We have family in Driffield and as this is the only hotel in the town we are not exactly spoilt for choice. It's not the quirky chintz of the rooms that are off-putting, personally I find the faded tatty wallpaper and dusty tassels on the lampshade remind me of my childhood in the 70s, nor is it the dirty communal areas or that peculiar smell of old hotels - that is part of the unique charm of The Bell.
Nor is it the piece of carpet tacked to the top of the door frame onto the "en suite" - I use the term with some leeway as it's actually a damp windowless room with a tired 70s wash hand basin, a narrow bath and a wobbly toilet seat - that we have come to accept.
No - what really merits the poor rating of this, our third visit to The Bell, is the car parking facilities. The car park is small, very small and when we checked in at 6:00pm it was full. So full that I had no room to turn around and had to reverse out into the main road. I had no option but to park in the town centre. I tried again at 10:00pm hoping that some of the cars would have gone - but no! Still no where to park. In the end we were forced to park outside our relatives home and walk twenty minutes back to the hotel.
As I write this I am lying on the bed listening to the riff raff of Driffield run around outside the front of our room and thinking how lucky we are to have somewhere safe to leave the car. I'm also thinking about how long the drawing pins have been holding up this canopy over the bed in this "executive" room. I would recommend The Bell to those of an adventurous spirit, keen walkers or people who want the full Fawlty Towers experience. less