Portsmouth (Havant)

Stopped overnight before getting early morning ferry. It’s way out of town but we knew that, and not many local choices for eating or a supermarket within walking distance. Typical Premier Inn just in need of a little TLC. We stayed in room 202 and the road was noisy all night with the windows open. If you end up at the back of the hotel go out of reception and walk up the hill to the side entrance instead of up and down all the sets of stairs internally. You will thank me later 😁

I’m a returning guest as I attend goodwood events and regularly stay at the Havant premier inn. I was greeted by Samantha who immediately remembered me from previous visits. It was so lovely to see her smiling face. She looked after me in the restaurant and provided excellent service and I had a lovely meal. I then saw her again the next day at the hotel reception again bubbly and smiling and made sure I was comfortable. Staff like this make such a difference so thank you. Hope to see you soon.

On arrival at reception, I had to wait a short time while two members of staff could take the trouble to break off their conversation and attend to a guest. The first thing pointed out to me above all else was the fact that there was only one member of waiting staff on duty in the dining room and that I must make an appointment for a specific time. I decided to eat out. On the second night I used the restaurant. What a disappointment. The menu item I chose listed a steak and ale pie, including chips with their skins on. The pie that I was looking forward to turned out to be a minuscule offering with tough overcooked pastry and clearly a frozen item of dubious quality. The chips were also of the frozen variety and definitely not as advertised. Exceptionally poor quality and false advertising at best. The glass doors to the restaurant didn’t look to have had a good clean in a while. Covered in hand/finger marks so I’d imagine the handles hadn’t had a wipe over either. The room was clean and everything worked and I did have two good nights sleep. One other point. I think in today’s tech age it would be useful to have charging points.

The beds were very comfortable and the shower was good. Always nice to have a high shower head and a lower one too, which suits us fine. The staff were extremely stretched but managed very well. Once I’d booked through the central booking system I was able to phone the Havant hotel direct to ask for rooms with lower baths and beds and also for one with a walk in shower, which was great as some of us have less mobility than others. I would like to pass on my thanks to the receptionist who was on duty on Saturday evening as she helped me with a phone app to order taxis. Also, a big thank you to the waitress who was the only one on duty on Monday evening but she was very efficient, organised and personable despite being under lots of pressure. Also, a nod to the chef, who also did long hours and managed well on his own. The only down side was the cooked breakfast could have been hotter, but that was not down to the chef, but to the heated (?) trays the food was kept in. Also, it was a shame the restaurant wasn’t open at lunch times, but that’s probably because there was some refurbishment going on, which wasn’t intrusive in any way. We had a very enjoyable stay and if we stay in Portsmouth again we would go there again.

There are two Premier Inn's within 10 minutes drive of each other. I would recommend you go to the other one. My room was clean enough and very basic, which is not a reason for a poor review. This hotel must be used for temporary housing judging by some of the clientele. There is no central space - my colleague and I needed to catch up on some work - so we tried the 'restaurant' which is just across the way and where breakfasts are served. After breakfast that is closed until 5pm at which time you can get drinks/food. Equally disappointing, with 4 out of 5 drafts unavailable. The staff were helpful and friendly enough - the place is just very tatty, tired and a bit of a rip off given the price. There are some nice bed and breakfasts in the locality that would have been better value. As an additional annoyance, there was a £15 charge for early check in even though the room was ready - I've never had that before.

Excellent stay not far from the ferry port. Room was spacious and clean. We were too late on the evening arrival to eat next door but theres a mcdonalds a few minutes drive away. We had breakfast the next morning it was perfect, hot, fresh and plenty of choice.