A disgruntled guest has described his recent overnight stay at the newly rebranded Travelodge on Swindon’s Delta Business Park as “filthy”, accusing the company of fraudulently selling rooms that fall well short of Travelodge’s usual standards.
Damien George Moore, who checked in on the evening of 29th April 2025 after a long drive diverted from the M4, said he was shocked at the state of the hotel, formerly the Campanile. The property was advertised on the Travelodge app as a ‘New Hotel’, but Mr Moore quickly found the reality to be far from the polished image presented online.
“When I arrived, there were staff in the foyer stuffing duvets into covers,” he told The Swindonian. “The carpets on the stairs and corridors were absolutely filthy, and the lift was out of order.” His room on the second floor, he says, was no better. “The carpet was grimy, the bathroom was dirty, and there was no Travelodge branding at all – just the leftover green fittings from the Campanile days.”
Mr Moore raised his concerns with staff that evening. “They admitted they weren’t sure if any other rooms were cleaner,” he explained. “I was too tired to argue after the drive, but it didn’t sit right.”
Come morning, what he discovered beneath the mattress protector was the final straw. “The mattress was vile – stained and filthy. It was completely unacceptable.”
At checkout, Mr Moore asked to speak to the manager and accused the hotel of misleading customers. “I was furious,” he said. “They’re advertising this place as a Travelodge when it doesn’t meet basic standards.” The manager reportedly blamed head office, admitted that new mattresses were on order, but offered little in the way of apology.
After submitting photographic evidence to Travelodge’s customer services, Mr Moore said he exchanged seven emails and opened a PayPal dispute before eventually receiving a refund. “But when I said their response was inadequate, they just closed the case with a generic ‘sorry you’re disappointed’.” 
In an effort to pursue the issue further, he has contacted Citizens Advice in the hope that Trading Standards might intervene. As of now, he has not received a reply – and rooms at the Delta Business Park site are still being advertised.
“They shouldn’t be putting people up in these conditions,” he added. “This isn’t just poor service – it’s misleading and unacceptable.”
In response to the complaint, a spokesperson for Travelodge said:
“We would like to apologise to Mr Moore for his recent experience with us. On this occasion, we fell short of our usual high standards. This hotel was recently acquired from another brand, and we are currently in the process of refurbishing it in line with Travelodge’s quality and comfort standards. We apologise for any disruption this transition may have caused.
“In addition to the full refund we have already paid the customer, we have also offered a complimentary stay as a gesture of goodwill.”
