Jeans Place Watergate St Rows near racecourse

Perfect host, location & facilities

As above

Rooms are very cleans and tidy on arrival, excellent location right in the centre, car park close by

Excellent location and nice clean room with comfortable bed. Host was very friendly and keen to make sure everything was ok for her guests

Would have liked a chair in the room but otherwise nothing negative to highlight

I really wanted to like Jean’s place much more than I actually did. The location is superb — if you have no issues with stairs, you really cannot ask for a better location, right in the heart of the city centre. I booked two nights for myself and my 10-year-old daughter for a mum-and-daughter city break. Communication through Booking.com was excellent. I messaged ahead to explain the purpose of our trip and asked whether we could drop our bags off slightly earlier than check-in, and Sharon responded immediately and was very accommodating. We were also very kindly given an early check-in at no additional cost, which I really appreciated. We received the key-box codes and room allocation the day before arrival, so everything was very straightforward. We arrived by train and walked around 25 minutes from the station with our small backpacks. It was an exceptionally hot August day and, by the time we arrived, we were tired, hot and thirsty and really just wanted to get our bags down and go and find some food. It is important to be clear that this is not a hotel. It is a homestay, and you are staying in somebody’s home. The guest bedrooms are on the second and third floors, with a shared bathroom between the four guest rooms. There are a lot of stairs, so this is definitely something to bear in mind when booking. Our initial welcome was friendly, but unfortunately the check-in experience took the shine off things for us. Sharon spent a considerable amount of time talking about cancellations from previous guests, how frustrated she was with them, and complaining about people who had left bad reviews. We were standing at the top of the stairs in the heat with our bags, with my 10-year-old daughter excited about our little trip, and I repeatedly explained that we really just wanted to drop our bags off and head out for some food.

Unfortunately, the shared bathroom was the biggest issue for us. I was completely aware when booking that the bathroom would be shared, and I had absolutely no problem with that. The issue was the condition and cleanliness of it. There were numerous products belonging to other people, and the bathroom appeared poorly maintained. The trim around the bath was coming away, there were bits of plaster on the floor, the grouting was in poor condition and there was visible dirt and dust around the pipes, corners and edges. The bathroom fittings generally looked tired and in need of significant attention. There was also no bath mat inside the shower area, which made the floor extremely slippery. I actually got into the shower with my daughter because I was concerned that she might slip. We only used the shower because we needed to, and it wasn’t a particularly pleasant experience. There was a hand towel left in the bathroom, but given that it was a shared facility, we didn’t feel comfortable using it. For me, this bathroom really needs to be brought up to a much better standard before the property is marketed to paying guests. I understand that this is a no-frills homestay, and I wasn’t expecting luxury, but cleanliness, maintenance and basic bathroom safety should be a given. One of the biggest problems for us came when we returned from our evening meal, looking forward to getting settled and watching a film. Someone had been cooking fish or kippers in the communal kitchen and the smell had permeated the entire building. It was extremely strong and unpleasant, and unfortunately there was little we could do about it. Sadly, we wouldn’t stay again and I wouldn’t recommend it for a city break unless you are specifically looking for very basic, no-frills accommodation and are comfortable staying in someone’s home with shared facilities. The location is genuinely excellent, and the communication and flexibility around check-in were very good.