I wanted to go to Liverpool a couple of weeks ago, but there was a conference on the Saturday so I either had two early starts or would have to stay over night. There were no rooms in Liverpool to be had for under £200, so I figured I ought to be able to get something near Euston for under £100. That way I could be in Liverpool by noon, without having to get up at 6am two days running. (Of course, I probably could have gone to Liverpool on the Friday, but when would I write the paper then?)

As if by magic, the booking appeared on my phone, and so I could use Google Maps to plot the walk there from the soon-to-be-lamented Bree Louise. It might be worth noting I was already exhausted and my left knee was giving me aggro.

Everyone seems to want your opnion of how your stay or travel or whatever was, so I filled in the feedback webpages and it suggested that I share to Trip Advisor via the link below.

There was no link below.

Trip Advisor’s loss is your gain.

Lucky you

Possibly this is GoogleMaps’ fault, but living in the twenty-first century I was pleased to see that GoogleMaps knew where and when I was staying, so I could navigate a route. Unfortunately, this took me to one of the other three or four Premier Inns near York Road. Thanks, Google.

When I found the right hotel, check in seemed fine and I descended into the bowels of the hotel to find a compact room, with a comfortable bed if you are tall enough to clamber into it. (I think it was a metre off the ground.) The bed only has one side which is accessible, so if you have a bunkmate who lost the toss and gets the wall, they either wake you up or clamber over you, possibly both.

The first thing I noticed was a lack of kettle (there was a mumble about free coffee in the restaurant area, but I’m not sure I want that at three o’clock in the morning). Having just stayed in a cheaper hotel with kettle, fridge and microwave, I think someone is getting away with something for £100 a night. There isn’t a beaker in the bathroom, so you couldn’t even drink from the tap.

There’s a double shower in a single cubicle, but the door to the cubicle is rather narrow — I just about squeezed through.

All the lights are controlled from a touchpad on the wall by the bed. This requires much groping around in the dark, and not in a pleasant way, as that sound much more fun than it really was.

On the positive side, there is a socket by the bed, so you can recharge your phone as you sleep and have the phone by you. Most hotels seem to put the sockets as far away from the bed as possible.

(I note also the stylised map of London on the wall — which rather straightens the Thames and is rather approximate about anthing approaching accuracy)