If you're travelling to the USA

You might find this site useful, it details insider information on hotels including which rooms are the best to request in advance. Covering around 18 major destinations, definitely worth a look before you travel to make sure you've got a decent room.

Yang Sing Oriental, Manchester (Now Closed)

This new boutique hotel is the latest business from the Yeung brothers, next door to their famous restaurant on Princess Street, Manchester. You'll probably see Gerry Yeung patrolling the hotel during your stay, a personable fellow, so say hello if you get the opportunity.

We stayed in room 407, which was a stunning room, especially when you consider the current special offer rate of £128 via their website. No doubt the best value hotel in Manchester for the quality you get.

A beautiful hallway led you through to a stunning double aspect bedroom, looking over Manchester. Everything about the room furnishings has been looked at in great detail, from the stunning blinds, to the super comfortable bed and pillows. This place has been thought about, with nothing being overlooked.

What impressed me about this place was that pretty much everything in the room is free. The mini bar, which was stocked with four bottles of water, fizzy drinks, a couple of cans of Tiger, Red and White wine, Jelly beans and peanuts was all complimentary. In any other hotel, this would cost you a merry fortune and you should take this into consideration when comparing hotels.

The bathroom was wetroom style (which I'm not a massive fan of) however everything about it was quality, right the way from the Clarins miniatures to the quality of the towels, bathrobes and slippers.

Breakfast was included and was of a good quality with the English breakfast being cooked to order. It felt a bit disorganised in the dining room however the choice was good, including the freshly squeezed orange juice and thick toast. At weekends, they serve up to 11am, which is great if you want a lie in.

Location wise, it's spot on. Car parking, like all Manchester hotels is not in the hotel, you're best to pre-park in the underground car park alongside the Yang Sing restaurant (St. James Street) and then walk up with your bags, overnight it was about sixteen pounds. You'll need a big de-tour to get back to the car park if you pass it.

Pulling up outside the hotel isn't easy as it sits on a major set of lights. However, there are some spaces alongside the hotel, which may be free.

The room was quiet during the night, however, we were woken by bottles being emptied into bins in the early morning, this is the downside of being in a City centre and close to Chinatown, however, I'm a light sleeper. The only other bug bear was that the lift seemed to take ages.

In summary, I think the Yang Sing Oriental is a super hotel and full worthy of a 5p recommendation. We will definitely stay again. Having stayed at St. John Street (the other boutique hotel in the city which I haven't written my review for yet), I would say the Yang Sing is the better bet if you're coming to the City, both in terms of value for money and location. Point to note, this picture is not room 407, but it is a room from the hotel, so you can get a feel for the design.

Official Rating - 5*

My Rating - 5P

The Clarion Hotel, Copenhagen

The Clarion is one of those hotels that "will do", not stunning or particularly memorable. It's set in the business district, so is OK if you are coming for a meeting, but if you are exploring Copenhagen then I would recommend somewhere closer to the City centre. This hotel is about 10 mins away in a taxi.

Rooms are modern and contemporary however lack a feel of quality, more ikea/Ilva inspired, internet is free using the ethernet in the room which is a bonus. As the hotel is in the business district, the place feels a bit dead, so wouldn't come here on my own. I found the receptionists a bit frosty, hyper efficient but a welcoming smile wouldn't have gone amiss.

There are two types of room, those facing the road and those facing the sea (which are sold at a premium). I got allocated a road room and it was noisy, I found the bed uncomfortable and when it rained it was noisy, so I won't be going back! The mini bar replenishment was hit and miss which made things worse.

The only jewels in the crown were the whirlpool and sauna on the fifth floor which has a nice view (however if there are more than four people in the place, it will feel busy), food quality was pretty good and the conference centre was also excellent with good AV.

Official Rating 4*

My Rating -2P