Stay at the Travelodge if you want a cheap room that is usually clean, no frills and basic amenities. I stayed here for 12 pounds per night on a special rate. I needed to be close to London without London prices and got a rail pass, since its main advantage is that it is literally 1 min walk from the London/Stansted/Cambridge line to London Liverpool Street. The receptionist was fine on checking in, but there was usually no-one at the desk. They don't promise much, and you don't get much beyond a bed, a bathroom and a basic TV. There are tea/coffee making facilities, but as other reviewers have pointed out, the room is not that big and the extra sofa bed had definitely seen better days. The security is ok since you need your room key to access the hotel beyond reception, but there was no-one there to monitor whether others were being let in. The only other selling point is that it is smoke free, which may be important for some customers.

I stayed here only for one night for the convinience of the proximity to the train station (with direct line to Stansted Airport) and to my office. I booked the family room, as the single rooms or doubles where fully booked. For one person or for two is confortable but for a family.....? Not sure really, the sofa-bed looked a bit tired and the space between the bed and the sofa-bed was really small.
The room and bathroom where clean. The bathroom could do with a better soap at least!

I wasn't expecting much but really this was poor.

Between our business group we had a few rooms and all were disappointing.

The beds were all concave and the rooms sparse, no hair dryer and only a bible for comfort!

Unclean bathrooms, I wore socks in it just in case!

Breakfast was an interesting concoction of uht milk, cornflakes and a manky croissant...

If you want a cheapish place for the night with no extras then this will be OK for you. I had to stay in the area for 2 nights while travelling by myself and did not want to spend £80 a night or something similar. I paid £35.50 for each night, The room faced onto the A414 and was noisy with the window open. I got there as early as I could because they said the parking was first come first served. I did not move the car for 2 days in case I lost my space! The receptionist was delightful when I arrived but I only saw 1 other person on the desk during my stay. The room was large and the bed was comfortable but the TV kept "freezing". I ate at the Toby carvery next door on the first night but the food was only just warm and I decided to get myself a sandwich for the next evening. I hope I never need to stay there again.