MP001

Thanks for your detailed feedback corporate-wage-slave

est-gratuite

I noticed on tripadvisor some of the rooms now have walk-in showers.
Anyone know if this applies to all room categories in the hotel ?

corporate-wage-slave

Unless there has been a sudden change recently, then no. Most rooms, certainly the larger one, have shower over bath.

jamesteroh

Is the breakfast buffet still around or have they changed the breakfast benefit since covid?

pauleeepaul

I have passed this place many times but not stayed. From the outside it looks quite pedestrian.

corporate-wage-slave

Yes, the buffet didn't vanish for very long at this hotel and it's very much back now. As mentioned above, the breakfast area is in the basement, so it's not that exciting a venue, but there's nothing wrong with it and the staff are extra helpful.

Yes, I suppose it is really and it's a bit of a pickle inside in terms of being a much refitted early Victorian building. I see a clear distinction in this forum from those who spend a lot of time inside a hotel they stay in, and those who basically use a hotel as a base. So if things like lounges and gyms and room facilities matter to you then this hotel is somewhat pedestrian and therefore none of the regular London hotel users of this forum come here much. But the location is excellent, it's clean and well run, and so with the right room rate, I think this place should be considered for those either working locally or on a shorter tourism break where the hotel room is more of a base to do other things. So if you were a tourist staying at Bankside, you would lose 30 - 60 minutes a day potentially getting to and from the hotel, whereas this hotel you could quickly drop off shopping in between your other activities.

pauleeepaul

Fair points. If you have a perspective how would you compare it to the DT Marble Arch? I have stayed there and I think many of your comments above would also apply.

corporate-wage-slave

Yes, I would rank West End above Marble Arch, which has the distinct feel of the owners watching every penny a bit too closely. Again fabulous location, and some staff appear to have worked there a long time, but it's one of those places which has to be mega cheap (relative to everywhere else) to attract my interest. It is just a room and a slightly sub par breakfast experience (I think they want a small supplement for cooked options). There again I once had a social event close by, which ran on past midnight and it was really nice just to roll into the room in just a few minutes from the venue. So it's not fundamentally terrible, but it's not high on my list.

est-gratuite

Stayed here recently.
Some brief notes:


Good:

-As many have mentioned already, the central London location is this hotels main (and possibly only) selling point. If you need to be in a central area and can get a good rate it's worth considering. However, do comparisons with other hotels in central London before booking. This is a 3 star property at best in my opinion, and you may be able to get a 4 star hotel at the same price in a central area.
-Windows CAN be opened for fresh air
-2 tube/metro stations (Holborn and Russell Square) very close.
-As Diamond was upgraded from lowest category room to rennovated/refurbished room with wlak-in shower and couch/sofa and bed in separate areas.
-Friendly staff
-Sainsbury's local supermarket just across the street


Bad:

-Some of the rooms have been renovated and refurbished and some have not. I was lucky and got a renovated room with a walk-in shower, but if you are unlucky you may get an old tired room with just a bathtub and funny smells.
-Small elevators
-Small or strange room layouts due to it being an old building.
-No executive lounge in this hotel. (In contrast the Doubletree at Tower Bridge DOES have a lounge)
-It seems no matter how big your room is, it seems the bathroom will always be tiny. This seems to be a problem with all DoubleTree hotels in London. I guess they were all designed with tiny bathrooms in mind. The Doubletree in Ealing and the Doubletree at Tower Bridge also have small bathrooms). My walk in shower was very narrow, and sink area was also small. Towels were kept outside the bathroom as there was no space inside.
-No real views of anything. Rooms facing the street may be noisy, so beware.
-Breakfast is very average.

GentleGiant

Anyone know an email address for this hotel?

rittenhousesq

I recently completed a three night stay at this hotel. I was originally only staying here for one night, but decided to extent to three nights to avoid having to travel to the other end of London to change hotels in the middle of a Tube strike.
Overall I had a very good experience here. The manager, upon learning that I wanted to extend my stay, really went above and beyond to help me out. He was able to get me a very attractive rate (65 pounds per night lower than the rate published on the HH website), and also got me a room upgrade for my second and third nights. I could have had an upgrade for the first night, but would have had to wait an hour for the room to be prepared, and I was too tired at that point and just needed a bed.

The breakfast buffet in the basement, while not exceptional was certainly sufficient and I have to give kudos to the staff who managed to really hustle to keep things moving the second morning when it was very crowded.

My upgraded room was a superior queen and while not huge, was well equipped and the bath had the walk in shower.

I had nothing but good interactions with the staff and you certainly can't beat the location, especially during the middle of a Tube strike, when London was in gridlock.

The only real negative was the lift (elevator) situation. There are two small elevators, but only one was working while I was there, resulting in long waits. So usually when heading down, I just took the stairs.

This is not a flashy hotel by any means, but if you are looking for a comfortable, well run hotel in a great central location, it is a very good option.

EuropeanPete

Just checked in here on a 5 nights point stay and immediately turned around and left. As a Diamond member booking on points I was assigned an unrenovated “single” room which was about 8sqm and actually had a child-style single bed rather than the usual “twin” bed that single rooms in London hotels usually have.

Bit of a waste of my 240,000 points really. I can’t imagine I’ll have any luck reaching the hotel to discuss whether as a goodwill gesture they might want to find a compromise.

GentleGiant

Couldn't they give you another room?

I never book for 1 adult mind. Always 2
​​​​

EuropeanPete

At check-in they were adament there were no rooms to upgrade me to. When I went down again to checkout I was told maybe they'd then be able to find a different room, but by then I'd already booked a few nights at the HR Churchill from where I'm sitting very comfortably writing this post.

corporate-wage-slave

I see that the hotel has Single, Double and Twin, all available at 60k per night. Did you specifically book Single? In which case you aren't in a powerful position.