Holiday Inn Hemel Hempstead M1, JCT. 8 by IHG

Absolutely loved our stay here. One of the best hotels weve stayed at throughout the UK. If we visited the area again we would 100% stay here again. Every staff encounter we had was extremely positive. Room was great. We all slept very well. Gym, sauna, steam room, jacuzzi and swimming pool all fantastic. The swimming pool made our trip with a 7 and 3 year old. The food at breakfast was spot on. Plenty of everything. Everything was fresh. The restaurant was clean. The guy cleaning up Derek made a real effort to talk to the staff. Only negative was the bar in the evening was not staffed very well. Waited 15 minutes to be served for tap water and fruit shoots. However there was 2 coach loads of people staying for the evening so might not always be like this. Shame we won't be staying in the area again. Very very pleased.

We couldn’t have asked for anything better than what we experienced. Outstanding hospitality and a truly luxurious hotel. The kids absolutely loved the swimming pool. A special thank you to Hamza at reception, who went above and beyond to help us with our enquiries and advised us on the cheapest and quickest way to get to the airport. He made us feel completely at home. Thank you, Hamza — we will never forget your hospitality.

My wife and I stayed here for three weeks and enjoyed all the amenities and especially the friendly staff and the comfortable room. The breakfasts were delicious with a wide range to choose from. I particularly enjoyed the toaster which was modern, adjustable, and actually gave perfect toast first time! The star of breakfast has to be Derek, and in his honour I wrote the following - Derek, cherubic of form and face, rules over breakfast with charm and grace, Tirelessly welcoming each new guest, showing the location of Holiday Inn’s best, Full English, continental, food galore, Derek’s domain is gastronomically pure, As we our generous full English consume, we watch Derek benevolently glide around the room, Giving information, assistance and advice, helping each guest feel ‘morning fresh’ and nice. (OK - so I’m no poet!) Hurrah for Derek, a very fine guy - so sorry to have to say goodbye!

Stayed over as part of a trip to a Harry Potter studios and everything was spot on. Really good hotel and a well ran operation. All staff really pleasant, but special mention to the guy (sorry I didn’t get his name) who looked after our coach party for our evening meal and was there in the morning for breakfast service. Very friendly, accommodating, warm and funny. Bar staff were great on the evening and again very well ran. Always aware of who was next to be served etc and very efficient. Our evening meal was very nice and breakfast service, choices and quality was a 5/5. One of the best breakfasts we’ve had on our many trips away. A really good representation of the Holiday Inn at Hemel Hempstead.

We recently stayed for a visit to the Harry Potter studios. Excellent location and amenities. Swimming pool was warm and not too crowded. Service is excellent. At breakfast Derek was very friendly and kept the children entertained with his Harry Potter jokes. Refreshing to see someone take pride in his work and making a difference. He helped make the stay an enjoyable one. Overall a lovely short break for our family. Would definitely return.

This was an ideal base for Harry Potter Studios, 20mins away and easy to get to. Service was the best part of our stay, Derek in the restaurant was so kind and genuine, he really made our stay the best it could be - he is a such an asset to your hotel! He was really kind with our son, I generally think he has a good way with people and I was surprised he recently joined the team, I thought he had been there for years! Fahd, the head chef, was also great. He was so positive and friendly, just what is needed in the morning. Both really stood out to me and I hope they get recognised for the great service they provide. Pool was great, warm and not too busy. The gym was good, could do with a refurb, but it had the essentials and nice to have this available. Overall, a really good stay and somewhere we would stop again.

We had a wonderful stay here for my partners birthday. The room was quiet, clean and reasonably sized. The cot we requested was all made up and ready for baby to sleep in which was sweet. The pool/sauna/jacuzzi was great; clean and not busy. Didn't use the gym facilities though I would say the glass window facing the pool should probably be frosted to offer more privacy to those swimming and not having someone stare in the same direction for x amount of time. The hotel itself is really clean and well maintained, the bar/restaurant was lovely. We had dinner in the hotel and they changed the side of my order without an issue, and baby ate for free. Breakfast was absolutely amazing, lots to. choose from! We loved it. Derek was fantastic and gave us some great recommendations for the little one. The head chef Fahd was lovely too, everyone was really friendly. We would be happy to stay again, and probably will

My family and I have just returned from this lovely, modern, clean hotel with decent food. We choose this hotel due to the close proximity to the Harry Potter Studios. It was perfect for us as a family. Added bonus was having a pool for the kids. Staff are very friendly. Especially Derek. He is just a credit to your hotel. He really brightened up our day every morning with his humour and kindness. He really goes out of his way to make the guests feel happy. He was great with the kids telling Harry potter jokes. My son has Ceoliac disease and for breakfast they cooked him fresh gluten free pancakes and sausages which we really appreciated. Thanks for a lovely stay!