Travelodge London Liverpool Street

A pretty typical Travelodge, worth booking if you can get a very cheap deal, but certainly not worth the full rate.

For anyone who's been following the broken lift saga, you might want to know that it was out of action yet again for the whole of last weekend - with a notice put up (see photo) apologising, but pointing out that there's been a warning on the website for more than a year. Does it really take that long to fix a lift? No joke if you're having to walk up 6 floors.

There's noise from the trains, as others have pointed out, and there's a warning on the website about noise from the building site next door.

The room wasn't filthy, but could certainly have been cleaner - I can just about live with someone else's toe nail, but nasal secretions on two of the walls really should have been dealt with!

The LCD television works fine, though it's difficult to see why Freeview channels aren't provided - they are free, after all. And why no Radio 4?

The bathroom was fine, if a little damaged and mildewy. The fixed shower head is hopeless, though, particularly for women and people with children.

As always, the window won't open beyond a few centimetres, and it would make the room unbearably hot in the summer, or even the spring and autumn. I know it's supposed to be a health and safety issue, but how would anyone get out in the event of a fire?

In summary, it's a Travelodge. Good value if you can book a cheap room in advance, but you have to be prepared to accept the limitations. I think the non-opening windows are a serious risk to life, though.

You will be pleased to know that the lift has now been fixed! Not bad for a budget hotel in London. Reasonably priced for London at £85 (92 euros, $137 US) for a double room. There was a mild damp smell, but not too all-pervading and the staff seemed to occasionally spray fragrance to get rid of it. The receptionist was friendly and efficient and the room was clean. I was in room 615 on a Thursday night in October 2009. There was no telephone in the room, but there was an electric kettle, coffee, tea, milk (Milk Maid “tastes like fresh milk”). The bathroom had a shower (no bath), no plug in the sink, and a small bar of soap was provided. The television had the 4 main terrestrial channels, BBC1, BBC2, ITV, Channel 4, but no Channel 5. Close to local food shops, cafes, pubs and bars.