My husband and I stayed at this hotel last Friday with two friends. The hotel is located in Trafford, a short distance from the city centre. It is right next to the metrolink tram stop which takes you directly to the city centre (4-5 stops). It is built around the Lancashire Cricket Ground (we wern't there to watch the cricket but it would be ideal if you were). There is a large free carpark which was almost empty (I presume it is full on match days though) and the hotel very kindly let us leave our car there for most of the day on Saturday even though we had checked out.

The checkin staff were friendly and efficient, and there was no wait to check in.

The room was a decent size with a comfortable bed, a sofabed, a desk and a small wardrobe. The decor wasn't great, but it was clean and comfortable, and much better than I expected from a 2 star hotel. There were tea/coffee making facilites in the room, and there was also hot chocolate and some biscuits, which was a nice touch.

We spent the evening in Manchester and got a taxi back to the hotel because we were too late for the tram which finished at 0030. The taxi cost £15, but I expect we could have bargained with the driver if we wanted to. We had brought back a bottle of wine as a night cap and the night reception staff kindly removed the corkscrew and gave us four wine glasses.

We booked the hotel on laterooms and got a special rate of £35 including breakfast, which was a real bargain. The breakfast was a continental buffet, but much better than I have had in many 4 star hotels. There was fresh toast, jam, marmalade, croissants, pastries, hams, cheeses, salami, cereals, muesli, fruit juice, fruit salad...but the best part was that offered proper coffee (espresso, cappuccino, americano, latte) from an espresso machine rather than the usual undrinkable brewed coffee you get offered.

We really enjoyed our stay...the breakfast, the room, the staff, and the price!

stayed during a conference for which prices were bumped up to £100 per night. At half this price it would be a fair deal but at this price range, the place was deficient: day to day flick a dust was good and bedding was clean but there was deeply ingrained mould around the base of the shower walls and a generally never quite deep cleaned feel. Carpets were tatty and first stair carpet on ground floor had a dangerous tear. Room has french window rather than window which means the only security at night is to bolt everything shut and the room was quite hot. People in next room can be clearly heard. No tissues were supplied in room and the liquid soap was of uncertain quality. Breakfast is not good for the price range: very poor quality jam etc.. Walk to/from metro station was quite daunting in the dark-the hotel make no concessions about shortening walk through side gate-but commute into Manchester is fairly short which is just as well because, apart from the cricket, the place is in the middle of urban desert. Full charge for all rooms booked for all nights was zapped onto credit card on arrival. Cricket fanatics will forgive all this but again, pricing was ambitious for the product.

We chose this hotel based on its proximity to Old Trafford since we had tickets for the England-Hungary friendly match on 30 May and also wanted to take the tour of the stadium and see the Manchester United museum. The hotel is also conveniently located to the tram which brings you right into downtown Manchester within a matter of a few minutes.

We thought the room rates were reasonable enough that we splurged for an "executive" room overlooking the cricket pitch, which was well worth the upgrade as we got to view a match while we were staying there as well.

The hotel is clean and modern. Only continental breakfast is available in the mornings, but offers a nice selection of rolls and pastries, meats and cheeses. The staff were pleasant and efficient and helpful. The selection at the residents bar was limited, but adequate.

The only reason I give less than excellent rating is due to the size of the room itself, as it was just a little too cramped when someone was sitting at the desk, making it difficult to walk between the pulled out desk chair and the bed to get to the balcony.

Overall, it was great value. We enjoyed our stay and will gladly stay there again next time we visit Manchester.

Once again we stayed at the Trafford Lodge (usually make 3 or 4 trips a year during the cricket season). Since our last trip last summer, the rooms with balconies have been refurbished, and we found them very comfortable. Breakfast was fine - okay so no fryups, but plenty cereals, toast, pastries etc, and this year meat/cheese if you want. As always, the staff are friendly and the tables are cleared quite quickly.
We've already booked a further 2 stays for the cricket and no doubt as soon as we get next year's fixture list (in Nov/Dec) we will be booking our rooms for next season!