Guests gave the chain, which has 61 hotels across the UK, one star out of five in almost every category including value for money and food and drink.

In the survey of more than 8,000 hotel guests, Britannia was described as ‘filthy’, ‘dreadful’ and ‘scruffy’.

A Which? investigator who checked into the Britannia Lodge at Gatwick reported damp smells and a ‘grubby’ bathtub.

EasyHotel and Ibis Budget also ranked among the worst hotel chains.

While EasyHotel managed to avoid any one-star ratings, it was classed as mediocre in most categories, earning two stars in areas including bathrooms, bed comfort and bedrooms.

Ibis Budget was rated three stars for customer service, value for money and cleanliness but it scored just one star for quality of rooms and food.

At the other end of the scale, Wetherspoon Hotels was ranked joint first place for the first time alongside reigning champion Premier Inn.

Wetherspoon, where rooms start from £39 a night, was the most likely chain to be rated excellent for value of money.

Guests praised Premier Inn for being ‘consistently clean, comfortable and affordable’.

Rory Boland, travel editor at Which?, said: “There really is no excuse for the grubby bathtubs and filthy rooms that we have seen year after year with Britannia so it is best to avoid them completely and go almost anywhere else.

“If you are looking for a cheap and cheerful stay in the centre of town you would be better off choosing the ever-reliable Premier Inn or a Wetherspoon Hotel, where even with paying extra for breakfast you can expect extraordinarily good value for money.”