Holiday Inn Helsinki West Ruoholahti (Master Thread)
Sep 21, 2015, 6:55 am
#1
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Holiday Inn Helsinki West Ruoholahti (Master Thread)
Recently returned from this hotel and thought it worth sharing some thoughts.
I'd been able to grab this hotel for four nights in early Aug. when the PB promo came up and for 5K per night found it a very good value but the hotel isn't without some quirks most notably the location a bit of a commute to the city center sights. The underground Metro station is a block away and the second stop is at the city's main railway station which is a 5 - 10 minute walk from there to most of the city center sights. Trams and busses are also available but a little harder to navigate easily so would recommend sticking to the Metro.
My stay was a standard queen room in this non-smoking hotel on the sixth floor with a view of the circular driveway and office building opposite. A fairly functional room that could be updated as décor seems mid-90's. I found the room quite warm, 75 - 77 degrees Fahrenheit, for the first few days before it dropped back to a more moderate 72 degree room temperature by the end of the four night stay. There was a bundle of wires underneath the bedside nightstand that looked a little unsightly and the TV being out throughout the whole hotel for a day and a half was also not great. Another quirk I found was no bathroom fan but liked the good water pressure and quick hot water. Shower only but nice adjustable shower wand holder that could be extended to around 7 ft. and made it seem like a fancier rainfall showerhead. Shower stall has wall-mounted shampoo and body wash dispensers.
The award rate excluded breakfast so didn't eat on-site or use the hotel sauna but did use the free computer PC access in the business center to send some emails and do my OLCI. Bring some paper however if wanting to print your BP's as none on hand (luckily I had a blank page in with my travel confirmation I had handy).
The shopping center across from this HI has a convenient K-market smaller supermarket that stays open until 11 PM weeknights and so was a frequent stop for snacks, sodas or beer to stock up the in-room mini-fridge and at much better prices than elsewhere in the tourism zone.
Very friendly staff including one who advised me of an impending city-wide transit strike I hadn't heard about so able to make adjustments.
Overall an average hotel and good if unremarkable stay. Were I to go back to HEL I'd consider this HI again but only if it was at the same PB promo award level and would look elsewhere if not.
I'd been able to grab this hotel for four nights in early Aug. when the PB promo came up and for 5K per night found it a very good value but the hotel isn't without some quirks most notably the location a bit of a commute to the city center sights. The underground Metro station is a block away and the second stop is at the city's main railway station which is a 5 - 10 minute walk from there to most of the city center sights. Trams and busses are also available but a little harder to navigate easily so would recommend sticking to the Metro.
My stay was a standard queen room in this non-smoking hotel on the sixth floor with a view of the circular driveway and office building opposite. A fairly functional room that could be updated as décor seems mid-90's. I found the room quite warm, 75 - 77 degrees Fahrenheit, for the first few days before it dropped back to a more moderate 72 degree room temperature by the end of the four night stay. There was a bundle of wires underneath the bedside nightstand that looked a little unsightly and the TV being out throughout the whole hotel for a day and a half was also not great. Another quirk I found was no bathroom fan but liked the good water pressure and quick hot water. Shower only but nice adjustable shower wand holder that could be extended to around 7 ft. and made it seem like a fancier rainfall showerhead. Shower stall has wall-mounted shampoo and body wash dispensers.
The award rate excluded breakfast so didn't eat on-site or use the hotel sauna but did use the free computer PC access in the business center to send some emails and do my OLCI. Bring some paper however if wanting to print your BP's as none on hand (luckily I had a blank page in with my travel confirmation I had handy).
The shopping center across from this HI has a convenient K-market smaller supermarket that stays open until 11 PM weeknights and so was a frequent stop for snacks, sodas or beer to stock up the in-room mini-fridge and at much better prices than elsewhere in the tourism zone.
Very friendly staff including one who advised me of an impending city-wide transit strike I hadn't heard about so able to make adjustments.
Overall an average hotel and good if unremarkable stay. Were I to go back to HEL I'd consider this HI again but only if it was at the same PB promo award level and would look elsewhere if not.
Last edited by tcook052; Oct 24, 2015 at 10:48 am
