khabah

Stayed in August. Renovations are moving slowly, and staff wouldn’t say when they expected completion. I’d assume by now that a small amount of the renovated inventory is online as some rooms on the third floor looked close to being done. If anything, ask the staff for a renovated room when you reach out or check in.

Lounge is gone and there is no replacement.

khabah

Dav77

I just have spent here 2 not consecutive nights

the first one I’ve been upgraded at Junior Suite (not renovated one). The room is very large, even if, of course, old style. But very comfortable, silent, quiet and very well heated






the second night I’ve been upgraded (with also very early check in at 10.00 AM) at Deluxe Room (renovated one). It’s luxurious, super comfortable, completely insulated. But quite small ...

in both cases the rooms were perfectly clean, full of amenities (Nespresso machine / lot of water / kits / etc)






it has been a very pleasant stay on both the nights

the hotel itself is very big, charming, very nice bar area and restaurant also. I would say the rates (and prices at restaurant) are low. Full dinner x 2 with very good Bulgarian red wine at less that 80€. That because Sofia itself is cheap city.

there is a Casino also inside.

this hotel is really in city center, just 50 mt from metro station. The private parking is very comfortable (you can park in front of hotel entrance).

the staff is kind, polite and helpful

I had also 1 night stay at Sense Hotel Sofia and, even if newer, I would prefer to come back again at Sofia Balkan. (The parking at Sense is not so comfortable like at Balkan - small entrance just on the street). Really nothing to complain even at Sense.

Dav77

they are doing slow renovations

considering that the renovated rooms have green door (while the “old” rooms have brown doors) I would say they are at 30-35% of renovation .... at least on 2nd and 4th floors.

no executive lounge, but to be honest, you can have 2 draugh beers and a big salad at the bar for less than 15€

nufnuf77

Looks interesting, I am trying to decide between the HYATT, IC and this LC. Currently leaning towards Hyatt, but could be persuaded. What worries me is marriott inconsistency in providing benefits during covid...

Kara5930

In the last week I had to visit Hotel Balkan and Hotel Sense, here are my impressions briefly :
Hotel Balkan : They gave me an Executive Suite, I had booked the cheapest room. The room was huge, though not renovated, but extremely comfortable with a nice view. There was a coffee machine. I had to leave early in the morning and I can't say anything about breakfast. The hotel is in a top position in the city center and next to the metro station, there is a small parking lot.
Hotel Sense (DEsign Hotels) : Very modern hotel with very comfortable room. They gave me the biggest room with a balcony (I think it's called executive). There was a coffee machine again. I left early again and I can't say anything about breakfast. The interesting thing here is that the shampoos are in large bottles installed in the bathroom - for the first time I see such a solution in a five-star hotel in Europe. The location of the hotel is also excellent.
Hyatt : This hotel is the newest, I think it was opened two months ago. Its location is worse than the previous two, but I think there is a large parking lot.

howtofreetravel

Go for the ic book a club room it is much better

hugolover

I had a truly awful Mojito at their hotel bar. Chopped mint floating at the top of the glass with lemons.

“Luxury Collection” needs to be sanctioned by the ASA.

skrosvik

Here now. I have visited Sofia annually for 20 years now, and Balkan has always been my to-go hotel here. Haven't been here since Aug 20 though, due to covid. I must say the service standards have dropped. However, I hear from friends that they have severe trouble getting enough staff. They have always had a huge turnover of staff here, probably due to various management. They do give great upgrades here - now in one of their huge corner executive suites facing the parking lot and the Council of Ministers building, these are my favourite rooms at this hotel. Airy living rooms with ample seating options. Very comfortable, but they are in dire need of renovations. The bathroom fixtures are barely functioning and the sewage wont take the water away when showering, have to put it on a minimum and/or turn the water off every now and then. Some of the electrical sockets aren't working either. Furniture has seen better days. Many Luxury Collection hotels use Byredo, but here they use some cheap Greek stuff I have never heard of. Funny thing is that in their renovated, but small, although nice, rooms they have good quality Nespresso machines, whilst in their suites they have barely working mystery-brand-machines. They have installed new LED-tvs, but in the bedroom they haven't removed the old tv-cabinet - they have just placed the new tv on top of it, meaning the tv is 2 meters above the floor. Bar is open til 11 PM. I love this hotel for all it's quirkiness, and it definitely have history and soul, and I will stay here next time I come to Sofia as well, for sure They treat their elites great by providing nice upgrades. But they miss out on the details - like umbrellas for example - raining today and I approached front desk to loan an umbrella (it's a LC, after all), but was told that they did not have any umbrellas for guest use.

A friend, who works in the hospitality industry here in Sofia, took me on a tour at the Hyatt today. It's a nice property! Location is good, close to the cathedral and an abundance of restaurants and bars in the immediate area. The club lounge was large, with a nice outdoor patio. There was a nice pool there. The rooms looked crisp and nice. Suites were smaller than here at the Balkan though. But very modern, with Chromecast, proper coffeemachines and high quality fixtures and furniture. The hotelbar looked nice. We had a light dinner and some drinks at their casual restaurant Revolution and it was great! Cool vibe - the restaurant was filled with locals, avoiding that sterile hotel feeling. Food was great and the drinks were nicely crafted. The FB prices were a bit lower than here at the Balkan. Staff seemed serviceminded and eager to please throughout the hotel.

So if you want a modern and serviceminded hotel, and/or have status, I would definately recommend the Hyatt. I don't have any status with Hyatt so I will continue to stick to the Balkan (due to the upgrades). But I am not sure how well this hotel fits into the Luxury Collection idea and branding...

skrosvik

Weird. The hotel just announced that they left the Marriott portfolio on January 1st, i.e. three days ago...

"Dear partners,

Please be kindly informed that starting from 01st of January 2023, Sofia Balkan Palace will not be part of Marriott chain and The Luxury Collection brand.

After many years of successful cooperation, we decided to operate independently in the months to come, until we choose a Brand to match the unique heritage and story of Sofia Balkan Palace for the city of Sofia!

Having said that, please find our web page which will soon be active as independent place for all the news about our hotel.

www.sofiabalkanpalace.com

With great pleasure we announce that in the first quarter of 2023 we are starting to refurbish our premises!

So stay tuned, a lot of nice news are coming from us very soon.

All the best,

Have a great holiday season,

Best regards,

Sofia Balkan Palace Team"

Kara5930

The hotel of the same company in Belgrade, which was also from the luxury collection, is no longer visible in the reservation system. Most likely it will not be part of Marriott either.

khabah

Good riddance to the Metropol Palace, my experience at that hotel was that its hard product wasn't up to par and the service is a total disaster. As for the Balkan, it was heading in the right direction with their long overdue renovation but it's taking too long.

Wonder who they're going to sign with next.

khabah

Kara5930

In the summer, they upgraded me at the Metropol Palace Hotel and gave me the presidential suite for one night...

skrosvik

Seems like Metropol Palace issued the very same statement today:

"Dear guests and partners,
Please be kindly informed that starting from 01st of January 2023, Metropol Palace is no longer a part of Marriott chain and The Luxury Collection brand.
After many years of successful cooperation, we decided to operate independently in the months to come, until we choose a Brand to match the unique heritage and story of Metropol Palace Hotel for the city of Belgrade!
Having said that, please find our web page which is active as independent place for all the news about our hotel.
www.metropolpalace.com
For all the reservations, please contact:
[email protected]
With great pleasure we announce that in the first quarter of 2023 we are starting to refurbish our premises!
So stay tuned, a lot of nice news are coming from us very soon.
All the best,
Have a great holiday season,
Best regards,
Metropol Palace Team"

Stayed there once, but weren't too happy about it....poor quality hardware and hit and miss service. The location was a bit off too. Sofia Balkan, however, have been my go-to hotel in Sofia for more than 20 years, and have tons of great memories here. Yeah, a lot can be said about the hotel - tired and outdated, poor service, and so on. It used to have a tiny club lounge and some great associates, but they all disappeared a while ago. The location is great - in the middle of the city, and room rates were very reasonable. But yeah, as mentioned previously, the renovations were super slow,....on my visit last year they seemed to have ceased the renovation works. Always received great upgrades here, to huge suites.... Sad to see this one go. But without upgrades, breakfast and points I will not stay here.

Time to try out the new Hyatt, or the IC, both in a great location. Sense Hotel isn't my cup of tea.

Dav77

sad to read about that.

I usually stayed here (and at the Sense hotel as well) when in Sofia for business and never had any issue

to be honest, I always preferred the Balkan because the very comfortable parking and because the Sense hotel have the bad attitude to invoice separately the restaurant and no points

the renovated rooms at the Balkan are very nice, even if not so big but the rates came always around 100/120€

ajamieson

I will miss both hotels, I actually liked the Belgrade Metropole (service issues aside) and always had good rooms there.