because all three mornings I’d manage to finish my breakfast by the time the toast and coffee turned up.

So in summary, if you ever find yourself in the unfortunate position of being stuck in Preston for 3 day and are looking for somewhere to stay, I’m sure you could do a hell of a lot worse than the Holiday Inn.