I chose this IHG hotel mainly because of price because the cost of most hotels in central London was ridiculous. The location wasn't bad either, close to Stratford tube station with a direct connection to London City Airport just 15 minutes away, or central London with the Elizabeth line in 20 minutes. That said, although Stratford is a rejuvenated area it is still a bit depressing, although a new outdoor shopping mall near Stratford station has brightened things up a bit. One important thing was that I felt no immediate danger in the area around the hotel, unlike how it would have been just a few years ago. Despite Stratford's bygone reputation, there are a number of decent hotels springing up in this part of the city.


This was my room which was perfectly comfortable and, most important, clean


The same room, taken when I was standing by the window


The bathroom facilities were typical Holiday Inn Express and were decent enough

Reception was very friendly and helpful, despite the masses of left luggage which seemed to be there. There was a pleasant enough bar and alongside that was the breakfast area. The rooms at the Holiday Inn Express tend to be all the same and, mostly, there are no better rooms that one could be upgraded to. In this case, the room did not sport the latest HIX design (which is actually quite good) but the older one, dating from around 15 years ago. That said, there wasn't much obvious wear and tear in the room and the bed was pretty comfortable. As the room looked out of the rear of the hotel there was little, if any, street noise. The shower and washroom actually has a "main" door that doubles, with a simple swivel, as a door to the toilet. As for breakfast, there were rather a lot of people milling around, but it was somehow ok. The breakfast itself was reasonably good quality, not amazing, but totally ok.


Front desk and reception area


General view of the reception and bar area


Exterior view of the Holiday Inn Express Stratford in East London