Holiday Inn Leiden

Had a lovely overnight stay here, just one night. We'd seen the hotel website and our 3 year old daughter liked the look of it, so we decided to come and stay. Nice and easy to get from the station, five minutes on the bus and then over the road. The buses were heaving, though, when we got on them! Lovely welcome from front desk, and the kids were both given an activity pack, which the youngest enjoyed. Normally, we'd not book one room, but thought nothing of it for a single night. We had two decent sized twins, there'd have been plenty of space for a cot as well if we wanted one. It's an interesting set up as the rooms face the indoor garden/courtyard bit, with a big window, but with very good privacy blinds, so you can see out, but folk can't see in. We were just next to the table tennis table, a few steps from the indoor playground, and close to the pool. To be honest, I'd have been perfectly happy sending the 9 year old out on his own to play with the stuff and maybe even to use the pool, but as it's not got a lifeguard it's not the sort of risk I like to take. On the subject of the pool, it was lovely, if a little dark, and almost empty. You require €1 or €2 coins as a refundable locker deposit, and you need to bring your own towel - and there's not much opportunity to dry towels in the room, so instead I managed to swap our wet swimming towels for dry ones after our swim. The play area was good for the four year old, but lacking for an older child, but he played pool (€2) and table tennis (free) with me. A major factor for us booking the hotel was the family buffet in the restaurant, as our littlest one is a fussy eater. It was lovely, with a good choice of dishes, and stuff for everyone to enjoy. There are tables scattered all over the indoor garden area, so there was no problem finding somewhere to sit and eat. The same could be said for breakfast. It's good that the restaurant is decent, and I'm glad I booked a half board rate as there's nothing else in the immediate vicinity of the hotel, so thankfully it's all pretty self-contained. A slight drawback was that, as we visited, the Netherlands had had a record breaking spell of hot weather, and the garden area, basically being one massive conservatory, could feel a bit stuffy at times. We were only footsteps from our room, though, so we could escape the heat if we wanted. It would be absolutely impossible to cool that large area efficiently, and to be honest, it was more pleasant than being outside in the direct sunlight. All the kids' attractions were closed after 9, so there was no noise in the bedrooms so the youngest could sleep, and me and the older child slipped off to have a look at the bar and watch the football. The bar was nice, and not all that expensive for a hotel, but we didn't stay long. In the morning, after we'd had another swim and checked out, we went into Leiden, which is a lovely looking town and I'm keen to definitely return there. Our littlest wants to go back to the "Jungle Club Hotel", but I think if I wanted to visit Leiden properly I might try to find something a bit more centrally located. That said, we loved our stay and wouldn't hesitate to come back if the need arises.