Express By Holiday Inn London Limehouse

We got a cheap deal for this hotel on Hotwire. We were only visiting London for one night and this hotel did the job perfectly. Its not in the nicest area of London granted, but in terms of value for money its much better than some of the city centre hotels i have stayed in. The DLR is only a ten minute walk away so travel into the centre is not a problem. The rooms are modern and very clean and the complimentary continental breakfast is a nice touch. Would definitely stay here again for a short stay in the capital.

We only stayed here one night, so that we could attend an event. The location was very handy for where we were going. It's also handy for the river, and for exploring some East End locations, such as Cable Street. But it's not a pretty area generally. If you like cement factories, you could ask for a room with a view over the one next door.

We had trouble driving there. We followed the hotel's directions, and indeed, on exiting the second tunnel the hotel was visible on our right. But it was not possible to turn right! It took quite a lot of exploration of London's one-way system before we found the approach that took us to the hotel! I'd recommend the hotel updating their directions for people driving from the north - and I'd recommend anyone driving from the north to ring the hotel and ask what to do after emerging from the second tunnel.

Parking was very reasonable by London standards, at L10 per day, behind a barrier for security. The hotel was fairly basic but generally perfectly acceptable - standard Holiday Inn Express. It was clean except for numerous nasty-looking stains on our carpet. There was a duvet on the bed with white bed linen, and a small settee to sit on. A TV with a smallish selection of channels, and tea/coffee facilities. A small hairdryer. An uninspiring but adequate cold breakfast (juice, some fruit, cereals, croissants, toast) was included.

My problems happened in the bathroom. It was clean and pleasant-looking. (Toiletries were only wall-mounted squeezy bottles of stuff.) The shower was spacious, clean and nicely warm and powerful. But when I finally managed to stop enjoying the shower, I reached for my towel, and slipped right over. The shower floor was completely slippery - so mush so, that when I landed in one position, I slipped again from that position - this happened a couple of times. Luckily I did not bang my head on anything, Luckily also, my husband heard me scream, and with his help I was eventually able to get up. There was a grab rail, but it was too high for me to reach from my prone position, I was also in pain and twisted, making it more difficult to move. What I had thought were anti-slip blobs on the shower stall floor were, I was later informed by the manager, "only there for decoration" and not intended to be non-slip. There was no warning notice that the floor might become slippery (although there were plenty of other notices up).

I am not generally doddery or prone to falls. I have never fallen in a shower before. I do not believe that this was due to me being reckless - I was simply reaching for the bath towel. I do believe the hotel was failing in its duty of care, firstly by having such slippery showers but also by not warning about them and by decorating the floors with apparent anti-slip dots.

My neck is now very stiff, in considerable pain and with a very limited range of movement. I also have some lower back discomfort on one side, and the toes of my right foot hurt when I move them. To give her her due, the manager was sympathetic and gave me the numbers of customer relations and the legal department, as well as genuine apologies. But I still hurt! I do hope they fix this, because people could be alone when they fall, or they could bang their heads or hurt themselves even more than I did.

Having said all this, I might return if I wanted to be in that area again, but I'd buy my own non-slip bath mat first.