Voco - Reading
My usual hotel near Reading is still closed and, not wanting to experience the builders' delight of the HI Reading South, I thought I'd try a new brand.

The Voco Reading was formerly the Madejski Millennium and, as its name suggests, is attached to the Reading FC stadium (the Madejski). Ordinarily I'd not go there (as it would be heaving due to either rugby or football matches being played), but in the current situation the stadium was empty.

Voco is a new brand to me and it seemed a blend of a high-end Holiday Inn and a regular European Crowne Plaza to me. When I checked in it was emphasised that what I would receive was not their normal service, as things had been pared back due to Covid.

The card wallet had a space for the name of the person who checked you in - unusual, but must be the image they're going for. The member of staff was wearing a mask, however I was the only guest I saw wearing one.

I was given a small bag containing various coffee and tea sachets, and UHT milk. There were some Biscoffs in there too (yum). I brought the lot back with me.

I was also promised a quiet room... hmm!

What is your Priority Club status?
Spire

Were you (or for multi-stayers are you generally) happy with the hotel/stay?
Yes

Which room did you book and which upgrade did you receive?
Booked a suite and received the same - it's the top room they offer.

How are the rooms?
The suite was around 50sqm and had been recently refurbished. The bedroom part was a standard HI/CP type room, with the lounge area having a large area of curved, sweeping glass - overlooking car parks. (To be fair, a hotel attached to a football stadium next to an industrial area is not going to have great views!)

How is the exec. lounge?
In its former guise there was apparently a "club lounge", but no mention was made when I checked in. They've either removed it or it's temporarily closed.

What was good and what was bad?
Good - refurbed room, so pretty much spotless. Large, airy public spaces. Welcoming staff at reception. The a/c - eventually - was quite effective, going down to 18C. Free parking immediately outside the hotel, with an overflow parking area available. Room service came with those little glass jars of condiments rather than sachets.

Bad - a/c wasn't on when I got in the room and it was stifling (full sun all afternoon + 25C or so outside). The room wasn't quiet - it was directly opposite a set of double doors marked "private". It seemed to be a staff wind-down area and I was, in fact, woken up at 1AM by loud talking and laughing immediately outside my room... annoying. Chatter and voices continued through the early hours, but thankfully earplugs drowned it out.
I ordered room service and the member of staff delivering it had a mask, but had lowered it to talk to me!

Neutral - the hotels' blurb mentioned free drinks and snacks in the minibar, but it was empty. There was a bottle of water provided on the counter, a glass one with a rubber stopper - I didn't use it though as you couldn't tell if it'd been opened. No mention of reduced VAT (tax is now 5% on hotel rooms, rather than 20%, but given the situation I can't really moan - I'm sure IHG is hurting for cash right now!)
The a/c turned off during the night... I guess it does so after a few hours. I turned it back on and all was well.

Value for $ or Priority Club Points? Would you return?
The price for the room was £125, on a par with the normal pricing for a suite at my usual HI in the summer, so not a bad price for a 4-star room.
I would return (and in fact have booked in for the end of the month already)... hopefully I won't get the same room again. Once my usual hotel re-opens, though, I'll be going back there instead.

(As for Voco itself, I'm not really sure what it's trying to achieve - it could quite easily have been a Crowne Plaza instead, albeit there's already one of those in Reading! It didn't have much that seemed unique to the brand, but that could be due to Covid of course...)