Hotel Metropole (Boulogne-sur-Mer, France)

With its positioning on a main shopping street, close to the City square and within walking distance to the port, the Metropole is centrally located. Rather handily for onward travel, the Eurotunnel can be reached within 30-minutes.

Luxury it is not, but neither does the hotel claim to be. Most guests find the rooms to be good value for money; basic yet spacious and very clean, with plenty of natural light.

You can be assured of a warm, friendly welcome from the reception team upon your arrival and the desk is open 24-hours a day. Many, but not all, of the staff speak English so it may be worth polishing up on your French beforehand.

For those travelling with valuable cargo, the hotels secure garage may prove invaluable. Spaces are limited, a fee is due and you must be booked beforehand, however, it is private and saves on hours of searching for a suitable spot in the busy streets around the hotel.

Whether it be late night revellers walking past the hotel in the early hours, or the local seagulls squawking at dawn, previous guests have commented on the level of noise disturbance which can be experienced by rooms at times. On the plus side, despite its main-road location, the street below is a pedestrian zone during the day, so traffic noise is kept to a minimum.

Given that rooms are otherwise comfortable and well-equipped, previous guests have been surprised that no tea and coffee making facilities are supplied. Wi-Fi is also intermittent and the TV, apparently, has just one English-speaking channel available so you may find yourself missing some home comforts.