Introduction

This will be a slightly longer review than I'd normally post as it looks like I'm the first FTer to visit and review the new 4* Canopy London City. I have made it quite comprehensive to cover as many likely queries Flyer Talkers may have, but if you have any questions, let me know. The FT review section is not allowing me to uplaod photos so I will try and add them after.

It's the first Canopy in the UK and the staff were proud to be the 'Lifestyle' brand's flagship property in the UK. It opened just over a week ago. The hotel has 14 floors and is due to have a lounge bar/restaurant on the ground floor as well as a top floor terrace bar. Neither of these are open yet except for breakfast, which does currently limit the hotel's appeal in an area of London not known for its dining options.

Service

Overall service was excellent - especially for a new hotel which are often beset with service related issues. There was one hiccup (more on that later) but otherwise the service was friendly and proactive.

Location

Thie picture  below is taken from the entrance to Aldgate tube station (Circle & Metropolitan lines) and shows how close the hotel is. It's less than a minute's walk between hotel and tube. Fir foreign visitors, the Circle Line will also take you direct to Paddington for trains to Heathrow. Within 5mins walk is Tower Gateway DLR Station for access to Canary Wharf.

In terms of tourist sights, Canopy sits at the furthest east of the main tourist drag - I strolled to the Tower of London and Tower Bridge in under 10mins.

Check In

I had noticed on the App that I had already been upgraded from a King Room to a Premium King Room due to status and this was confirmed at check in. Ultimately the Premium rooms are the same as the normal King rooms but with added amenities, including bathrobe, slippers and slipper socks. There is a plan to provide guests with Premium rooms or higher with a premium breakfast experience in the top-floor terrace. As this restaurant isn't open yet however, the only real difference as far as I can tell is the robes.

Late checkout was pro-actively offered and I accepted. My key card was then timed to expire at the later time before being handed over. I also mentioned I would like to use the gym and had to sign the waiver. At this point my card was re-programmed with access to the fitness facilities.

In my room was a welcome note recognising my status next to a gift of sparkling juice, an eyemask and a Canopy branded notebook.

Room

My room was on the 9th floor. Even number rooms look East towards Greenwich and the odd numbers look back towards the skyscrapers of the City. I had an even number and while the immediate view was better on the opposite, City side, the view across London to the lights of Canary Wharf was decent.

The room is very smart and well appointed. It has an open wardrobe but cupboards that hit the min-fridge, safe and iron etc. A Nespresso coffee machine was provided as well as a kettle. There was a refillable glass water bottle which could be filled at the 'Pantry' on each floor where there was a water fountain tap and ice machine. This was the only water provided and was chilled direct from the tap so it didn't matter that it wasn't in the fridge on arrival. Personally, I like this renewable, plastic saving idea.

Design is a key feature of the brand and the hallways and rooms had art influenced and designed by East London designers to reflect the local area. The room was well finished everywhere except the ceiling, which was left open to the concrete above - a bold design concept which actually worked well.

The desk was a decent size for work and had UK, European and USD power. The desk chair was fairly comfortable with decent enough back support for a day's work.

There were master light switches for all main lights on both sides of the bed as well as UK and USB power. On one side was a Bluetooth radio alarm clock with a wireless charging pad (which worked as I used it to charge my phone).

The air conditioning worked really well, was easy to use and was moderately quiet. The bed was comfortable - I'd describe it as 'medium-firm' - and I slept well overall.

There is a large 49inch TV in the room but no connectivity. This really annoys me with modern TVs which have been programmed with the Hilton hospitality screens. The options to connect wirelessly or by HDMI are blocked. In a world where most people stream from their various devices rather than watch live TV, this was disappointing for a new hotel.

Bathroom

The bathroom is entered through a soft-closing sliding door which is a cool design but isn't sealed to the same extent of a normal door, thus allowing the release of some steam and I would guess odours should any linger in the bathroom.

The shower was great with rainfall and handheld shower heads and good water pressure. Toiletries were provided by Apvita in 50ml individual plastic bottles - so much for the refill, reuse ethos of the drinking water!
 

Dining

The Lobby Bar looks really good. It certainly feels like an upscale bar and was providing a free gin tasting on the night I was there between 18:00 and 20:00. There is some sort of tasting or happy hour event every evening which is a nice touch and adds a buzz to the otherwise quiet bar.

As mentioned previously, the main restaurant and bar are not yet open so your options for food post-breakfast are light bites a the lobby bar or a hot room service menu. Room service is available 24/7. I tried this out and ordered a pizza which ended up arriving 2 hours after ordering. While fine the pizza wasn't of a quality where it was worth the wait. The hotel waived all charges for the pizza as service recovery. This was the only issue I had in terms of service.

Amenities

Just beyond the lobby bar, there is a cool, cosy little 'quiet area' with lots of access to power outlets, presumably to act as somewhere more relaxed and comfortable to get some work done.

The hotel has a number of 'Canopy bikes' - a feature of all canopy hotels. These are available to borrow to explore the city, if you dare take on the notorious London streets!

Gym

The basement level hosts the Fitness Centre, which consisted of a decent gym with brand new equipment incorporating both cardio and weights. This included a peloton-style bike (Technogym's version) which I tried out and was really impressed with. The gym isn't huge but I was the only person in the gym for my entire 1hr+ workout. The hotel was nowhere near capacity yet so it could get busy down underground, especially if this hotel attracts a 'young professional' crowd. There were also lockers, changing rooms and showers attached to the gym.

Breakfast

Breakfast was laid out in the Penny Squares restaurant so even though it wasn't open officially, I still got to see the space, which was very design-focussed and bright.

The breakfast spread was really good and the service was pro-active and efficient. The waitress offered to make me tea while I was collecting my food so it was at my table by the time I sat down. I'll mostly let the pictures speak for themselves with the breakfast but one thing I must add is that the pastries and muffins were delicious - fresh and tasty. The bread selection was also varied and fresh.

In addition to what you can see in the pictures, a automatic coffee machine was available to make all sorts of coffee drinks plus hot chocolates and hot water for tea. Gluten free and vegan options were available.

Overall

I really enjoyed my stay at the Canopy. I chose it on this occasion as I was on a personal trip and could be a bit more flexible with location. When I'm working, I always choose a hotel based on ease of access to where I'm based for the day and I rarely have business on this side of the City. That said, as a base for a personal trip it's a good jumping off point for exploring East London, including Shoreditch, Hoxton, Tower Hill and Spitalfields. The building is smart inside and out and felt classy throughout. For a new hotel the standard of service was excellent and I hope they can keep this up as occupancy rates increase. I will not be going back until the restaurant and bar are open but I'm interested in seeing what the hotel is like once it's properly up and running. I hope this provides a decent guide as to what to expect at this welcome new addition to Hilton's London portfolio. If you have any questions, I'll try to answer them.