Le Meridien Queens Hotel Leeds

The Queens Hotel was opened in 1937 (I know this because there’s an inscription at the entrance) and it's imposing façade has obviously remained pretty much unchanged ever since.

Situated right at the heart of the city square it's design is a triumph of art deco - all white stone, pillars, straight lines and understated elegance. This continues inside with all the public areas retaining the 1930s feel with the décor also appearing to have been unchanged since this place was opened. Sitting in the lobby you don't have to stretch your imagination too much to feel like you’re in an Agatha Christie novel or something (aside from the dead bodies bit.)

Being a bit of a fan of the design of that period, this place was off to a fine head start with me. As it turned out though, aside from the fantastic grandeur of the place this is probably the best city break type hotel I've stayed in for a very long time.

My room wasn't the largest but reasonably sized for a weekend stay, the bed was comfy, pillows reasonable (always something I look for as regular readers will remember) and the large flat-screen TV was very sexy (and very black). The room was spotless (which is what you'd expect) but I really got the feeling they had a genuine pride in the detail that other hotels sometimes miss. There were no cracked tiles in the bathroom, for example, no light switch that needed fixing, no bedside table with a drawer knob missing.

Breakfast was the usual cold and hot buffets that were of excellent quality. The scrambled and fried eggs were delicious and I even indulged in porridge on one morning (which I haven’t done for many years).

All the staff were polite, attentive and seemed genuinely friendly (no silent automatons here and this only added to the good feeling towards the place.

If you're travelling by train then it's location couldn't be better - it actually adjoins the station and you're staying slap bang in the centre of the city.

Now you’re probably thinking that this isn't going to be a cheap option but you can get a really good deal here if you search the net. Fifty pounds per person for bed and breakfast in a hotel of this quality and this location is exceptional for me.

If / when I next stay in Leeds then I can't see me looking elsewhere.