My husband and I both enjoy tracing our family history, but due to a really busy homelife and long working hours we rarely get time to sit and catch up with it. We had loads of notes that needed uninterrupted time so we could write them all up, so decided to go away for a night, book in a cheapy hotel room with our laptops, and spend some quality time catching up with it all. This hotel is about an hour down the road for us - and we stopped en-route in Chester and had a nice lunch by the river, then carried on to the hotel which is in a very easy to reach position on the A55. The plan was to spend the whole afternoon and evening and following morning note writing, then head somewhere further into Wales for the following afternoon.

We often stay at Holiday Inns, and this one didn't look too bad. We booked an executive room with an inclusive evening meal and breakfast, which was £112 for one night for the pair of us.

The fountain outside which looks lovely in the pictures was not working and was full of stagnant water and rubbish which was a shame.

However the staff were friendly, and our executive room was really really nice. It had a double aspect window, there were dressing gowns and slippers provided, a mini bar with free soft drinks and chocolate (thank you Holiday Inn!). The bed was a huge size (and really comfy) and there was plenty of working space for my husband and I with laptops and so much paperwork that it took an overloaded hotel trolley to carry it all in! There is also free wi fi throughout the hotel which was very handy for us.

There was plenty of tea and coffee - and when we ran out of teabags reception were more than happy to give us more. The staff had advised us to book in for dinner which we did - but the whole dining experience left a lot to be desired.

For our starters I ordered bread and oils, and my husband ordered garlic bread. The restaurant was not busy, yet 45 mins later they had not arrived. A waitress told us they would be with us soon, and still nothing appeared. Eventually they gave us a free drink and finally after an hour our breads appeared. Other customers chatted to us and told us the food service is often that bad!

Our main meals arrived, and to be honest I think mine had been cooked and left on the side to go cold while we waited for the breads, and my husband's meat was so undercooked he was scared to eat it (and this is a man who eats anything and everything!).

Puddings were fine - but the whole 'quick' dining experience took well over two hours.

Breakfast the next morning was supposed to be a buffet, but by the time we appeared at 9.00 the buffet had been cleared away even though breakfast is served until much later, and a waitress scuttled off to get us a plate of food each. Breakfast did taste better than the meal the night before!

We passed the cleaners and politely told them we would be in our room until checkout time, and they were more than happy with that and told us not to rush.

Overall I would certainly stay here again, the room was lovely, the staff were friendly and helpful, but I certainly would not eat here again - there is a diner and a McDonalds right outside, and although they are not my preferred choice of foods, they would be if I stayed here!

The hotel is in a great position if you want to visit North Wales or Chester - from leaving the hotel we drove to Anglesey and were there in a remarkably short time. I think apart from us and maybe one other couple everyone was there on business though, and there were lots of conferences going on within the hotel.

Holiday Inn, if you read this, please fix that fountain outside - it looks awful!