Novotel London Blackfriars
Introduction I stayed here for 4 nights in October 2017. I reached at about 12 noon. They allowed an early check-in as typical check-in time was 2pm. Booked a superior room and got a executive room. Welcome drink coupon was also presented. Room In my opinion, the executive room is huge. Situated at the top 2 floors, it oversees the London Bridge area with some views of St Paul's Cathedral, Tate Muesem and a good view of the Shard.Personally love the smart pillows which you can fold when sitting up and unfold for sleeping! Side beds feature wall sockets and USB ports to charge your phones.Bathroom featured a rain shower and the typical glass partition in Novotels that turns from opaque to clear and vice versa with a touch of a button.Nespresso, tea and 4 bottles (2 sparkling and 2 still) were complimentary.Noise insulation between the rooms were very good. Service Friendly and casual service all over, but not over the top where makes you uncomfortable.As a LCAH plat member, I received a gift (magnet) with a spelling error. So I emailed the GM (whose email was included in the welcome note) and he was on leave! So I forwarded it to the Operations Manager whose email was in the GM's Out of Office reply.Apologies came via email. When I was back in the room later that day, a plate of brownies with an apology letter was on the table. Now, problem was that there was no cutlery to enjoy the brownie! Naturally, I used the teaspoon on the mini bar.A replacement gift (Unexpected) was presented the next day. It was a nice multi connector USB cable with Novotel branding. Personally, the slight hiccup of no cutlery and not changing the email on the welcome note was some slight blemishes to the overall pleasant service all around. Location 2 minutes walk from Southwark Underground station, Jubilee Line.10 minutes walk to Waterloo Underground station.15 minutes walk to Borough Market and London BridgeApprox 25 minutes walk to Tower of London, Shard, Tate and Millenium BridgeIt is about an hour train ride from Heathrow T2. Quite a pain if you just had a long flight, but bearable. Dining Breakfast was included in the rate. The restaurant is located at the on level 1. It turns into a bar later in the day. The atmosphere was great. It's a nice place to people watch as well.Spread was the typical English breakfast and for 4 days, the spread didn't change one bit. However, the quality was great. Overall A 4 star experience at Novotel Blackfrairs and lived up to the reviews on TripAdvisor. I would say that it is one of the better Novotels. Stay here!