zagy

Was at Le Meridien Piccadilly and I think that this is a hit and miss property. If you're lucky enough to be upgraded to a Suite, chances are you'll like it a bit more but during the summer, upgrades to suites are probably quite rare.

The lounge, while nice to have, isn't really anything special. Others above me have writen a very accurate description of it. It's crowded and often has screaming children in it. As a platinum, you get free access to it, so it's good enough for some coffee but it's certainly not worth paying for.

I can certainly say, that I'm choosing something else next time I'm in London...

conroy

I stayed at this property for 3 nights a few weeks ago, so I'll post my experiences here.

I booked a suite using points since I have a daughter that I do not want in another room. We were booked into a junior suite which had a somewhat-separate living area and sofa bed. It was during Wimbledon and the hotel was quite full. In the past I had been upgraded to nicer suites, but given that the hotel was full, I can understand that was not possible this time.

The hotel is in a great location, near the tube, etc. We used the breakfast lounge since I was platinum and they did not charge my daughter. The lounge had a brisk business during all times od the day during our stay. Lots of people on vacation.

I was generally happy with the service I got at the hotel - at times the hotel has gotten a bad rap for service, but my experience has been good during the times I have stayed there. I will say that the place was "busy" during my stay, which makes sense given when I was there.

I stay at the Park Lane for work (as my work won't pay for le meridian) and to compare the two properties:
* park lane has a more formal old-school English breakfast (though I can't recall how that gets charged on the plat amenity)
* the park lane is older and le meredien has been upgraded more recently.
* The water is "soft" in London - I have a hard time getting soap off me at any of the properties at which I have stayed.


I book le meridian since I think it is a bit nicer (and more expensive) since I want my family to have a nice vacation.

I obviously have stayed there multiple times and it is my preferred SPG property in central London.

Astrophsx

If you can get upgraded to the regular suite there is a lot of room. Two bathrooms, living room, sitting area for tea/coffee. The pool in the basement is nice to have. London definitely isn't the best city for SPG award redemptions.

hgadhia

Stayed at this property in early July and it's now my favorite property in London. I've stayed a bunch of times at Park Lane and Knightsbridge before, and have not stayed at the W or the St Regis. So among the "mid-tier" hotels, Piccadilly is by far the best, especially if you are a Plat. We were fortunate in that we got an upgrade to an Exec Suite, which had a ton of space and two bathrooms. The room was very tastefully furnished and had everything we needed. The service was also excellent.

At check-in the staff was very warm and welcoming. The GM stopped by to say hello. After we were finishing checking in, they realized that our room wasn't ready yet, so they had a staffer escort us to the Lounge and help us get some refreshments while we waited. In 15 minutes when the room was ready, another staffer came to tell us that we could go up. The Lounge itself was very good overall. Very busy most of the time, and the breakfast options were limited, but the staff was attentive to refilling all of the breads and other items that were available. It's really more of a continental breakfast rather than a full breakfast, but the nice thing is that they do allow you to be in the lounge and order of the restaurant menu and they bring it to your table in the lounge (extra charge to your room of course, but a very nice way to get a more complete meal).

All in, an excellent stay. Great location, very central to everything you'd want to see and a perfect property with nicely appointed finishes and a staff that's service oriented.

Mixer552

Can anyone comment on the breakfast in the lounge for PLATS or other Plat breakfast options at Le Méridien Piccadilly hotel? Considering staying here at the end of March 2014 with my family.

milesmuncher

Breakfast in the lounge is adequate but nothing special. More of a "typical US" lounge spread than an "international" spread, but it gets the job done if you're just looking for some sustenance.

I wrote a trip report on my stay at this property a few months ago (includes a photo of the lounge breakfast spread if you scroll to the bottom): http://first2board.com/foodwineandmi...adilly-london/

willphillipson

Staying at the LM Piccadilly presently. Was quite surprised by the changes in the lounge this morning - not sure when this happened. Pastries, bread, cereals and fruit salad were there, but gone where the cold meats, fish, etc.

If you're a PLAT, instead of taking the points as your welcome gift, take the breakfast. That's the full breakfast in the restaurant, which is a massive buffet as well as eggs, etc, made to order. Really great value for a multi-day stay, especially with a family.

3rdworldresident

Stayed here for 2 nights few days ago.

Use sna to secure an executive suite. got approved 5 days in advance. Quite impressed.

I arrived the hotel at 8pm from gatwick airport so it was quite a long journey to come here. Location is absolutely perfect. shops, restaurants and so many attractions are all around, very centralized.The check-in process went smooth and efficient. The front desk agent who checked me in was very nice and helpful.

I got the suite on 5th floor. The suite itself is very spacious and nice but little dated though.

I did participate in make a green choice program. So, no housekeeper entered my room to replenish bottled water or toiletries at all (can anyone tell me they should do it or not?). No turndown service too. Poor housekeeping services i thought.

English breakfast was included in my rate so i took 500 starpoints as platinum amenity. On the first morning, was told by the waitress that i can have anything i want from the buffet and also i can order any options from a la carte menu too. Personally i think the buffet and food ordered from a la carte menu were not up to par with most asian properties. However the service was quite nice though.

On 2nd morning, was told by another waitress that i can only choose an omelette option from a la carte menu plus the buffet. So im not sure which ones is correct. Also the service this morning was poorer too.

About the club lounge. Overall it was nice enough but could be better too. i did't use it much. Nothing to mention about.

the gym and the pool looked very nice and attractive to me. but im too tired and exhausted after wandering around london all day.

Overall this was quite an average stay. But this hotel would be my first choice when going to london because of its location and price (although im much a fan of W).

Thanks for reading and sorry for my poor english.

RAPC

Your English puts many of us native English speakers to shame! ^

Good to hear they were swift to process the SNA for you and thanks for sharing your thoughts about your stay.

m0mo

i checked in the other night and they pre blocked a deluxe room for me (platinum). when i asked about a suite, they checked availability and said the next day. they asked me to pack up and switch rooms the next day. i agreed only to find out the room didn't actually exist.

a few instances of bad service.. when asking the concierge about a few suggestions for the area and a power adapter. he decided he really needed to make a phone call (dialed out) after my first question. maybe this is a cultural thing. i asked about a power adapter and he said he would send one up. after waiting for close to an hour, no such delivery occurred. i went back downstairs to find another gentleman there. he didn't even see a written note about it.

when i asked about a cab in the morning, the doorman offered to get one. not many cabs in london take card so the first 2 didn't work out. he said don't worry he would find one. then he walked inside to assist some people at the concierge desk. i had to go inside after a few minutes to ask the front desk. is this normal?

matt_smithers

Just completed a weekend stay, property all-in-all is nice, location is its key selling argument if you can shoot a cheap rate (170++ was mine) My room was pre-upped to a club room as no suites were available. I was keen to have the full bf as platinum amenity, however i was denied that since breakfast was part of the club room benefits (???). Stephane made a note at the front desk being allowed for the bf at the terrace, at checkout i was quoted the full price for bf despite having signed any bill for it (???). In the end they waived it from my bill, not sure about other's experiences. Lounge in general is convenient for a hot tea after walking in the cold the whole day avoiding overcrowded cafes along regent, oxford and piccadilly street enjoying some peace and quiet off peak afternoons. a nice perk but not worth paying for.

ac/elite

I was upgraded to a suite in November for a week long stay. I inquired at check-in about eating breakfast in the restaurant and they gave me a preprinted card to show the hostess at the Terrace that said "you've been upgraded" on it or something to that effect. I was never charged for breakfast. So, I guess the key is getting that card to show them.

martusd

I used 8 suite nights and was told that I have been upgraded to a junior suite which is listed as 535 square feet on the website. Was checked-in and fund that my room measures a paltry 280 sq ft and that is being generous in measurements, includes the closet/bathroom etc.

I asked to have my suite nights put back as a nominal upgrade to a club room would be better.

Would the judge/jury of flyertalk advise if that is a fair request as I do not want to repack and change rooms at this point.

Many thanks,

Dave

ma91pmh

That would seem fair to me. You'd get my jury vote

Crazy4Birds

Comments from a 5 night stay:

The good:
1) You can't beat the location, as you can walk to most attractions, including the theatres.
2) Very friendly front desk staff.
3) Excellent fitness center.

The bad:
1) Management seems to use the excellent location as an excuse to be extremely cheap. There is a chronic problem with understaffing the crowded club lounge. They do put out some wine, put it is the cheapest wine I've seen in a club lounge.
2) Very poor platinum recognition---worst I've seen at a major hotel.
3) As others have commented, the club lounge is not only crowded but noisy, and things run out and aren't replenished.
4) Sometimes, when the club lounge would get really crowded and there were no seats at breakfast, they would send people up to the regular buffet, but they steadfastly refused to let us use our platinum amenity to access the buffet---said club lounge or nothing, repeatedly (at least they were consistent about it!)
5) My plat ambassador requested a quiet room, inward facing on a high floor. Hotel said no record of request, and gave us a loud room, outward facing, on a low floor. Ambassador called them again, and they moved us, to a different outward facing room on a low floor. Solution: Silicone ear plugs for the entire stay.

Wouldn't stay here again. I've stayed club level at the Hilton and know what a nice hotel in London is like.