SkiAdcock

You mean like all the others who will be doing the same on St. Valentine's Day? Methinks there will be options, but he'd have to pay for them.

Cheers.

hts

Thanks. Based on your feedback, I may very well switch over to the JW Grosvenor. I like the historic look of St Pancras, and their lounge seems to be well received, but it's a bit out of the way in terms of location, and a possible upgraded room would be nice. Not to mention I fully expect the JW's service to be exemplary and at least a notch above most, if not all, of the other Marriott properties I'm considering.

hockeyinsider

J.W. does give welcome amenities like cheese plates and wine. I think for Valentine's Day they would probably do something special, particularly if you let them know ahead of time and were inclined to tip and/or pay.

I've had Marriott properties put Christmas trees in my room for free before. You'd be surprised what a good hotel for free will do if a customer just asks.

hockeyinsider

I think the hustle and bustle in the precincts of St. Pancras might be a bit too much, especially if you're thinking of a romantic getaway in London.

The J.W. is the obvious choice. The neighborhood is wonderful and a world removed from the more touristy parts of London. Of course, it's also a very, very expensive neighborhood. Residents park $250,000-plus cars on the side of the streets with apparently no concern that a hooligan will key the car or a thief will steal it.

I don't know your budget, but another options, which would cost you significantly fewer points, is the Marriott hotel in Maida Vale. It's a nice, local neighborhood that isn't too far away from the touristy parts of London.

SkiAdcock

If I was doing a romantic trip to London & wanted to see the touristy sites, I'd stick w/ the Cat 8/9s, and save the points/$ on a future trip.

Cheers.

Orange County Commuter

I am visiting a friend who lives in an apartment near Barbican Center (Liverpool Station Tube stop)

Right now I am at the JW, but looking at my options on points. Threadneedles is much closer, but reviews on Flyertalk are kind of mixed and the lack of a lounge is a negative.

Just about everything else is an option too. I would like a decent lounge which is why I went with the JW, but was wondering what people think. A workout room would also be a positive.

I think County Hall is closer, but for some reason it has no appeal for me (probably reviews on here) nor does St. Pancreas (I am not willing to pay for the upgrade to the "good" wing on top of the points!)

My personal preference in the past has been the Marriott Kensington and looking at the map it's really about the same distance, wondering if I should just stay there and save the 20K points.

Suggestions? Am I missing a good option. (Marriott's map and I have not been getting along!)

qofmiwok

Anybody know the status of the JW Marriott Grosvenor House room remodels? I heard the suites were being finished in 2017, but I'm going to London next week, and as a gold I'm not sure I'll get a suite upgrade. The regular and regular executive rooms as still showing as old on their website.

hockeyinsider

I don't know why the Marriott Maida Vale gets no love on here.

Srisarin

Likely because it doesn't deserve any (except for being generally the cheapest Marriott in London, if you're looking only for cheap)

hockeyinsider

Good question. When I stayed there in November 2015 the executive lounge had just been renovated and the lobby was underway. By 2016, the lobby was done and rooms were supposedly being renovated but I saw no evidence of it. I've also seen no reports since then that any of the rooms were renovated.

The hotel itself has been for sale (or was -- if it's been sold) for like 3 years:

qofmiwok

I actually had the Maida Vale booked but cancelled it after reading all the reviews. Many people bagged on it saying they couldn't believe it had been remodeled, as it certainly didn't look like it. The lounge seemed pretty crappy too.

Orange County Commuter

I did stay there once. I was not really that impressed with the location. Probably wouldn't add it back to my list.

I am torn between the Kensington and JW. There's no doubt JW is a lot nicer and considering its only a 20,000 points more it's probably the winner, but the truth is I really like the area around the Kensington.....

Orange County Commuter

Any feedback on the new Residence Inn London Bridge? Location doesn't look bad for what I need, the first reviews on TripAdvisor look OK, but... I tend to trust Flyertalk more!

SkiAdcock

We haven't had any reports yet. If you do stay there, please post a trip report in the property thread:

http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/marri...+London+Bridge

Thx! Cheers.

jsmeeker

A few weeks back, I was in London for 8 nights. Five of those were at the Renaissance St. Pancras on a points stay.

At first, I was super excited to stay here. Then started to second guess the choice based on some reviews. But I decided to go ahead with it. I'm really glad I did.

First, the building is spectacular. A grand Victorian structure beautifully restored. St. Pancras railway station, with it's massive arched roof above the platforms serving the Eurostar trains, is really something to see. Big beautiful lobby. Look at that blue iron work. Just great.

I arrived early afternoon, coming from a hotel in The City. I had booked just the regular room. The "smaller room" or whatever it is they call it. Walked up to desk, was greeted and offered a cool glass of water. Front desk person told me they had a room with two beds. I really wanted a single, larger bed. I asked if I could get one with a larger bed. She went off and checked. Yup.. Sure.. But it's not ready now. They took my bags and off I went for some fish and chips in a place nearby in Bloomsbury.

Got back to hotel. Room was available. Top floor (7th floor). I was "warned" the window would be smaller. Got to room. It's really not than small. Have had smaller rooms. Plenty of space for a single person, though. Even for five nights. The window was smaller. But that was fine. looked out over the British Library

Room was nice. bed was OK. I had read some negative reviews about the bed. And while it wasn't great, it wasn't so bad. Really, I think I struggled with the shower the most. Big step up and into and down out of the tub/shower. Everything else was fine. Very fluffy robes.

Good cocktails and down in the very busy Booking Office restaurant and bar.

Location wise, I think it's actually great. YES, Euston Road is very very busy.. But once you get off of that, things quiet down. Transport is outstanding. I don't think there is a better transit hub in London. Direct service on underground to Heathrow. Direct train service to Gatwick. Eurostar trains to the continent in St. Pancras. You can get right into the station via the Booking Office. Trains up to Edinburgh via adjacent Kings Cross. A short walk down the street, Euston station. Trains up the west coast line. Glasgow. And of course, a ton of other places from those three different main line railways stations. SIX different Underground lines. Tons of busses too. Really, you can get a whole lot of places pretty easily from that hotel.

I did have some doubts. But glad I stayed. Would totally recommend. Especially if your holiday involves a flight to/from Heathrow or Gatwick PLUS a train that uses St. P or Kings Cross or even Euston. So convenient.


Of course, next time, I may very well give another Marriott a go (first stay a few years ago was at the JW Marriott). Maybe County Hall. Or the St. Ermins. Or Threadneedles (I really like staying in The City for the first part of my trip)