This is a shed of a hotel that stinks of damp and it generally grotty. Even if every other hotel in the area burns to the ground, do not be tempted to stay here.

We arrived to find a garden centre type shed, and walked into what we thought was the hotel reception (which looked like a garden centre canteen). This turned out to be the Indian restaurant next door. We found the hotel reception and checked in. This took a while as there was quite a lot of confusion over how many nights we had booked for, and we had to get a written ticket to hand in at breakfast (served at the Indian restaurant) the next morning. Once we were through the double doors into the main shed where the bedrooms are the stench of damp hit us. They had tried to mask it with air freshener - which made it linger up the nostrils a bit more - but it was really bad downstairs. The room was a good size and had a TV and kettle though, so i felt a bit cheered by that.

But the bed. Oh, the bed. The pillow cases were ripped at the (tasselled, nan’s-sofa stylee) sides and the shiny weird bedspread had stains all over it, so i moved that to the floor. I pulled back the 'duvet' and the pink bobbled bottom sheet was so worn I could see the mattress stains through it. On it, there were numerous pubic hairs. I went to reception and was offered another room. The lady then asked to come back to see the hairs. She had a good look at them all and told me whilst some were pubic/curly body hairs, some straight ones were 'just from someone’s head like the cleaner or something'.

Anyway, feeling a bit embarrassed and revolted I went to the new room. This one was upstairs and smelt less damp. The sheets were white and not worn, but I was glad I'd taken my own pillow. I had taken some cream fluffy bed socks to wear instead of slippers and the few trips to the TV, kettle and bathroom resulted in them being absolutely black by the time I went to bed.

The breakfast in the Indian was OK. The eggs tasted like metal and the mushrooms were really wrinkled. I don't understand how they got them that wrinkled. The sausages has gristle in them and the beans were cold, but the toast was fine (as was the bacon actually) and I didn't die after eating it which - given the state of the place - amazed me.

We met some people who had shared a twin room there, and they said they had a similarly grim experience with general filth and horrible smells. They also said that their room had a laminate floor, and it had such a dip in it that whilst they started the night in two single beds well apart from each other, by the morning the beds were touching where they had slid down in to the dip!

I've stayed in youth hostels and cheap B&B's and am happy to have basic, rough stays, but this was just disgusting. The damp smell got in to everything, it was grubby, and the way they just hadn't changed the sheets was grim. The mattress was bumpy and the sheets were worn and nylon in the first room. I don't know what it is about salmon pink sheets and blue pillow cases but when they are a bobbled nylon mix with see-through patches and a stained shiny bedspread over the top it really puts me off.

I had booked in for three nights, but said after night one that I wouldn't be coming back. This was greeted with a barrage of 'well don't think you are getting any money back! You've had these rooms held for a long time!' repeated over and over again. I had actually tried to cancel earlier in the week but they said there were no cancellations 7 days before. I now see on the website that they offer 48hr cancellation, so I’m really annoyed about that too. No wonder they want money in advance or surely no one would stay. I moved to the Holiday Inn Express and it was lovely. AND cheaper. Apparently they pick up a lot of business from the Travel Plaza escapees!

Eeeuw. I'm no princess but this was just horrible. I can still smell it now. I have taken a photo of my mushrooms though and i doubt i will ever see such wrinkled up mushrooms again so that must somehow be a positive? Experience of a lifetime?! Ooo I have just noticed you can add photos to this. I might give it a go.