after reading some horrible reviews about this hotel my classmates and i were sort worried about wat our living conditions would be like for the next three weeks. to our great surprise when we arrived at the hotel new management had taken over and by golly gee it was inthe nick of time. the new owners were very friendly and hospitably nothing ever seemed to large or to small for them to do for us. every now and again or rooms were cleaned and sheets and towels changed.. the rooms were warm enough for us caribbean babies to get a good nights sleep in the frigid blackburn summer. the food was awesome and though different from wat we were acustom to we enjoyed. the hotel is not far from convinient store so we could get wat we needed in less then 15 minutes and be back at the hotel. just a tad bit of redocorating and this hotel could be up there with the rest. and for the pub downstairs no hassle at all it was never noisy and drinks were always available to us so. on a real i really have nothing bad to say about the woodlands hotel.

Before going to the Woodlands, we read some bad reviews about the hotel, but the reservations were made, so 'what could we do?'. However when we went there, it was not at all like the reviews. Firstly, the hotel is under new management by the most friendliest guys who beyond the call of duty to satisfy their guests. THERE IS hot water and wi-fi, comfortable rooms. Also there is a pub downstairs (which does not disturb you when you're in your room) where you can go and relax, have a drink or play a game. Its a very relaxing and peaceful environment.

When I booked the rooms at the Woodlands I was looking for a basic, clean, no frills room with a comfortable bed, en suite shower and breakfast. Not too pricey and preferably a bar for a pint after we arrived. Sounds relatively easy - well it wasn't. The staff were quite polite and friendly, if a little embarrassed, at not being able to find the key to my room. This wasn’t a problem as it was easy to find another empty room, not sure but I think that the place was empty except for us.

The décor was tatty, the hall carpets covered in plaster dust, cables hanging down against the stairway wall and the fire door at the top of the stairway propped open with a fire extinguisher (which I returned to it’s appropriate position). Not a great start, but at this stage had the rooms been ok I would have gone with it. My friends twin room had one freshly made bed, unfortunately the other had obviously not been stripped since the last occupant. Neither of our TV’s worked, the sockets in my room were ‘in-operable’ due to ‘foreign objects’ being broken off in the earth pin slots. Luckily the windows were left open onto the busy road to reduce the musty smell, normally the room would have been a bit cold on such a chilly night, thankfully the heating was on full to make sure that the temperature quickly rose to an unbearably warm level.

I naively expected to get a cooked breakfast served to me in the morning, no such luck, an almost adequate continental breakfast was left out for us in the bar area which we ate at the dimly lit table.

The bar was actually quite well fitted out and had a good atmosphere around last orders. Unfortunately being used to the longer opening hours in Scotland we were a little bemused when the staff turned out the lights at 23:10 and told us that we could take our drinks up to our rooms.

This is the type of establishment that you expect to see on programmes like the Hotel Inspector, she would have had a field day. Don’t get me wrong I’ve got no problem with the treatment I received from the staff, they were polite and efficient, albeit disinterested and seemed slightly embarrassed by the rooms. Although the costs were relatively low, this hotel did not represent value for money and I would struggle to recommend it to anybody.

I stayed at the Highlands in Blackburn for one night, after arriving on a flight into Manchester from the US. I was at the hotel by 11am, and the man at the bar kindly allowed me to check in early, as my room was ready to go. I had a single room which was fairly roomy, and the bed was very comfortable. The bathroom is far from ideal, and the shower was ONLY cold water, making it a quick experience for me. In the evening, there was not a large selection to eat in the vicinity besides the pub, but about a 10 minute walk into town, there is an Arab restaurant called the Nile which served delicious food, I got some great fish & chips for like 4 quid. As the evening progressed, the Woodlands became very lively, and unfortunately, I was tired and tried to go to sleep, only to be kept awake by a band and jukebox, as a previous reviewer had mentioned. I did not complain, however, as I knew what I was getting when I booked the room. The breakfast the next morning was delicious, and filled me up for a long day of hiking in the Yorkshire Dales, a short train ride away. All in all, I recommend the Highlands for the budget/single traveller, don't expect a 4 star room, but it serves the purpose of basic lodging quite well.